Metropolitan Anthony (Bloom) of Sourozh
Encyclopedia
Antony of Sourozh (19 June 1914 - 4 August 2003) was best known as a writer and broadcaster on prayer and the Christian life. He was a monk and Metropolitan bishop
of the Russian Orthodox Church
. He was founder and for many years bishop
- then archbishop
, then metropolitan
- of the Diocese of Sourozh, the Patriarchate of Moscow's diocese for Great Britain and Ireland (the name 'Sourozh' is that of the historical episcopal see
in Sudak
in the Crimea
). As a bishop he became well known as a pastor, preacher, spiritual director and writer on prayer and the Christian life.
, Switzerland
, to Xenia and Boris Edwardovich Bloom. On his mother's side, he was the nephew of the composer Alexander Scriabin
.
He spent his early childhood in Russia
and Iran
. During the Russian Revolution
the family had to leave Iran, and by 1923 they were settled in Paris
, where he was educated. He graduated in physics, chemistry and biology, and took his doctorate in medicine at the University of Paris
.
By his own words, he met Christ
, when he was a teenager:
"I met Christ as a Person at a moment when I needed him in order to live, and at a moment when I was not in search of him. I was found; I did not find him".
"I was a teenager then. Life had been difficult in the early years and now it had of a sudden become easier. All the years when life had been hard I had found it natural, if not easy, to fight; but when life became easy and happy I was faced quite unexpectedly with a problem: I could not accept aimless happiness. Hardships and suffering had to be overcome, there was something beyond them. Happiness seemed to be stale if it had no further meaning".
"As it often happens when you are young and when you act with passion, bent to possess either everything or nothing, I decided that I would give myself a year to see whether life had a meaning, and if I discovered it had none I would not live beyond the year..."
army, he secretly professed monastic
vows in the Russian Orthodox Church
. In 1943 he was tonsure
d and received the name of Antony. During the occupation of France by Nazi Germany
he worked as a doctor, and took part in the French Resistance
.
After the war he continued practising as a physician until 1948, when he was ordained to the presbyterate and sent to Britain to serve as Orthodox Christian Chaplain
of the Fellowship of St. Alban and St. Sergius, a society established to foster understanding and friendship between the Orthodox and Anglican communions. In 1950 he was appointed vicar of the Russian Patriarchal parish in London
.
In 1957 he was consecrated as Bishop, and as archbishop in 1962 in charge of the Russian Orthodox Church in Great Britain and Ireland
.
In 1963 he was appointed Exarch
of the Moscow Patriarchate in Western Europe, and in 1966 was assigned the rank of Metropolitan bishop
.
In 1974 by mutual agreement he was released from the function of Exarch, in order to devote himself more fully to the pastoral needs of the growing flock of his diocese. Between 1966 and 1986 he brought out six books on prayer.
In the summer of 2003 Bloom resigned as diocesan bishop. He died on 4 August 2003. His grave in the Brompton Cemetery
, London, is visited by Christians and many others.
; and from the Kiev Theological Academy
.
(Posthumously published:)
Note: dates are for British editions.
The Foundation is also establishing the official archive of Bloom's papers and writings, together with related materials, such as recordings of talks, broadcasts and sermons.
The Foundation is the legal owner of the worldwide copyrights and other intellectual property rights in Bloom's works, and its charity registered number is 1120395. The Chairman of the Trustees is Protodeacon Peter Scorer.
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
of the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
. He was founder and for many years bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
- then archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
, then metropolitan
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
- of the Diocese of Sourozh, the Patriarchate of Moscow's diocese for Great Britain and Ireland (the name 'Sourozh' is that of the historical episcopal see
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
in Sudak
Sudak
Sudak or Sudaq is a small historic town located in Crimea, Ukraine situated to the west of Feodosiya and to the east of Simferopol, the capital of Crimea...
in the Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
). As a bishop he became well known as a pastor, preacher, spiritual director and writer on prayer and the Christian life.
Early life
Bloom was born Andrei Borisovich Bloom on 19 June, 1914, in LausanneLausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, to Xenia and Boris Edwardovich Bloom. On his mother's side, he was the nephew of the composer Alexander Scriabin
Alexander Scriabin
Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin was a Russian composer and pianist who initially developed a lyrical and idiosyncratic tonal language inspired by the music of Frédéric Chopin. Quite independent of the innovations of Arnold Schoenberg, Scriabin developed an increasingly atonal musical system,...
.
He spent his early childhood in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. During the Russian Revolution
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
the family had to leave Iran, and by 1923 they were settled in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where he was educated. He graduated in physics, chemistry and biology, and took his doctorate in medicine at the University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
.
