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Article: In troubled region, monks build site for peace; In the heart of the violent Caucasus, an ancient order is building a new monastery.(WORLD)
- Article from:
- The Christian Science Monitor
- Article date:
- September 22, 2005
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 The Christian Science Publishing Society. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Fred Weir Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
KURTATINSKOYE GORGE, RUSSIA -- Father Anthony and his tiny band of Orthodox monks have turned their backs on the wars and political turmoil shaking the Caucasus region of southern Russia. In a gesture as old as Christianity, they are retiring to this remote North Ossetian mountain valley to build an island of peace.
The small, fortified monastery they are raising amid the ruins of a mountaintop 19th century cathedral, razed by the Bolsheviks 80 years ago, will be almost as isolated and self-sufficient as its medieval predecessors.
Like them, it is devoted to seeking tranquility in ...