Kronshtadt, a small island city on the Finnish Gulf, was initially built as a fortress however is now known all over Russia for its naval cathedral. It was built at the beginning of the 20th century with a wide variety of specialists from all over taking part in its construction. The tall building was meant to be a monument to fallen sailors and to serve as a landmark to those returning from sea. Evgenia Altfeld set off to check out the history of the cathedral’s construction, also learning about the life of Father John Sergiev, later canonized under the name of John of Kronshtadt. It was much due to this preacher that the cathedral was built. In the late 19th-early 20th century Kronshtadt became one of Russia’s spiritual centres.
The Utrish Nature Reserve has preserved its primordial beauty. It's located in the Krasnodar Krai, in the south of Russia, and occupies a section of the Abrau peninsula in the north-eastern part of the Black Sea. There are rare relict plants and sub-tropical forestry of the Mediterranean type here, providing shelter for dozens of different species of animal, many included in the Red Books of protected species. The Black Sea influences everything here — the climate, the plant life, the animals and the landscape itself. This RTG film is dedicated to a wonderful, untouched natural area that has been preserved for plant and animal wildlife.
Some might dismiss the four rocky islands in the northern Pacific Ocean known as the Commander Archipelago to be a far-off land forgotten by God himself. They would be quite mistaken. There the joyful sound of church bells ringing carries on for miles and the onion dome of Russia's most eastern Orthodox church shines. On one of these islands, the country's first prayer of the day is led by a young priest by the name of Evgeniy Tsukalo, a graduate of the Moscow Seminary who chose the remote island on the edge of the country as his first place of service. Being new to the island is no easy feat — it's difficult to adapt to living in such a natural environment and to such isolation. This is a perfect place for a church as living under such conditions seems impossible without faith. Father Evgeniy was given a difficult mission: Not to simply adapt to island life, but to change it — to teac...