St. Fedor Lebedev was martyred on this day in 1937. Fedor Lebedev was born in 1876 in a village in Vladimir Province in the Russian Empire. His father Pavel Alekseevich Lebedev served as a chanter in the church in the town of Shikhobalova, Suzdal District, and his mother Raisa Platonovna was a housewife. Then, the family moved to Adamovo, Yurev District (since abolished). In September of 1888, St. Fedor’s father became a chanter in the village of Stebachev, where he served until his retirement in 1905. In 1892, Fedor graduated from Suzdal Theological Primary School and was appointed a psalm-reader in Adamovo, Yurev District. He then entered the Vladimir Theological Seminary, graduating in 1899. He was ordained to the diaconate and then, in 1900, to the priesthood. From 1900 to 1928, he served in the Aleksin, Yurev District village. In recognition of his tireless work, he was elevated to the rank of archpriest. In 1928, his brother, Archpriest Aleksandr Lebedev, died. Fr. Fedor went to the funeral. As soon as he left, GPU (secret police) officers came to search his house. They spent a long time searching for precious church vessels, but found only church books hidden away by Fr. Fedor. Then they forcibly evicted his wife, Elena, and their children, Nina and Nikolai, from the house. The house and all of their property were confiscated. When Fr. Fedor returned, he was charged with agitation against collectivized farms, arrested, and sent to Ivanovo Prison. However, Fr. Fedor was released that same year. After his release in 1928, by the decision of the Diocese, he was transferred to the village of Kuznetsovo in Shuia District, Ivanovo Region. In 1932, he was appointed Dean (blagochinnyi). In 1933–1934, he was arrested again and served a two-month prison sentence. On September 17, 1937, he and other priests were arrested by the Shuia Division of the NKVD (secret police) for counter-revolutionary activity. The interrogation began on the day of his arrest and continued without interruption for more than three days. The investigators were cycled in and out, but Fr. Fedor was not allowed to rest. The expectation was that the accused would confess within the first three days, but he refused: “What have you said about the collectivization of agriculture and the life of the peasantry on collectivized farms? “Nothing.” “The investigation has evidence that you conducted counter-revolutionary conversations in June 1937. Answer me!” “I answer again that I didn’t say anything to anyone.” “The investigation considers your testimony to be false. I shall read out to you the testimony of the accused [name deleted]. Do you still want to tell lies after this?” “I completely deny it.” “Your behavior during the investigation colors you as an enemy of the people, who is not only concealing his counter-revolutionary activity but also those of other persons associated with you. Answer!” “I was not engaged in any counter-revolutionary activity.” “If you refuse to give truthful testimony, the investigation will incriminate you in a confrontation.” “No matter what witness testimony the investigation reads to me and how many confrontations it holds, I do not admit to any counter-revolutionary activity.” (“Komissiia po kanonizatsii sviatykh Vladimirskoi eparkhii” [Vladimir Diocese Committee on Canonizations]. URL: <http://www.vladkan.ru/life/11201520.html>) On September 20, 1937, the investigation was concluded; on September 23, a session of the NKVD Troika in Ivanovo Region sentenced all the arrested priests to death. On September 25, 1937, at 11 p.m., Fr. Fedor Lebedev was shot along with other priests. He was rehabilitated by a verdict of the Presidium of the Ivanovo Region Court on April 22, 1959 (the certificate of rehabilitation stated falsely that he had died of pneumonia). In 2000, the Jubilee Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church canonized him. | 
