Comments on: Russian Old Believers in Millville NJ https://www.quakerranter.org/russian-old-believers-in-millville-nj/ A Weekly Newsletter and Blog from Martin Kelley Wed, 07 Feb 2024 04:05:05 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 By: Terry Gaasterland https://www.quakerranter.org/russian-old-believers-in-millville-nj/#comment-948735 Wed, 07 Feb 2024 04:05:05 +0000 http://www.quakerranter.org/?p=16877#comment-948735 My mother’s family was Old Believer and were members this St. Nicholas church. My great-grandparents (mother’s father’s parents) are buried there as are my grandparents on my mother’s side, my mother, and her sister (who died young). Every spring, 6 weeks after Easter, those who are alive gather once a year to clean the graves and plant flowers. I have only been inside the church for funeral services, women on the left, men on the right, everyone stands or sits on a bench along the walls.

Some number of years ago, a development of new houses with white 6‑foot fences sprang up around the cemetary. When there visiting my mother, I looked up and wondered about the young children living behind windows that looked down on her grave… what did they think about this quiet odd spot?

There was a forested area adjacent to the cemetary as well (I haven’t visited since before COVID) where graves of Polish Catholics who were integrated into the Old Believer community were lightly marked with crosses but no names.

Glad to offer more — I have photos, and many lifelong memories.

Some last names from my mother’s side of the family — Kanarchuk, Kavalou, Nachuk, Najorny. They came from Belorus after WWII from a small village called “Kasyevichi”.

]]> By: Mina https://www.quakerranter.org/russian-old-believers-in-millville-nj/#comment-194654 Sun, 07 Oct 2012 16:47:00 +0000 http://www.quakerranter.org/?p=16877#comment-194654 Just found your blog — via a 2004 entry on SPICES testimonies — and started browsing through the S. Jersey entries. I grew up in Millville and my parents still live there. I had never heard of this church. I’m quite curious where it is.

]]> By: Ashley W https://www.quakerranter.org/russian-old-believers-in-millville-nj/#comment-194587 Wed, 14 Mar 2012 20:56:00 +0000 http://www.quakerranter.org/?p=16877#comment-194587 Very interesting!  There are a lot of Old Believers here in Oregon, but I’ve never known much about them.

]]> By: Ricardo https://www.quakerranter.org/russian-old-believers-in-millville-nj/#comment-194586 Wed, 14 Mar 2012 00:43:00 +0000 http://www.quakerranter.org/?p=16877#comment-194586 Fascinating. I was just reading Aleksndr Men and have become quite interested in the Orthodox belief and it’s sects. Greetings from Venezuela

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