St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church,
Sablino, Russia
The Miami Valley Episcopal Russian Network (MVERN) of the Diocese of Southern Ohio is a unique ecumenical project between Episcopal and Orthodox Churches.
Thirteen churches in southern Ohio, including 11 Episcopal churches and 2 Orthodox churches, have formed a parish partnership with
St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, located in the village of
Sablino, Russia, thirty miles south of St. Petersburg.
Fr. Nikolai Aksenov, their rector, leads a remarkable ministry that encompasses the entire region, including a youth center, an orphanage, a school for developmentally disabled children, a hospital, and a large women’s prison. Twice MVERN has contributed to expanding St. Nicholas RO Church and has donated more than $300,000 in humanitarian supplies and hard currency in support of Fr. Nikolai’s extensive outreach ministry.
Understanding that exchange trips can both broaden and enrich young lives, MVERN has taken 90 American youth to Russia on five mission/pilgrimage trips since 1997. In addition, 25 Russian youth have journeyed from Sablino to Ohio on five separate trips where they stayed in the homes of Episcopal teens and developed personal relationships with American young people. More than 210 American adults, including laypersons, teachers, and clergy, have traveled to Russia with MVERN to see first-hand the work that is being done in Sablino.
St. Nicholas Sanctuary
St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church
After the Bolsheviks dynamited the main church in the village of Sablino in 1938, the congregation of St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church moved their worship services to a small chapel in the Sablino cemetery that later became a church. With financial help from MVERN, the chapel has been enlarged twice to accommodate the rapidly growing congregation. Fr. Nikolai Aksenov has been rector of this village church since 1981. Read More
Fr. Nikolai
Father Nikolai
The son of a Russian Orthodox bishop, Fr. Nikolai Aksenov worked briefly as a railway engineer before graduating from St. Petersburg Theological Seminary. He was ordained in 1980 and has served as the rector of St. Nicholas Church in Sablino since 1981. He is married and the father of three sons. Vanya, the oldest son, graduated from the St. Petersburg Theological Seminary, where the second son, Misha, is a student. Grisha, the youngest son, is in Middle School. Read More
Dr. Igor Tolochin
Dr. Igor Tolochin
Dr. Igor Tolochin serves as a vital link between MVERN and Russia. An accomplished linguist and an academic by profession, Igor is the Russian equivalent of the “Renaissance Man,” comfortably discussing music, art, history, literature, economics, and politics with quiet competence. Sharing his knowledge of all things Russian, Igor serves as guest lecturer and guide on the MVERN adult trips. Read More
Sablino, Russia
Sablino, Russia
The village of Sablino is approximately thirty miles south of St. Petersburg. The rising prosperity of Russia has reached neither Sablino nor hundreds of other villages throughout Russia where life has scarcely changed since the end of communism. Swept along for centuries by a series of repressive governments, most Russians live in what, by western standards, would be considered poverty. Read More
