Prayers for Mankind celebrates the life and writings of Father Alexander Men, a Russian Orthodox Christian priest who, whilst being little known outside of his home country during his lifetime, has come to be hailed as a saint and martyr by thousands all over the world. 2010 marks the anniversary of what would have been his 85th Birthday, as well as 20 years since his brutal assassination on the way to a Sunday morning service.
Following years of religious suppression under the communist regime, Father Alexander Men emerged as a leading Christian and humanitarian figure in Russia, through radio and TV broadcasts and his prolific written works. During Gorbachev's perestroika reforms, Fr
Alexander became almost overnight the public authority on the Christian faith. He was constantly on the radio and TV. Most significantly, perhaps, he breached a physical barrier, becoming a frequent lecturer on official Soviet premises. As well as serving in his parish, during the last year of his life he gave over two hundred lectures. On the morning of 9 September 1990 he was on his way to Novaya Derevnya when a blow from behind struck him down. The police hinted that the culprit was a fanatical Jew; another rumour claimed it was a fanatical Christian. There is no shred of evidence for either but it seems more likely to have been an act of revenge by a fanatic from the Communist Party. After all, the victim had helped put Christianity back centre stage following over 70 years of anti-religious activity by the state.
These prayers, set by Russian composer Alexander Levine, capture the beauty and humanity of Men’s view of the world and are brought vividly to life by Nigel Short’s professional chamber choir Tenebrae.
