Surviving Siberia's Frost--on Faith

Punishment cell No. 1 was a tiny house that stood by the entrance of the camp. In this house was a room for two people where the floor and walls were covered with sheets of metal. The whole room was not wider than three quarters of a yard and two yards long. Outside it was -22ºF and windy, so that it was hard to breathe. You had only to step outside to become immediately numb.

The occupants of the barracks understood what this meant: certain death. Father Arseny and Alexei would be frozen within two hours. Occasionally, someone was sent to it when the temperature reached -21º or -22ºF, but this only for 24 hours. The only ones who stayed alive were those who could jump up and down the whole 24 hours to keep their blood from freezing. If you stopped jumping, you froze. And here it was -22ºF, Father Arseny was an old man, Alexei had just been beaten up, and both men were exhausted.

Father Arseny and Alexei were dragged to the punishment cell and shoved inside. They both fell, cracking their heads against the wall. Father Arseny stood up and said, "So, here we are. God has brought us together. It is cold, Alyosha, and there is metal all around."

They heard the outer door close, the locks click, the voices and the steps of the guards fade away. The cold seized them and constricted their chests. Through the small window with iron bars the moon shone its milky light into the cell.

"We are going to freeze, Father Arseny," moaned Alexei. "We are both going to die. We need to keep moving, to jump up and down, but it is impossible to keep that up for 48 hours. Why don't you say anything, Father Arseny?"

As if from somewhere very far away Father Arseny's voice answered, "I am praying to God, Alexei!"

"What's there to pray about when we are going to freeze?" Alexei muttered.

"We are here all alone, Alexei; for two days no one will come. We will pray. For the first time God has allowed us to pray aloud in this camp, with our full voice. We will pray and the rest is God's will!"

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