Lev (Archbishop of Novgorod)
Encyclopedia
Lev is the current Archbishop of Novgorod
the Great and Staraya Russa
. He was named Bishop of Novgorod the Great and Staraya Russa on July 20, 1990 and elevated to the archiepiscopal dignity on February 25, 1995.
He was born in the village of Zaluzhye in the Stoŭbtsy Raion
of Minsk Voblast' in Belarus
on April 13, 1946. He is the grandson of a priest. After his service in the Soviet Army in 1966-1969, Lev entered the Leningrad Spiritual Academy, graduating in 1975 and successfully defending a candidate's dissertation entitled "Decrees of the Second Vatican Council's 'Constitution on the Divine Liturgy'" («Постановление II Ватиканского Собора „Конституция о богослужении“»). He studied at the Papal Gregorian University from 1975-1978.
On 28 March 1971, he was shorn a monk by Metropolitan Nikodim of Novgorod and Leningrad; he was consecrated a hierodeacon
in April of that same year and was consecrated a hieromonk
in April 1975. From 1972 to 1975, he was personal secretary to Metropolitan Nikodim. In 1978, he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite and was part of the Russian Orthodox Church
's delegation at the funeral of Pope Paul VI and the inauguration of John Paul I; he was with the Metropolitan when Nikodim collapsed and died during an audience with the Pope. He was consecrated Bishop of Tashkent
on November 1, 1987.
Since becoming Bishop and then Archbishop of Novgorod the Great and Staraya Russa, Lev has overseen the rebuilding of the church in the eparchy in the aftermath of the Soviet collapse. He concelebrated the rededication of the Cathedral of Holy Wisdom
after it was returned to the Russian Orthodox Church in 1991, reestablished a library in the upper gallery of the cathedral, oversaw the reopening of a number of churches in the eparchy (the Church of St. Philip was the only Orthodox church that remained open in Novgorod during the Soviet period), established a festival in honor of Metropolitan Arseny of Novgorod (d. 1936), returned the relics of Bishop Nikita (d. 1108) to the Cathedral of Holy Wisdom (in the early Soviet period, they had been kept in a paper bag in the Novgorod Museum; after 1957, they were in the Church of St. Philip), and has patronized other efforts to rebuild the church and church culture in the eparchy.
awarded him the Order "For Service on behalf of the Fatherland," 4th class (ru: За заслуги перед Отечеством» IV степени) He has also received the Sign of Honor (ru: Знак Почёта), the Order of Sergei Radonezh, 4th class (Орден преподобного Сергия Радонежского III степени), and the Order of St. Prince Daniil of Moscow (ru: Орден св. блгв. кн. Даниила Московского). In 2004, he was a recipient of the Yaroslav the Wise Medal, 1st class (ru: Медалью Ярослава Мудрого I степени) awarded by Novgorod State University.
Archbishop of Novgorod
The Archbishop of Novgorod is the head of the eparchy of Novgorod the Great and is one of the oldest offices in the Russian Orthodox Church. The archbishops have, in fact, been among the most important figures in medieval Russian history and culture and their successors continued to play...
the Great and Staraya Russa
Staraya Russa
Staraya Russa is a town in Novgorod Oblast, Russia, located south of Veliky Novgorod. It is a wharf on the Polist River in the Lake Ilmen basin. It serves as the administrative center of Starorussky District, although administratively it is not a part of it...
. He was named Bishop of Novgorod the Great and Staraya Russa on July 20, 1990 and elevated to the archiepiscopal dignity on February 25, 1995.
He was born in the village of Zaluzhye in the Stoŭbtsy Raion
Stoŭbtsy Raion
Stoŭbtsy Raion is a second-level administrative subdivision of Belarus in the Minsk Region....
of Minsk Voblast' in Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
on April 13, 1946. He is the grandson of a priest. After his service in the Soviet Army in 1966-1969, Lev entered the Leningrad Spiritual Academy, graduating in 1975 and successfully defending a candidate's dissertation entitled "Decrees of the Second Vatican Council's 'Constitution on the Divine Liturgy'" («Постановление II Ватиканского Собора „Конституция о богослужении“»). He studied at the Papal Gregorian University from 1975-1978.
On 28 March 1971, he was shorn a monk by Metropolitan Nikodim of Novgorod and Leningrad; he was consecrated a hierodeacon
Hierodeacon
A Hierodeacon , sometimes translated "deacon-monk", in Eastern Orthodox Christianity is a monk who has been ordained a deacon...
in April of that same year and was consecrated a hieromonk
Hieromonk
Hieromonk , also called a Priestmonk, is a monk who is also a priest in the Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholicism....
in April 1975. From 1972 to 1975, he was personal secretary to Metropolitan Nikodim. In 1978, he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite and was part of the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
's delegation at the funeral of Pope Paul VI and the inauguration of John Paul I; he was with the Metropolitan when Nikodim collapsed and died during an audience with the Pope. He was consecrated Bishop of Tashkent
Tashkent
Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and of the Tashkent Province. The officially registered population of the city in 2008 was about 2.2 million. Unofficial sources estimate the actual population may be as much as 4.45 million.-Early Islamic History:...
on November 1, 1987.
Since becoming Bishop and then Archbishop of Novgorod the Great and Staraya Russa, Lev has overseen the rebuilding of the church in the eparchy in the aftermath of the Soviet collapse. He concelebrated the rededication of the Cathedral of Holy Wisdom
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod
The Cathedral of St. Sophia in the Kremlin in Veliky Novgorod is the cathedral church of the Archbishop of Novgorod and the mother church of the Novgorodian Eparchy.-History:...
after it was returned to the Russian Orthodox Church in 1991, reestablished a library in the upper gallery of the cathedral, oversaw the reopening of a number of churches in the eparchy (the Church of St. Philip was the only Orthodox church that remained open in Novgorod during the Soviet period), established a festival in honor of Metropolitan Arseny of Novgorod (d. 1936), returned the relics of Bishop Nikita (d. 1108) to the Cathedral of Holy Wisdom (in the early Soviet period, they had been kept in a paper bag in the Novgorod Museum; after 1957, they were in the Church of St. Philip), and has patronized other efforts to rebuild the church and church culture in the eparchy.
Awards and honors
Archbishop Lev has been the recipient of several secular and ecclesiastical awards. In 1992, he was made an honorary citizen of Novgorod the Great. On March 30, 2006, President Vladimir PutinVladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
awarded him the Order "For Service on behalf of the Fatherland," 4th class (ru: За заслуги перед Отечеством» IV степени) He has also received the Sign of Honor (ru: Знак Почёта), the Order of Sergei Radonezh, 4th class (Орден преподобного Сергия Радонежского III степени), and the Order of St. Prince Daniil of Moscow (ru: Орден св. блгв. кн. Даниила Московского). In 2004, he was a recipient of the Yaroslav the Wise Medal, 1st class (ru: Медалью Ярослава Мудрого I степени) awarded by Novgorod State University.