Theophilus (Pashkovsky), born Feodor (Theodore) Nikolaevich Pashkovsky (russian: Фёдор Николаевич Пашковский) and commonly known as Metropolitan Theophilus (February 6, 1874, in
Kyiv – June 27, 1950, in
San Francisco), was primate of the
North American metropolia, Archbishop of San Francisco,
Metropolitan of All America and Canada.
Life
Theodore Pashkovsky was born in the province of Kyiv on February 6, 1874, into a
priestly family. He attended the
Kyiv Theological Academy Preparatory School where he was noted as a disciplined and hard working student. The curing of a bone infection he developed while still a young student was to guide him in his future career. After doctors believed that the infection was not curable, prayers for Theodore by the already famous priest
John of Kronstadt, when he visited the school, resulted in a complete healing. In gratitude, Theodore vowed to become a
novice at the
Kyiv Lavra. This he fulfilled in 1894.
When Bishop
Nicholas (Ziorov) of the North American diocese visited the Lavra to recruit workers for his mission, Theodore was invited to America. He was assigned as the secretary of the mission administration after arriving in
San Francisco in late 1894. Soon after he met and married Ella Dabovich from the Serbian community. She was the niece of Fr.
Sebastian Dabovich.
Then, on December 4, 1897, he was ordained a priest following his earlier
ordination as
deacon.
On June 20, 1900, his wife delivered him a son, Boris, who would be remembered during World War II as Colonel
Boris Pash, the leader of the
Alsos Mission in Europe under the
Manhattan Project and as the Foreign Liaison Officer under
General Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was ...
during negotiations on the future of the
Japanese Orthodox Church in 1945–1947.
When Archbishop
Tikhon (Bellavin) returned to Russia in 1906, Fr. Theodore accompanied him with his family and worked in the administration of the Warsaw-Vilna Diocese.
During
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, Fr. Theodore worked in the Famine Relief Program of the
YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams (philanthropist), Georg ...
on the Volga River. In 1917 his wife died.
As the chaos of the Bolshevik regime settled over the Church, he met often with and was advised and instructed by Patriarch Tikhon on the future of the North American diocese. During these meetings Patriarch Tikhon also expressed the desire that Fr. Theodore become a
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...
. Fr. Theodore returned to the United States in 1922 and was soon
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 of Theophilus. Then, under direction 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 ...
Hieromonk
A hieromonk ( el, Ἱερομόναχος, Ieromonachos; ka, მღვდელმონაზონი, tr; Slavonic: ''Ieromonakh'', ro, Ieromonah), also called a priestmonk, is a monk who is also a priest in the Eastern Orthodox Church and ...
Theophilius was consecrated on December 3, 1922, as Bishop of
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
.
He oversaw the restart of theological education in the diocese that had ended with the closing, in 1924, of the seminary at Tenafly, New Jersey.
Bp. Theophilius remained in Chicago until he was transferred in 1931, to become Bishop of San Francisco.
After death of Metropolitan
Platon (Rozhdestvensky)
Platon may refer to:
People
* Plato (Πλάτων, romanized as ''Plátōn''), Greek philosopher
* Plato (comic poet) (fl. 420–391 BCE)
* Plato of Bactria (2nd century BCE), Greco-Bactrian king
* Plato (exarch) (fl. 645–653), Byzantine ex ...
in 1934, Bishop Theophilius was elected jointly by the council of assembled bishops and the full Council as the new
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 ...
by the Fifth
All-American Sobor that convened in Cleveland, Ohio, on November 20, 1934.
Under Metr. Theophilius American Church continued to journey into a state of stability. Episcopal relationships improved as the threat of the ''Living Church'' subsided, although new challenges arose.
He took a course to unity of Russian church diaspora: in 1935, he signed the "Provisional Regulations on the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad" (Временное Положение о Русской Православной Церкви заграницей), which led the Northern-American Metropolia came under the authority of the Synod of Bishops in
Sremski Karlovci
Sremski Karlovci ( sr-cyrl, Сремски Карловци, ; hu, Karlóca; tr, Karlofça) is a town and municipality located in the South Bačka District of the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is situated on the banks of the Danu ...
, but for all that metropolia, headed by Metropolitan Theophilus retained considerable autonomy.
Attention was given to improving church education programs, including establishing
Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary. A metropolitan
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 denominatio ...
, the Holy Virgin Protection Cathedral, in New York City, was acquired.
However, the unity with the Russian Orthodox Church was fragile. On 26–29 November 1946, Cleveland Council adopted a resolution to quit over the Synod of Russian Orthodox Church Abroad. In the words of Archbishop
Vitaly (Maksimenko), Metropolitan Theophilus did not sympathize the decision to sever ties with the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, but submit to the decision of the Council.
[Архіепископъ Виталій (Максименко)]
Памяти Митрополита Ѳеофила
// Мотивы моей жизни. — Джорданвилль: Свято-Троицкий Монастырь, 1955. — С. 118—123
Yet, a residue of the chaos and ''episcopal problems'' of the 1920s were to remain through World War II and through to Metr. Theophilius' death on June 27, 1950.
References
Sources
* Архіепископъ
Виталій (Максименко)Памяти Митрополита Ѳеофила// Мотивы моей жизни. — Джорданвилль: Свято-Троицкий Монастырь, 1955. — С. 118—123
* Constance J. Tarasar, Orthodox America 1794–1976 Development of the Orthodox Church in America Syosett, New York, The Orthodox Church in America, 1975
*
// Русские в Северной Америке. Е. А. Александров. Хэмден (США)-Сан-Франциско (США)-Санкт-Петербург (Россия), 2005
External links
*
Theophilus (Pashkovsky) of San Francisco
Theophilus is a male given name with a range of alternative spellings. Its origin is the Greek word Θεόφιλος from θεός (God) and φιλία (love or affection) can be translated as "Love of God" or "Friend of God", i.e., it is a theop ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pashkovsky, Theophilus
1874 births
1950 deaths
Russian Orthodox Christians from Ukraine
Russian Orthodox Christians from the United States
Eastern Orthodox bishops in the United States
Primates of the Orthodox Church in America