About 3,000 Catholics made their Easter Communion in the Church of St. Louis of the French, the only Catholic Church in Mos cow, and many came from the Ukraine and Bye]o-Russia, hundreds of miles away, writes the N.C.W.C. correspondent from Moscow.
Our picture shows ter. George Laberge, of the Assumptionists, the priest-in-charge, who was in the church continuously from 8 o'clock in the morning until 2.30 in the afternoon, Between services, Fr. Laberge blessed baskets of eggs and cakes called "Koltich," a sort of raisin bread. Hundreds of people brought the baskets to the altar between services to receive the blessing.
The church was packed at every service, with people standing in the aisles, in back and on the porch, where they had the lighted altar and congregation in front of them and snow of a late storm blowing on their backs. Fr. Laberge conducted the services alone. with only three altar boys and a choir of two—a mother and daughter—to assist. The mother sings alto, the daughter, who was taught by the mother. soprano. Both are Russian citizens of French blood, though the daughter never has been outside Russia.
MI Moscow's 30 churches were jammed for the Easter Services.
It was also a big day in Leningrad. The Orthodox church there was packed. Police roped off the place because so many people were on the street trying to get in.