Metropolitan Paul (, , secular name Georgiy Vasilevich Ponomaryov, ; born 19 February 1951 in Karaganda) was the Metropolitan of

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 ...

and

Slutsk Slutsk is a town in Minsk Region, in central Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Slutsk District, and is located on the Sluch (Belarus), Sluch River south of the capital Minsk. As of 2025, it has a population of 59,450. Geography ...

, the Patriarchal Exarch of All

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

and the leader 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 ...

(an Semi-Autonomous part of the

Russian Orthodox Church The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

) 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 Moscow Theological Academy () is a higher educational institution of the Russian Orthodox Church, training clergy, teachers, scholars, and officials. The Academy traces its origin to the Slavic Greek Latin Academy, which was founded in 1685 by th ...

with a degree in

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

. 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 Orthodox ...

of the

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

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. 29 December 1999 he was appointed Bishop of Vienna and Austria. Since 2000 he was also ruler of the Diocese of Budapest and Hungary. 23 February 2001 he was elevated to the rank of

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 ...

. 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

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ponomaryov, Paul 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 Moscow Theological Academy alumni