Priest Alexander Gumilevsky – an organizer of parish charity in Saint Petersburg

The article is devoted to studying parish charity as a phenomenon of religious life in St. Petersburg in the middle of the 19th century. The author thoroughly describes the life and activity of priest Alexander Gumilevsky (1830-1869) known as the Church of the Nativity on Peski cleric, and his contribution to the formation and pastoral care of the Holy Cross and the Nativity communities of Sisters of Mercy. There studied in detail the history of the creation and development of various parish charity forms under the leadership of Fr. Alexander, including a shelter for poor children and seniors, as well as the Nativity Brotherhood, the first charitable church society in Russia. The main purpose of the brotherhood was to come to the aid of the poor, and thanks to Fr. Alexander's and his assistants' trying was successfully realised in grate scale. By his tireless pastoral effort, works of mercy and charity, the foundation of the fraternal shelter for the poor and the Brotherhood itself, priest Alexander Gumilevsky won truly general love and deep respect among the people of St. Petersburg.