Archbishop Paul ( fi, Arkkipiispa Paavali, secular name Yrjö Olmari, born Georgi Alvovich Gusev, russian: Георгий Алвович Гусев;
August 28, 1914 – December 2, 1988) was the primate of the
Finnish Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church of Finland ( fi, Suomen ortodoksinen kirkko, lit=Finnish Orthodox Church; sv, Ortodoxa kyrkan i Finland, lit=Orthodox Church in Finland; ) is an autonomous Eastern Orthodox archdiocese of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Consta ...
and
Archbishop
In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
of
Karelia and All Finland from 1960 to 1987.
Life
Georgi Gusev was born in
St. Petersburg, Russia
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
on August 28, 1914 to Alexander Gusev, a railway clerk, and his wife Anna (née Vodomensky) of St. Petersburg. When the
Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...
broke out the family moved to
Viipuri/Vyborg in
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
on the Gulf of Finland and changed their family name to Olmari. George changed his given name to the Finnish Yrjö, and his father to Alvi. In 1926, Yrjö attended the classic grammar school in Viipuri, but his attendance was cut short by the death of his father in 1932. In 1932 he entered the
seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...
in
Sortavala
Sortavala (russian: Сортавала; Finnish and krl, Sortavala; sv, Sordavala); till 1918 Serdobol (russian: Сердоболь) is a town in the Republic of Karelia, Russia, located at the northern tip of Lake Ladoga near the Finnish bord ...
and graduated in 1936. After graduating he carried out his obligatory military service.
At the seminary, Yrjö worked with the student choir and as deputy director of the Sortavala
Cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...
choir. He also began adapting the Slavic language vocal music of the church for use with Finnish. In late 1937, Yrjö joined the
Valaam Monastery
The Valaam Monastery (russian: Валаамский монастырь; Finnish version: ''Valamo Monastery'') is a stauropegic Orthodox monastery in Russian Karelia, located on Valaam, the largest island in Lake Ladoga, the largest lake in Euro ...
on Lake Lodoga, which at the time was within the borders of Finland. In 1938 at the age of twenty three, Yrjö was
tonsure
Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice in ...
d a
monk
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...
with the name Paavali (Finnish form of ''Paul'') and entered
Holy Orders. Paavali taught at the
monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
school and directed a choir of Finnish speaking
novice
A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession
A profession is a field of work that has ...
s.
During the period of hostilities between Finland and the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
, lasting from the
Winter War of 1939/1940 and its continuation through
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Fr. Paavali was initially called to service as a
military chaplain
A military chaplain ministers to military personnel and, in most cases, their families and civilians working for the military. In some cases they will also work with local civilians within a military area of operations.
Although the term ''cha ...
and took part in the evacuation of
Valaam
Valaam (Russian: Валаам or Валаамский архипелаг, also known by the Finnish name Valamo) is an archipelago in the northern portion of Lake Ladoga, lying within the Republic of Karelia, Russian Federation. The total area o ...
monastery. As the war continued he served as a priest to evacuees in
Joensuu
Joensuu (; krl, Jovensuu; ) is a city and municipality in North Karelia, Finland, located on the northern shore of Lake Pyhäselkä (northern part of Lake Saimaa) at the mouth of the Pielinen River (''Pielisjoki''). It was founded in 1848. Th ...
and
Kauhava
Kauhava is a town and municipality of Finland. It is part of the Southern Ostrobothnia region, northwest of Helsinki and by the main railway from Helsinki to Oulu. The town has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The pop ...
. During the Continuation War he served in the Aunus (Onega) district in eastern
Karelia
Karelia ( Karelian and fi, Karjala, ; rus, Каре́лия, links=y, r=Karélija, p=kɐˈrʲelʲɪjə, historically ''Korjela''; sv, Karelen), the land of the Karelian people, is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance for ...
and after transfer to Jamsa in 1942, he taught religion at a camp for students from eastern Karelia.
After the war Paavali served the Joensuu community as a priest, and was appointed editor at the Council of the Publication of Orthodox Literature. He also was named editor-in-chief of the magazine ''Dawn''. In 1948 he was assigned as priest to a congregation in
Kuopio
Kuopio (, ) is a Finnish city and municipality located in the region of Northern Savonia. It has a population of , which makes it the most populous municipality in Finland. Along with Joensuu, Kuopio is one of the major urban, economic, and cult ...
where he also began editing liturgical service books and scores for church vocal music. In his editorial work he placed emphasis of the importance of divine worship and
Holy Communion
The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instituted ...
, pruning cultural features from the texts to produce a collection of texts and music designed for worship in Finnish. This collection came to be known as "Paavali's liturgy." After his death, many of his alterations to the divine liturgy has been abolished.
In 1955 Paavali was elected Bishop of Joensuu (the assistant bishop to the
Archbishop of Karelia), a position that had been vacant since 1925. On August 29, 1960, he was elected Archbishop of Karelia and All Finland. Under his leadership the Orthodox Church was recognised as the Second Finnish State Church in 1978.
Paavali worked in the development of the liturgical life of the Finnish Church, encouraging frequent communion of the faithful; Church membership grew. He also worked on the development of
New Valaam Monastery as a functioning monastery as well as the site of an Orthodox Culture and Research Institute.
Paavali wrote a number of books on Eastern Orthodoxy and Orthodox life. The most notable in English was ''The Faith We Hold'', . In 1967 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Theological Faculty of the University of Helsinki. Also, he was named a member of the
Leningrad Theological Academy
The Saint Petersburg Theological Academy (russian: Санкт-Петербургская духовная академия) is a theological seminary in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The academy grants master and doctorate degrees preparing theologi ...
.
Paavali retired as Archbishop of Karelia in 1987 and was succeeded by
Johannes (Rinne). On December 2, 1988, he died and was buried in the cemetery of
New Valaam Monastery.
Bibliography
* ''The Faith We Hold''. transl. by Marita Nykänen and Esther Williams; with a foreword by Alexander Schmemann. Crestwood, N.Y. : St. Vladimir's Seminary Press 1980.
* ''The Feast of Faith: An Invitation to the Love Feast of the Kingdom of God''. transl. Esther Williams. Crestwood, NY : St Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1988.
References
Sources
*''Borrowed text from the Orthodox Wiki articl
'
Paavali (1914 - 1988)Paavali_(arkkipiispa)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paul
1914 births
1988 deaths
Eastern Orthodox Archbishops of Finland
Vicar bishops of the Finnish Orthodox Church
20th-century Eastern Orthodox bishops
People from Vyborg
Finnish military chaplains
Finnish people of Russian descent