Ambrose of Belaya Krinitsa
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Metropolitan Ambrose (born Amoirеas Papageorgopolos, el, Αμοιρέας Παπαγεωργόπουλος, Andrey Popovich, russian: Андрей Попович; 1791–1863) was the first Old Believers' Metropolitan of the Ancient Orthodox Church also known later as
Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church The Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church (or Russian Orthodox Oldritualist Church, Russian Orthodox Old-Ritualist Church) (russian: Русская Православная Старообрядческая Церковь) is an Eastern Orthodox Chur ...
.


Early life

He was born in 1791 in village Maistros,
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
(now Yenice, Enez District,
Edirne Province Edirne Province ( tr, ) is a Turkish province located in East Thrace. Part of European Turkey, it is one of only three provinces located entirely within continental Europe. Edirne Province is bordered by Tekirdağ Province and Kırklareli Pro ...
,
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
), at that time part of the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
. He was of Greek origin. In 1811, he married, and shortly after was ordained as a priest by metropolitan Matthew (Megalos) of
Enos Enos or Enosh (Hebrew: , Standard ''Enosh'', Tiberian ''ʼĔnôš''; "mortal man”) may refer to: People in religious scripture * Enos (biblical figure), a genealogical figure in the Bible. * The Book of Enos, one of the books that make up the B ...
. In 1814 he lost his wife, who had given birth to a son, named George after his grandfather. In 1817 he was elected Igumen (abbot) of the Monastery of the Holy Trinity on the island of Halki. Patriarch Constantine had him locum_tenens_of_the_patriarchal_Greek_Church_in_1827._As_is_clear_from_a_document_dated_9_September_1835,_he_was_ordained_as_a_bishop_of_Sarajevo_in_Bosnia_by_Gregory_VI_of_Constantinople.html" ;"title="Sarajevo.html" ;"title="locum tenens of the patriarchal Greek Church in 1827. As is clear from a document dated 9 September 1835, he was ordained as a bishop of locum_tenens_of_the_patriarchal_Greek_Church_in_1827._As_is_clear_from_a_document_dated_9_September_1835,_he_was_ordained_as_a_bishop_of_Sarajevo_in_Bosnia_by_Gregory_VI_of_Constantinople">Patriarch_Gregory_VI,_assisted_by_four_other_bishops._He_remained_in_his_position_for_five_years_before_being_removed_by_the_ locum_tenens_of_the_patriarchal_Greek_Church_in_1827._As_is_clear_from_a_document_dated_9_September_1835,_he_was_ordained_as_a_bishop_of_Sarajevo_in_Bosnia_by_Gregory_VI_of_Constantinople">Patriarch_Gregory_VI,_assisted_by_four_other_bishops._He_remained_in_his_position_for_five_years_before_being_removed_by_the_Ottoman_Empire">Ottoman_authorities. In_Vienna,_the_Minister_of_Interior,_Franz_Anton_von_Kolowrat-Liebsteinsky.html" ;"title="Ottoman_Empire.html" ;"title="Sarajevo">locum tenens of the patriarchal Greek Church in 1827. As is clear from a document dated 9 September 1835, he was ordained as a bishop of Patriarch_Gregory_VI,_assisted_by_four_other_bishops._He_remained_in_his_position_for_five_years_before_being_removed_by_the_Ottoman_Empire">Ottoman_authorities. In_Vienna,_the_Minister_of_Interior,_Franz_Anton_von_Kolowrat-Liebsteinsky">Count_Kolovrat,_and_Archduke_Louis_of_Austria.html" ;"title="Sarajevo in Bosnia by
Patriarch_Gregory_VI,_assisted_by_four_other_bishops._He_remained_in_his_position_for_five_years_before_being_removed_by_the_Ottoman_Empire">Ottoman_authorities. In_Vienna,_the_Minister_of_Interior,_Franz_Anton_von_Kolowrat-Liebsteinsky">Count_Kolovrat,_and_Archduke_Louis_of_Austria">Archduke_Ludwig_prepared_the_way_for_permission_to_be_given_by_
Patriarch_Gregory_VI,_assisted_by_four_other_bishops._He_remained_in_his_position_for_five_years_before_being_removed_by_the_Ottoman_Empire">Ottoman_authorities. In_Vienna,_the_Minister_of_Interior,_Franz_Anton_von_Kolowrat-Liebsteinsky">Count_Kolovrat,_and_Archduke_Louis_of_Austria">Archduke_Ludwig_prepared_the_way_for_permission_to_be_given_by_Ferdinand_I_of_Austria">Ferdinand_ Ferdinand_is_a_Germanic_name_composed_of__the__elements__"protection",__"peace"_(PIE__"to_love,_to_make_peace")_or_alternatively__"journey,_travel",_Proto-Germanic_,_abstract_noun_from_root__"to_fare,_travel"_(PIE_,_"to_lead,_pass_over"),_and__"co_...
_in_1844_to_invite_a_foreign_bishop_to_establish_his_headquarters_in_Belaya_Krinitsa,_to_serve_the_needs_of_the_Old_Believers_in_the_domains_of_the_Empire._There_existed_for_generations_communities_of_Old_Believers_in_Ottoman_Empire.html" "title="Ferdinand_I_of_Austria.html" "title="Gregory VI of Constantinople">Patriarch Gregory VI, assisted by four other bishops. He remained in his position for five years before being removed by the Ottoman Empire">Ottoman authorities. In Vienna, the Minister of Interior, Franz Anton von Kolowrat-Liebsteinsky">Count Kolovrat, and Archduke Louis of Austria">Archduke Ludwig prepared the way for permission to be given by Ferdinand I of Austria">Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...
in 1844 to invite a foreign bishop to establish his headquarters in Belaya Krinitsa, to serve the needs of the Old Believers in the domains of the Empire. There existed for generations communities of Old Believers in Ottoman Empire">Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
who were European refugees from the persecutions in Russia, and it was a natural place to search for a bishop in order to establish an independent full Church Hierarchy. Osip Semenovich Goncharov, Ataman of the Nekrasov Cossacks, established contact between Bishop Ambrose and two Russian monks, Paul and Alimpius, who were searching for an orthodox bishop willing to join the Old Believers. A Serb, Costantino Efimovic, acted as an interpreter between metropolitan Ambrose and the monks. Paul and Alimpius examined the orthodox beliefs of Ambrose, who presented documents from the Patriarch of Constantinople which confirmed his canonical status. Bishop Ambrose and his son then took time to investigate the status of the Russian Orthodox Old canonry, before giving his consent on 15 April 1846."Background on the Old Rite", Church of the Nativity, Erie, Pennsylvania
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Conversion to the Old Faith

