Old Sarepta

In 1765, when Katherine the Great was on the Russian throne, a group of German colonials were granted permission to settle along the Volga River. They settled in what is today part of the city of Volgograd (then, south of Tsaritsyn, which is now also part of Volgograd), and began harvesting mustard seeds. They built a town hall, a Lutheran church, and separate dormitories for single men and women.

This small square still exists in southern Volgograd today and "Sarepta", as it is called, is preserved as a sort of museum. These German settlers are credited with bringing a certain kind of mustard-oil to the region. (In fact, in certain grocery stores in that part of the city, you can find the "Sarepta" brand of mustard-seed oil.) To this day, there are a number of German-speaking folk in Volgograd. Interestingly enough, the Lutheran church that they founded still holds services every Sunday and 10:00 a.m. in the German language. (The church is perpetually supplied with pastors from Germany, who each come for a certain stint to serve there.)

The traditional "German/Lutheran" steeple (like one that you might see in "the Sound of Music") looks like an odd oasis amid the grey-concrete buildings that are now grown-up just around it. This steeple is especially interesting in contrast to the onion-shaped domes of the Orthodox cathedrals and monasteries that are more common in the city.

Unless you know where to look for Old Sarepta, you're almost certain to miss this little misplaced "transplant:" The church, the square, the town hall, all with the same simple beige walls. But if you do happen across it, you feel as though you've seen a piece of one culture injected into another. Out of place, perhaps, but a part of the whole. I am reminded that we are not the first "outsiders" to settle here.

May God grant that the steeple of our lives would stand out in this gray land. May Christ be lifted up by the lives of the saints here in Volgograd, and may He draw all men unto himself.