Product Details

• Format: Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Tapeworm Video Dist
• VHS Release Date: August 14, 1997
• Run Time: 56 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• ASIN: 6304618301
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #609,644 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

For more than 600 years Russians have been making a pilgrimage from a small city to a river 120 miles away. They are visiting a spot where a peasant found an icon of St. Nicholas in 1380, a discovery that was followed by record crops in the surrounding farmlands. In this 56-minute video, cameras capture the 615th pilgrimage, along with the participants' assessments of post-Communist Russia's religious and political future. Mostly white-scarved women make this foot journey, which requires them to give up meat and smoking and--for at least one night--to sleep in the rain. Along the way they pass ruined churches--the bricks were removed to build Communist schools and the clergy and their families were sent to concentration camps in Siberia. The documentary's climax is also the journey's climax, when the weary throng finally arrive at the river. Some swim in the 59-degree water, some are baptized, and some leave offerings on the stump of a holy tree in exchange for a sliver and peace of mind. The documentary ends before the return trip, but the viewer knows the Russians' elation will make it the easier half of the journey. --Kimberly Heinrichs

Video Librarian Magazine - March/April 1997 Pg. 16

"For over 600 years, faithful Christians have made an annual 120-mile pilgrimage through the forests of Russia to the place where an elderly peasant discovered an icon of St. Nicholas in the year 1380. That year there was an abundant harvest and the pilgrims come to give thanks for this blessing and to experience spiritual purification. Bells signal the departure from a Russian Orthodox Church; the beginning of an arduous 5 day journey, broken only by short breaks for services in abandoned churches along the way. All this is captured in an exquisite pictorial tapestry of country landscapes, individual character portraits, and aerial views of the pilgrimage trails, framed by religious choral music and the melody of caroling church bells. At the conclusion of the journey, the pilgrims celebrate in prayer, bathing in the sacred waters of the site's river and performing ablutions and baptisms. While the unquenchable faith of the participants is emphasized throughout, the film begs the question about the future of faith in Russia, now that there is freedom to worship.... Devout Christians will find it inspiring, and film lovers of all persuasions will find this little known slice of life an aesthetic pleasure."

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent video documentary., January 6, 2002

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Wyote (Seoul) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Triumph of Faith [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This video is one of the finest documentaries I've ever seen. It stands well on its own, but it could also be used by serious students of religion and Russian Orthodoxy after communism. Its commentary is sparse but helpful, and its subject is interesting and inspiring. If you are interested in Orthodox Christianity, I would say this is an essential video. If you are Orthodox, buy it and donate it to your church's library: it will be an excellent addition.