Metropolitan Paul (russian: Митрополит Павел, be, Мітрапаліт Павел, secular name Georgiy Vasilevich Ponomaryov, russian: Георгий Васильевич Пономарёв; born 19 February 1951 in Karaganda) was the

Metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a typ ...

Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative stat ...

and Slutsk, the Patriarchal Exarch of All

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

and the leader of the Belarusian Orthodox Church (an Semi-Autonomous part of the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

) from December 2011 to August 2020. On August 26, 2020 by decision of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church and at the request of Metropolitan Paul, Metropolitan Paul was released from his duties as Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk and Patriarchal Exarch of Belarus. Metropolitan Paul was assigned to the Krasnodar and Kuban Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church effective August 26, 2020.

Biography

Metropolitan Paul was born on 19 February 1952 in Karaganda. In 1973–1976, he attended the Moscow Theological Seminary. In 1980 he graduated from the Moscow Theological Academy with a degree in

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

. On 19 February 1992 by the decision of the

Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthod ...

of the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

he was appointed Bishop of Zaraisk and was put in charge of the patriarchal parishes in the

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and in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

. 29 December 1999 he was appointed Bishop of

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and

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. 23 February 2001 he was elevated to the rank of Archbishop. 7 May 2003 he was appointed Archbishop of Ryazan and Kasimov. He became Exarch in December 2013 after the former Exarch, Philaret (Vakhromeyev), stepped down.. Metropolitan Paul was assigned to the Krasnodar and Kuban Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church effective August 26, 2020.

References

{{Authority control Living people 1951 births Clergy from Minsk Bishops of the Belarusian Orthodox Church Eastern Orthodox Christians from Belarus People from Karaganda Russian Orthodoxy in the United States Eastern Orthodoxy in Austria Eastern Orthodoxy in Hungary