By his own words, he met Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
, when he was a teenager:
"I met Christ as a Person at a moment when I needed him in order to live, and at a moment when I was not in search of him. I was found; I did not find him".
"I was a teenager then. Life had been difficult in the early years and now it had of a sudden become easier. All the years when life had been hard I had found it natural, if not easy, to fight; but when life became easy and happy I was faced quite unexpectedly with a problem: I could not accept aimless happiness. Hardships and suffering had to be overcome, there was something beyond them. Happiness seemed to be stale if it had no further meaning".
"As it often happens when you are young and when you act with passion, bent to possess either everything or nothing, I decided that I would give myself a year to see whether life had a meaning, and if I discovered it had none I would not live beyond the year..."
Career
In 1939, before leaving for the front as a surgeon in the FrenchFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
army, he secretly professed monastic
Monasticism
Monasticism is a religious way of life characterized by the practice of renouncing worldly pursuits to fully devote one's self to spiritual work...
vows in the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
. In 1943 he was tonsure
Tonsure
Tonsure is the traditional practice of Christian churches of cutting or shaving the hair from the scalp of clerics, monastics, and, in the Eastern Orthodox Church, all baptized members...
d and received the name of Antony. During the occupation of France by Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
he worked as a doctor, and took part in the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
.
After the war he continued practising as a physician until 1948, when he was ordained to the presbyterate and sent to Britain to serve as Orthodox Christian Chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
of the Fellowship of St. Alban and St. Sergius, a society established to foster understanding and friendship between the Orthodox and Anglican communions. In 1950 he was appointed vicar of the Russian Patriarchal parish in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
In 1957 he was consecrated as Bishop, and as archbishop in 1962 in charge of the Russian Orthodox Church in Great Britain and Ireland
Russian Orthodox Church in Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland contain two Russian Orthodox groups.The most numerous group is the Moscow Patriarchate's Diocese of Sourozh. There is also the Diocese of Great Britain and Ireland of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia....
.
In 1963 he was appointed Exarch
Exarch
In the Byzantine Empire, an exarch was governor with extended authority of a province at some remove from the capital Constantinople. The prevailing situation frequently involved him in military operations....
of the Moscow Patriarchate in Western Europe, and in 1966 was assigned the rank of Metropolitan bishop
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
.
In 1974 by mutual agreement he was released from the function of Exarch, in order to devote himself more fully to the pastoral needs of the growing flock of his diocese. Between 1966 and 1986 he brought out six books on prayer.
In the summer of 2003 Bloom resigned as diocesan bishop. He died on 4 August 2003. His grave in the Brompton Cemetery
Brompton Cemetery
Brompton Cemetery is located near Earl's Court in South West London, England . It is managed by The Royal Parks and is one of the Magnificent Seven...
, London, is visited by Christians and many others.
Honours
Bloom received honorary doctorates from the University of Aberdeen ('for preaching the Word of God and renewing the spiritual life of this country'); from the Moscow Theological Academy for his theological, pastoral and preaching work; from the University of CambridgeUniversity of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
; and from the Kiev Theological Academy
Kiev Theological Academy
The Kievan Theological Academy and Seminary is the oldest college of the Russian Orthodox Church. It is situated in Kiev and traces its history back to 1615, when Yelisey Pletenetsky founded a "brotherhood school" at the Theophany Monastery....
.
Writings
His books were published in English in Britain. His texts are now widely published in Russia as books and in periodicals.- 1966 – Living prayer
- 1970 – Beginning to pray
- 1971 – God and man
- 1972 – Meditations on a theme: a spiritual journey
- 1973 – Courage to pray
- 1986 – The essence of prayer
(Posthumously published:)
- 2005 – Encounter
- 2007 – The Living Body of Christ
- 2009 – Coming Closer to Christ: on Confession
Note: dates are for British editions.
The Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh Foundation
The Foundation http://www.metropolitan-anthony.org is a body of independent trustees who collect together and publish his writings. As at July 2011, the Foundation undertakes this by managing the copyrights in his works and by commissioning new selections and approved translations.The Foundation is also establishing the official archive of Bloom's papers and writings, together with related materials, such as recordings of talks, broadcasts and sermons.
The Foundation is the legal owner of the worldwide copyrights and other intellectual property rights in Bloom's works, and its charity registered number is 1120395. The Chairman of the Trustees is Protodeacon Peter Scorer.
External links
- The Metropolian Anthony of Sourozh Foundation http://www.metropolian-anthony.org
- Russian Orthodox Diocese of Sourozh
- The Deanery of Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Great Britain and Ireland
- Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh (English)
- Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh (Russian)
- Funeral of Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh
- Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh Archive: Photos, Video, Audio, and Texts