After a trip along the Danube, Bishop Ambrose, Paul and Alimpius arrived in
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, in modern-day
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
, where 500
Nekrasov Cossacks Nekrasov Cossacks, Nekrasovite Cossacks, Nekrasovites, Nekrasovtsy (russian: link=no, Некрасовцы, Некрасовские казаки, Казаки-некрасовцы) descend from those Don Cossacks who, after the defeat of the B ...
, together with the monks of the monastery of Slavo-Rus, their Father and Igumen Makarii Arkadii Lavrentiyevskii, presented the Metropolitan the traditional tokens of hospitality: bread with salt. The government requested and obtained from the Patriarchate of Constantinople a favourable report on the bishop, before giving him permission to establish his residence in their domains. After a meeting to discuss the procedure for settlement of Ambrose, on 28 October 1846 he held the office Vigil in honour of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. The following day, after having read the usual confession of faith in Slavonic, Bishop Ambrose was accepted according to Canon 95 of the
Sixth Ecumenical Council The Third Council of Constantinople, counted as the Sixth Ecumenical Council by the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches, as well by certain other Western Churches, met in 680–681 and condemned monoenergism and monothelitism as heretical ...
. The priest monk Jerome, with the blessing of the first and the new Metropolitan of Belaya Krinitsa and all the Russian Old Believers, began the Divine Liturgy, celebrated by Ambrose. The bishop read the prayers in his native language, Greek, but the deacon and the choir used Slavonic. Due to the absence of two other bishops, he used two archpriests, a procedure already used before in the history of the Church in cases of necessity, and described in some lives of saints. In August 1847 there was the ordination of Bishop Arcadius by Slava Russkaya, an ancient seat of an Orthodox monastery at Tulcea. The Russian Foreign Ministry threatened to retaliate against the Roman Catholic government of the Habsburg Empire, if it did not withdraw the permission to the Old Believers to establish their own Metropolia in their lands. The Most Holy Synod, by which the Tsar had controlled the State Church since the abolition of the Patriarchate under
Peter I Peter I may refer to: Religious hierarchs * Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus * Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint * Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...
, likewise threatened to cut all financial assistance from the Patriarchate of Constantinople, if it did not do everything in its power to induce the Metropolitan Ambrose to change its position. Metropolitan Ambrose, however, refused. The Old Believers convinced him that the system of the Most Holy Synod, established in 1700 by Peter I to check the status of the church in place of the patriarch, was not canonical. By decree of Tsar Paul I, the Russian rulers had declared "the Church" and all the bishops of the church had been obliged to honour an oath to that effect.


Exile and death

In response to diplomatic pressure, the Austrian-Hungarian authorities closed the monastery of Belaya Krinitsa on 3 March 1848, and Metropolitan Ambrose was sent into exile in Cilli (now Celje,
Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
). After the outbreak of revolutions in Vienna, and with the assistance of Count Kolovrat, the monastery of Belaya Krinitsa was reopened at the end of 1848, though the Metropolitan had to remain in exile. His successor was Anthony (Shutov), who became the first Old Believers' Archbishop of Moscow. Metropolitan Ambrose lived fifteen years in exile and suffered from his isolation. Nonetheless he had assisted the Old Believers in their goal to establish a full Church Hierarchy, which he saw as the Will of God. On 28 October 1863 he sent his last official act as primate of the Russian Old Believer Archbishop Anthony and all the bishops under his jurisdiction. The document begins with the words: "For the mercy of God, the humble Archbishop and Metropolitan of all the Old-Rite Orthodox, Ambrose." In the text he expresses regret that he had lived so far away from his flock, and that his health did not allow him to do more, but that he remained open to discuss any issue relating to the church people under his spiritual care. This document clearly refuted allegations from some enemies of the Old Faith that wanted people to believe that the Holy Metropolitan had eventually rejected his flock. Metropolitan Ambrose died in 1863. Metropolitan Cyril held his funeral at Belaya Krinitsa monastery, but the Metropolitan was buried in the Greek-Orthodox cemetery of
Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into prov ...
.


Investigation by the Patriarchate of Constantinople

In 1899 the Patriarch of Constantinople established a commission to investigate the issue of Metropolitan Ambrose and his acceptance of the primacy of the Russian Old Orthodox Church. The committee issued a decree of recognition of the hierarchy established by Metropolitan Ambrose. This decree met with disapproval from Constantine Pobedonostsev, Ober-Procurator of the Most Holy Synod.


Canonization

At a joint synod held at the Monastery of Belaya Krinitsa 150 years after its acceptance of the primacy, Metropolitan Ambrosii was
canonized Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of s ...
on 11 November 1996, in the presence of both his successors, Metropolitan Leontii of Belaya Krinitsa and the Metropolitan Alimpii of Moscow and All Russia. The day of his feast was assigned to October 30 (November 12, according to the new calendar) each year. On 18/31 May 2000 Ambrosii's remains were exhumed and transferred from Trieste to Braila, Romania. Some years later, the monks Pavel and Alimpii were also canonized by the Old Believers.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ambrosii Of Belaya Krinitsa Greek Orthodox Christians from the Ottoman Empire People from the Ottoman Empire of Greek descent Old Believers Old Believer saints 1791 births 1863 deaths Russian bishops Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church