Changes

After the end of the exile in December 1923 the Archbishop Thaddeus was appointed to the diocese of Astrakhan. Upon arrival in the city, he immediately went from the train station to the temple to conduct the service and until late at night blessed the worshipers and people gathered around the temple. Archbishop Thaddeus lived very modestly, with nothing of his own. If they gave him tea or lunch - he ate and drank, if they did not gave – he did not ask. He always considered himself a guest and dependent on the ones who waited him and who helped him. For all of his time in Astrakhan, Archbishop Thaddeus did not say a word against renovators publicly, but the example of his personal life was more eloquent than any words. Archbishop Thaddeus’ moral influence on the people was huge. In the homes of many of the faithful, in the corner there were Archbishop Thaddeus’ photos along with the icons. He served as Bishop very often, and after the service he conducted conversations: the church of St. Peter and Paul he explained to the New Testament, beginning with the Gospel of Matthew and ending with the Apocalypse. There was a great silence and a profound peace in the church. After the Akathist at the Intercession Church on Fridays, Archbishop Thaddeus explained the Old TestamenTestament, and after the Akathist on Sundays he offered the lives of saints of the day. His sermons were after every liturgy and even when he was ill. In October of 1926 the Patriarchal Locum Tenens Metropolitan [[Sergius (Stragorodsky) of Moscow|Sergius (Stragorodsky)]] was arrested. He was replaced by St. Archbishop Joseph (Petrovyh) of Rostov, who appointed Archbishop Thaddeus (Uspensky) as one of his deputies to manage the Church. Archbishop Thaddeus went from Astrakhan to Moscow to begin to fulfill his duties. But in Saratov, on the orders of Tuchkov, he was arrested and sent to the town of Kuznetsk which the authorities allowed him to leave only in March of 1928.