Freedom For An Old Believer

After the service, Ivan had a chance to talk with Simeon. He showed the old gray-haired and gray-bearded nastoyatel (elder) his grown-up boy Nikolai. The old man took the young lad in his arms and lifted him up on his knee. "Well, tell me, Nikolai," said Simeon in his usual friendly manner whenever he spoke to children, "how old are you now?" "I'm eight years old," answered Nikolai with a wide grin on his face, "and I go to school." The young boy was proud to have finally started school. He had missed his first year at school because the family had just arrived from Brazil and they were not aware of the laws of the land in America. Paraskeva had told Masha that children could be enrolled in school at the age of seven, while Varvara had said that she didn't even bother enrolling her three sons in school since they were all over fourteen years of age and were no longer required to go to school if the parents didn't wish them to go to school. "And what do they teach you at school?" asked the inquisitive elder. His face became serious and a stern look shown deep in his eyes. "They teach us to speak American," answered Nikolai. "Don't forget your native tongue," admonished Simeon. "You don't let him speak American at home, do you?" asked Simeon, turning to Ivan, who had been standing by and watching the scenario between the elder and the young boy who had been baptized by him more than eight years ago. "Oh, no," answered Ivan quickly. He felt a pang of guilt grip his conscience as he recollected immediately afterwards of the times he had asked Nikolai what he had learned at school and Nikolai had verbalized the new American words he was learning. "Well, only American words that have to do with his school work," added Ivan as an afterthought. "Be very careful, Ivan," cautioned the old man, whose face took on a more merciful aspect. "You have made an understandable mistake, but do not repeat it. Remember to preserve the Russian language like your father and his father did. If you allow a foreign language to creep into your home, it will destroy you and your children. It will set your children against you, and they will no longer keep the purity of the Russian language. That will have its effect on the Old Belief, too." Ivan stood with his arms crossed against his broad chest and listened to the forewarning. The position of his arms were the same as when he stood during services and listened to the liturgy, except that this time he felt defensive about the issue at hand. "Don't you think we need to learn the language in order to live in this land?" asked Ivan in a defensive tone. Ivan had already run across business situations where he had to depend on the more learned Andrey to help him out. He had felt ignorant and insecure during those moments, and he had tried to learn more of the American language in order to be able to communicate whenever the need arose. "Learn only as much as is necessary to perform your everyday business," taught the old man, who had learned how to live in China and Brazil without learning the language of the land. Nikolai listened to the debate between the old man and his father, and he began to wonder who was right. "If I don't learn how to speak по-американски / po-amerikanski (in American)," interjected Nikolai, who wanted to tell his father something, "then I won't be able to understand anything at school." "If the law of the land says you must go to school to a certain age," said the elder, who wanted to teach the young lad some more of his ancient wisdom, "then you must obey. But do not forget your mother tongue, which is Russian. You must speak only Russian at home. You'll learn enough of the American language at school to get you by in life." "But it's so hard at school if nobody helps me at home," complained Nikolai. "Listen to your elders," demanded Ivan, talking to Nikolai in a sharp direct tone. "They know what's best for you." "That's right, Nikolai," said Simeon approvingly. "It says in our holy books to love, honor and obey our parents. And that also means those who instruct you and guide you in your spiritual life, like your nastoyatel (elder) and your крёстные / kryostniye (Godparents). Ivan, hand me my book on the table there." Simeon pointed with his stubby finger to an ancient book with wooden covers that were wrapped around with black leather and nailed to the wood with short nails. Ivan walked over to the small table against the wall and picked up the heavy worn-out book with faded green edges on the pages. "Nikolai, go get a chair and sit beside me," directed the old man. "Ivan, you too. I want to show your son something in this book that will be of interest to you, too." While father and son fetched chairs to sit on, the old man unclasped the two brass clasps that bound the precious treasure that he never went anywhere without. He carefully thumbed through the faded brown pages with moldy green edges till he found the section entitled, "Поучение како подобает детем чтити родители своя / Poucheniye kako podobayet dyetyem chtiti roditeli svoya" (Instruction on how children should honor their parents). "Listen to what it says here," instructed Simeon as Nikolai hurried back with a chair and sat down beside the elder on his right hand. Nikolai peered into the book and tried to make out some of the words, hoping to put his learning of the azbuka (primer) to some use. Simeon read in a slow and steady monotone: “Послушайте братие заповеди господни, еже рече к законнику, сия есть первая заповедь, да любиши отца и матерь, да благо тебе будет, и будеши долголетен на земли. Иже бо чтеть родителя своя, и слушает повеления ею, сей очистить грехи и от Бога прославится, азе кто озлобит родителя, сей пред Богом согрешив и проклят от людей. Иже бысть от отца и матерь и от церкви да отлучиться и смертью да умрет.” (Listen brothers to the commandments of the Lord, as he has spoken to the one versed in law. This is the first commandment: love your father and mother that it may be well with you, and you will live long on the earth. For he who honors his parents and obeys their commandments will cleanse his sins and will be praised by God. But he who angers his parents, this one has sinned before God and is cursed by people. Let this one be separated from mother or father and from the church and let him be considered dead.) Nikolai kept staring at the words on the printed page, and he tried to verbalize some of the words along with Simeon. "My goodness," remarked Simeon, after he had finished reading the passage to Nikolai, "you know how to read. Who taught you?" "My father," proudly replied Nikolai. "He was a good student," explained Ivan. "You're taking after your father," complimented Simeon. "He was a good student, too, from what I heard from others." "Can you teach me to read your big book?" asked Nikolai. "I've only read the Azbuka (Primer prayer book) so far." "I'll be more than glad to," joyfully said Simeon, "Can you show me some places in your book that talk about Рай / rahiy (paradise)?" asked Nikolai. "I like to hear about рай / rahiy." Nikolai pronounced the word рай / rahiy ('rye') without the strong trill in the letter r. "I'd love to," said the old teacher, who was carefully thumbing the pages back to a section entitled "Слово о первом небеси / Slovo o pearvom nebesi" (The Word about the first heaven). "Here it is," said Simeon when he found the right page. "I'll read slowly, and you read along with me." Nikolai pressed his knee against the old man's thigh as the old teacher placed the right half of the age-old book that was printed in 1878 on his left leg. Nikolai reverently took hold of the half-inch leather-covered wooden cover of the book and followed the