Strangely enough, Alexander Solzhenitsyn first discovered his life was based on lies while fighting on the German Front during the Great Patriotic War (1941-45). Writing to an old classmate, he shared his realization that Joseph Stalin—ruler of the revolutionary Soviet Union—had betrayed the Revolution. For sharing this insight, he was sentenced to eight years at a work camp. Even so, he committed himself to learning the truth and to sharing it especially with his fellow Soviet citizens by writing.
(1) Jesus Christ sets us on the path of freedom which is based on truth and leads through love to eternal life. (2) Yet false gods continue to enthrall us with the path of power which is based on falsehood and leads through indifference to death. (3) Even Christians have fallen under their spell. (4) But Jesus is calling us to join him as prophetic witnesses in breaking their spell beginning with his Church. (5) Use this website to strengthen your witness to Jesus for our good and his glory.
Friday, May 28, 2021
Alexander Solzhenitsyn: “Live Not by Lies”
Thursday, May 27, 2021
Alexander Solzhenitsyn (2): Author, Exile, Anachronism
After a year of various struggles, Tvardovsky managed to publish One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. It was soon translated, published, and distributed throughout the West. Solzhenitsyn became famous inside and outside the Soviet Union. The following year, Tvardovsky published other stories by Solzhenitsyn.
In 1964, Leonid Brezhnev wrested power over the Soviet government from Nikita Khrushchev and sent him into retirement. He rejected Krushchev’s willingness to see challenging stories published. No other works by Solzhenitsyn were printed in the USSR until it neared collapse.
Wednesday, May 26, 2021
Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1): Student, Soldier, Prisoner, Teacher
Student (1918-1941)
Alexander Solzhenitsyn was born on December 11, 1918, in Kislovodsk, a city in the Caucasus region of southern Russia. His father, Isaaki, was an artillery officer who fought on the German Front from 1914 until the Russian army was demobilized in 1918. His mother, Taisia, grew up in a landowning family and was able to learn French and English. His father died in a hunting accident six months before his birth. Shortly after his birth, his mother took him to Rostov-on-Don and raised him there, supporting them both by working as a secretary.