In one parish there was no priest. The laity gathered to choose a priest. They were choosing from among the men, and then the peasant Pakhom came. All lay people:
- Well, Pakhom, let me be your priest!
- Well, so be it.
And they chose Pakhom. He said:
- Well, laymen, listen, Orthodox! Today is Saturday, and tomorrow is Sunday. Come to the service.
- Listen, father!
On Sunday the laity went to mass. We came to church. A lot of people had gathered - we had to listen to how the new priest would serve mass. And the priest came. He entered the altar, put on his robe, came out of the royal gates and said:
- Listen, laymen. What the priest does is what the parish does!
The laity answered:
- Listen, father!
So the sexton handed the priest a censer, and there were a lot of coals in the censer, and it just kept burning. He took the censer and began to swing it. He waved and waved, and a hot coal jumped out of the censer and right into his boot. And the priest went to kick his feet. He tramples, and the laity tramples everything with their feet. The ember climbs further. Nothing can be done! Pop slam to the ground, legs up and kicks. And all the laymen slammed to the ground and kicked.
One man left the church, and another went to the church and asked:
— Has Ali already completed the service?
- No, it didn’t pass. The stamping is over, and now the kicking
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru