Metropolitan Benjamin (; ; secular name Vital Ivanavič Tupieka (; ; born 16 September 1968) is a Belarusian Orthodox bishop currently serving as Metropolitan of Minsk and as Patriarchal Exarch of the

Belarusian Orthodox Church The Belarusian Orthodox Church (BOC; , ) is the official name of the exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in Belarus. It represents the union of Eparchies and Metropolitanates of the Russian Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox eparchies in the ...

since 2020. He has also been Metropolitan of Barysaŭ since 2010. He is the first Belarusian to be head of the Belarusian Orthodox Church.

Early life and career

Vital Ivanavič Tupieka was born on 16 September 1968 in the city of

Luninets Luninyets or Luninets is a town in Brest Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Luninyets District. As of 2025, it has a population of 23,469. It is home to Luninets air base. History Luninyets is said to be mentioned in ...

, then part of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. His father, Ivan Tupieka, was a police officer. He graduated from secondary school in 1985, and then studied at the

Belarusian State University The Belarusian State University (BSU) (, ; ) is a university in Minsk, Belarus. It was founded on October 30, 1921. The university was ranked 387th in the world in the 2023 QS World University Rankings. History 1919–1949 On February 25, 1919, ...

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and 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 status in Belarus and is the administra ...

. He later continued his studies at the Faculty of Radiophysics and Electronics. He graduated in 1992, specialising in radiophysics engineering. In August of the same year, Tupieka entered the first course of the . After completing the third course in 1994, he was sent to

Zhyrovichy Monastery Zhyrovichy Monastery () is an Eastern Orthodox Church, Orthodox monastery in Belarus, in the village of Zhyrovichy (Slonim rajon, Hrodna voblast). History Legend One night around 1500 (storytellers and scholars disagree on the year), some ...

. On 16 December 1994, he was christened under the name of Vienijamin (after

Benjamin of Petrograd Benjamin of Petrograd (, Veniamin Petrogradsky, – ), born Vasily Pavlovich Kazansky (), was a hieromartyr under Soviet anti-religious persecution, a bishop in the Russian Orthodox Church and eventually Metropolitan of Petrograd and Gdov from ...

) by the deputy administrator of Zhyrovichy Monastery, and entered the monastery. On 9 January 1995, he was consecrated as a hierodeacon by Metropolitan Philaret during liturgical services at Zhyrovichy Monastery. On 13 February of the same year, he was promoted to hieromonk. On 20 June 1996, Vienijamin was appointed as treasurer of the monastery. The same year, he graduated from the Minsk Theological Seminary with a bachelor's degree in theology from the Minsk Theological Academy, and was appointed as a teacher at the theological seminary. On 14 December 1999, he became a hegumen. On 12 January 2005, Vienijamin became part of the deanery of Zyrovichy Monastery. He was promoted to the title of archimandrite on 20 May 2006. On 1 July 2009, he became abbot of the .

Metropolitan of Barysaŭ (2010–present)

On 20 March 2010, Vienijamin became Metropolitan of the

Diocese of Barysaŭ The Diocese of Barysaŭ (; ) is an eparchy of the Belarusian Orthodox Church (an exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church) located in Minsk Region in Belarus. History The Diocese of Barysaŭ was first established as a vicariate of the Dioc ...

. The ceremony of his appointment was at the

Cathedral of Christ the Saviour The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (, ) is a Russian Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox cathedral in Moscow, Russia, on the northern bank of the Moskva River, a few hundred metres southwest of the Kremlin. With an overall height of , it is the ...

, supervised by

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow Kirill or Cyril (, , secular name Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev, ; born 20 November 1946) is a Russian Orthodox bishop. He became Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' and Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church on 1 February 2009. Prior to beco ...

. Three months later, he was appointed head of the publishing house of the Belarusian Orthodox Church. On 19 November 2014, he became a voting member of the Holy Synod of the Belarusian Orthodox Church. However, on 3 June 2015, he was removed from the Holy Synod and his positions as abbot of Liady Monastery and the publishing house of the BOC. Since his appointment as Patriarchal Exarch of the BOC, Vienijamin has remained as Metropolitan of Barysaŭ on an acting basis.

Patriarchal Exarch of the Belarusian Orthodox Church (2020–present)

Vienijamin was appointed as Patriarchal Exarch of the Belarusian Orthodox Church on 25 August 2020 by the

Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church The Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church () serves by Church statute as the supreme administrative governing body of the Russian Orthodox Church in the periods between Bishops' Councils. Members Chairman * Kirill – Patriarch of ...

. At the time of his appointment, he was the first Belarusian to serve as head of the BOC; his two predecessors, Filaret and Paul, had both been Russians. His appointment was confirmed by Patriarch Kirill at a

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy () or Holy Liturgy is the usual name used in most Eastern Christian rites for the Eucharistic service. The Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern Lutheranism, Eastern Lutheran Churches and the Eastern Orthodox Church believe the Divi ...

in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour on 6 September 2020. In January 2022, Vienijamin was diagnosed with

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

, reportedly following a public event held with Belarusian President

Alexander Lukashenko Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (also transliterated as Alyaksandr Ryhoravich Lukashenka; born 30 August 1954) is a Belarusian politician who has been the first and only president of Belarus since the office's establishment in 1994, making hi ...

, according to Belarusian opposition organisation

Christian Vision CV, formerly known as Christian Vision, is a large international Christian ministry established in 1988, based in the United Kingdom. CV was founded by Lord Edmiston, with a vision to "reach one billion people around the globe, introduce them to ...

. Vienijamin is a supporter of the

All-Russian nation The All-Russian nation or All-Russian people () or triune Russian people (), also called the triune Russian nation or pan-Russian nation, is the term for the Imperial Russian and modern Russian irredentist ideology that sees the Russian nation ...

and

Russian world The "Russian world" () is a concept and a political doctrine usually defined as the sphere of military, political and cultural influence of Russia. It is a vague term, mostly used to refer to communities with a historical, cultural, or spirit ...

ideology, having called for the unification of Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia into a singular country. He has promoted the policies of Alexander Lukashenko's government, including modifications to the

Constitution of Belarus The Constitution of the Republic of Belarus (; ) is the supreme basic law of Belarus. The Constitution is composed of a preamble and nine sections divided into 148 articles. Adopted in 1994, three years after the country declared its independen ...

and anti-protest laws. Lukashenko praised Vienijamin for his support during the

2020–2021 Belarusian protests The 2020–2021 Belarusian protests were a series of mass Demonstration (political), political demonstrations and protests against the Government of Belarus, Belarusian government and President Alexander Lukashenko. The largest anti-government ...

, claiming Vienijamin's support had stopped a conspiracy involving "almost all" Catholics and some Orthodox Christians. Vienijamin has been criticised by members of the

Belarusian opposition The Belarusian opposition consists of groups and individuals in Belarus seeking to challenge, from 1988 to 1991, the authorities of Soviet Belarus, and since 1995, the leader of the country Alexander Lukashenko (allied with Vladimir Putin), whom ...

, such as

Charter 97 Charter'97 (; ) is a declaration calling for democracy in Belarus and a pro-human rights online news outlet taking its inspiration from the declaration. Charter The Charter'97 declaration deliberately echoes the Czechoslovak human rights declara ...

, for his refusal to condemn the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

. He criticised Belarusian Orthodox Church clergymen who protested against the crackdown on the 2020–2021 protests and signed the Appeal of the Clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church for Reconciliation and an End to War, stating that a priest "does not need to interfere" on political topics.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vienijamin Tupieka 1968 births Living people 21st-century Belarusian people People from Brest region Bishops of the Belarusian Orthodox Church