Orthodoxy is held together by everyday life and is conceived not on enthusiasm, but on a serious acquaintance with the truth. Therefore, we are not afraid when a Catholic or Anglican missionary settles next to our missionary, for then an even better comparison is for those who take Christianity seriously, and there should be no frivolity in this matter. Of course, we have few such nobles as the Anglicans, for example, but this is better: the constant history of true Christianity has been such, but it has overcome all visible power or domination of the human will.

On the Sunday of the Prodigal Son, February 1/13, I served for the first time in Japanese the all-night vigil, of course, writing everything in Russian letters, but the words are almost all well known. They say it's pretty good for the first time. I was a little cowardly, but still the exclamations pronounced to the people I spoke from memory. Lord, bless! And I serve the Liturgy from the very beginning, pronouncing only three exclamations at the conciliar service.

From February 1/13 to 2/14, just at 12 o'clock at night, when I had just fallen asleep with the very first sleep, since I had already gone to bed about 11 and a half o'clock, suddenly I woke up instantly, because I heard a terrible knocking and crashing: the doors were shaking, the washbasin seemed to want to jump out and all that. At first, of course, I thought that someone was knocking on my room, but soon I saw that there was no knocking, but objects as if knocking on their own. Instantly I realized that it was an earthquake. For me, as a novice, of course, it seemed very frightening, and I involuntarily instantly saw myself as if on a silver platter in my entire life, and then I lay comparatively calm in my soul, although my heart was fluttering, as if ready to fly out of my chest. After a minute, perhaps more, everything calmed down, and I hurried to look out of the window to see if any misfortune had happened, but everything seemed to be quiet, only the watchman with a knocker passed under the window, as if calming with his presence. His Eminence, as well as other people here, say that it was a comparatively strong earthquake, although, thank God, no misfortune happened, it seems, in the whole city. And, indeed, everything rumbled very strongly. Yes, indeed, it is only by the mercy of God that we exist on this continuous volcano, such as all the Japanese islands. Today, sailors from the Russian steamer Voronezh of the Volunteer Fleet said that between Nagasaki and Yokohama they saw a small but high island in the sea, which was burning; it is obviously an active volcano; recently in the southwest between Osaka and Kyoto there was an earthquake in three places, but not stronger. But today's earthquake is surprising: now we have snow and it is very cold, very similar to the Russian winter, and, however, everything is obviously hot below.

On February 5/17, in the evening, at 7 o'clock or more, one of our Christians, Sophia, came to His Grace with a resident of Yokohama, some important official of the General Staff of the Empire. But the bishop, who was now busy with a mass of work, sent them to Father Sergius. This Japanese is very educated, speaks excellent English, German and, probably, French, and knows some Russian and Greek. He came to inquire about faith; he said that in his soul he had the idea of the need to be a believing Christian and that all the best people in Japan were already Christians, but his heart did not agree, there was no faith in all this invisible.

Father A.S. told him to pay attention to the meaning of life with faith in God and without faith in Him. And then I advised Father Sergius to tell him that Christianity has been proven by life itself, that we have a whole host of saints who by faith have conquered all that is hostile to it and have attained the eternal kingdom, while still living in it here; that among us true Christians truly live in the spirit of Christ. The Japanese sat with Father A.S. for a long time and promised to come often for a conversation about these questions. God grant that the seed will fall on good soil. By the way, this Sophia's husband is a doctor and is now a pioneer in Australia, not wasting time, but trying to learn as much as possible about the treasures of the world subject to us and use them. And the Japanese have a lot of such entrepreneurs. That is why their culture is much higher than ours, that no one sleeps over work if it is necessary to do something. A Japanese, being somewhere in service or at work, invariably reprimands himself for a certain time only for himself; and at this time he certainly learns something: either goes to school, or learns some trade, and so on. That is why their social consciousness is more developed, they have more interest in the common, in what is happening around or in the neighborhood, than we have in Russia, where for the most part few people care about the life of the people or the whole of mankind and in general the life of all: if I have done my work for a comfortable or even rich piece of bread, then that's fine – you can be at peace. not to embark on any undertakings – this is what we think for the most part. That is why Siberia became our own for us almost at the same time as America for the British, and yet we have only just noticed it, although little thought has yet been given to it, and even the question of resettlement there is still our purest misfortune. This Sophia is a very zealous Christian: she is now learning English so that she can go to her husband. The Englishman, not knowing that she was a Christian, began to persuade her to convert to Christianity and told her about it at length. But one day he noticed her praying in our church and, having recognized her, he began to look at her very askance, and he had already ceased to talk about Christianity. She herself later passed it on with laughter.

February 8/20. The Christians of our church introduced themselves to us after Mass and called us to them; Tomorrow, accompanied by the elders13, we will go to see how our Christians live, and if necessary, to give us some advice.

After lunch, we went to the same Daniel who brings up orphans. He has 24 of them, 12 of them go to school. There is still one who can walk poorly; Daniel pulled him out of the sand after that pernicious wave of the sea. There is another sick woman; Her arms begin to act a little, but her legs are not yet – this is also after the wave. The guys were well-mannered, respectful, they all immediately accepted our blessing and said their names. Daniel and the old woman who take care of them are called father and mother. In the morning, before dinner, and in the evening, there is a common prayer, at which Daniel gives them a simple short discourse on Christian good behavior, and the like, and sometimes also speaks during the children's dinner. During the prayer, the children sing various hymns. For our sake, Daniel made a prayer; the children sang the Lord's Prayer well, and even all of them by heart, and then in the form of the addition "Bless the Lord, O my soul." After the prayer, Father Sergius asked the children: Do you pray for your father? The children said in the affirmative. And Daniel to them: "It is not I, but God, who gives us everything, who helps us; And now our guests helped (and we really gave them a few yen)"; and he spoke to them much and simply about this, and then called them to prayer for the bishop and for us, so that God would fulfill all our good desires. Only a little Protestant behaves at prayer; he will lie down on the floor in the form of a bow, and remain so for a long, long time; it is a kind of artificial sentimentality; in conversation he has a little boasting; God deliver him from being carried away by himself. It would be good to keep him in the closest leadership and under constant supervision. There is one boy of about 13 years old, the oldest, but he looks the smallest: very poor, sick and stupid, he does not speak; it's some kind of piece of rotten meat. It's a pity to look at him.

On February 9/21, we actually went to the Christians of the Kanda quarter. Thank God, we have very good Christians. There's an old old woman; her son had recently died, and now her wife and the boy and girl, orphans, lived with her; A poor old woman earns a small piece for herself and her family by gluing paper lanterns, which are probably worth a penny, if the beautiful Japanese art is very cheap here. But the old woman very much trusts in God and prays to Him for the salvation of her soul, and teaches her children to pray to Him. The girl went to school, but after the death of her father, she stopped, since there were no funds.

The guys are very good, reverent, especially the girl. Mother went somewhere to earn money - we did not see her. Or here is another family: a very pious old woman with means, since her son, also a Christian, lives in America; She has another son, but when she accepted Christianity, he was somewhere apart from her, which is why he did not accept Christianity together and still remains a pagan.

Женат он на христианке, которую мы и видели тут же, но дети язычники; однако мать с бабушкой всячески, очевидно, поучают их вере Христовой, ибо мальчики многое знают о Боге, о Святой Троице, и на наш вопрос, желают ли быть христианами, смело отвечали, что желают. Очень хорошие, благовоспитанные ребята; лица у них добрые, дай Бог, чтобы и у остальных детей наших христиан были такие же дети. Мы учили их молиться, чтобы Бог сделал их всех с отцом христианами, и ребята подтвердили.

В одном месте содержат довольно обширную лавочку муж с женой; они еще совсем молодые, и только год назад, как христиане. С большим умилением, а жена почти со слезами, выслушали слова отца Сергия и ходившего с нами диакона Стефана Кугимия о том, чтобы молитвой и памятованием о Боге поддерживать в себе высокое настроение, которое падает, как гаснет лампа, если в нее не подливать керосину, или как тело наше без пищи ослабевает, так постепенно ослабевает и наш дух без молитвы и благодати Божией, которая есть пища нашего духа. Мы, должно быть, домов восемь или больше обошли сегодня. Везде радушно принимали нас и с сердечным вниманием выслушивали всякое слово отца Сергия (я еще не говорил, а только слушал; иное понимал в разговоре). Во всяком доме в почетном углу непременно иконы, иногда их очень много; только нигде не видно лампадки; это Преосвященный объясняет своей оплошностью: вначале не завел, потом уж так и не пошло. Отец Сергий, указывая на греческий и русский обычай непременно исповедаться и причаститься перед Пасхой, всех призывал к тому же, прибавляя при этом, чтобы и вообще почаще ходили в церковь и крепко держали христианские нравы, ибо христиане должны быть как бы светочами постоянными, чтобы все, видя их, прославляли Бога. Двое из христианских старост (они выбираются из среды христиан для ближайшего сношения с епископом по общим делам, для руководства и наблюдения над верующими и тому подобное) Хирано и Канда, очень добрые христиане, усердно ходили с нами по домам христиан и внимательно слушали все говоримое. Сегодня мы ходили от 1 часа дня до 3 с половиной часов и от 5 часов до 7 с лишком часов вечера.

Говорят, сегодня утром часов около семи было небольшое землетрясение, но я совершенно не заметил, хотя встал с 6 часов по обыкновению.

Февраля 11/23, 12/24, 13/25 мы тоже ходили к христианам. Самое главное следующее. По нашему наблюдению, все старинные христиане крепко держатся и свято соблюдают церковное учение, обряды и правила; а новые этого нередко не проявляют, а некоторые и совсем кое-чего не понимают. Например, некоторые перекреститься, принять благословение не умеют, в церковь редко ходят, некоторые не причащаются. Это потому, как оказывается, что отец Павел Сато, – их пастырь, – мало знает их и редко посещает после крещения, почему они и остаются вне всякого руководства. На это жалуются и христианские старосты (гийю). У некоторых дети, по необходимости, ходят в протестантские школы, и даже по воскресеньям; мы советовали посылать их по воскресеньям в миссию в воскресную школу.

Под впечатлением всего этого я толковал своему учителю Исикаме (академик, преподаватель семинарии), что они, академики, должны быть здесь светочами для своих братьев и принимать самое сердечное и живое участие во всех проповеднических делах миссии. Он мне глубоко признался, что действительно среди них мало идеализма. Я объяснил ему, что это, конечно, состояние теплохладности, а для таких людей известно, что будет: имам тя изблевати, скажет Господь. Исикаме говорит, что прежде они, по почину епископа, в городе начинали проповедь, но она скоро прекратилась, так как мало было слушателей. Я сказал, что, вероятно, проповеди были не изложением христианского учения, а какими-нибудь учеными трактатами о трудных и никому не интересных предметах, потому и слушатели сократились, а вы, вместо того чтобы сделать интересною свою проповедь, бросили все. Он согласился. Он советовал мне поговорить еще с академиками обо всем этом. А я советовал ему, а в лице его и каждому из них, между собой посердечнее да поискреннее иногда поднимать такие вопросы для разговоров между уроками вместо курения табаку, а стыдиться нечего: это и будет самый первый шаг искренней веры во Христа. Дай Бог начаться среди них некоторому оживлению и искренности.