Potapy Emelianov
Encyclopedia
Potapy Emelianov was a Russian Catholic
priest
and confessor
.
who were later received into the Edinoverie
by the Russian Orthodox Bishop of Ufa, Antony (Khrapovitsky) of Kiev
. He was tonsured and subsequently ordained as a hieromonk
of the Russian Orthodox Church
. When Bishop Antony was named Metropolitan of Kiev, he brought the young hieromonk with him and assigned him to the Old Ritualist parish at Nizhnaya Bogdanovka, near Lugansk, Ukraine
.
. After learning that Metropolitan
Andrei Sheptytsky had formed an Exarchate for Russian Rite Catholics, Father Potapy travelled to St. Petersburg to meet with the Exarch, Blessed
Leonid Feodorov
. After questioning him closely, Exarch Leonid received Father Potapy and his entire parish into the Russian Catholic Church
.
. He survived a ten year GULAG
sentence at Solovki prison camp. He died while building the White Sea Canal.
. His present title is Servant of God
.
Russian Catholic Church
The Russian Catholic Church is a Byzantine Rite church sui juris in full union with the Catholic Church. Historically it represents a schism from the Russian Orthodox Church. It is now in full communion with and subject to the authority of the Pope as defined by Eastern canon law...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
and confessor
Confessor
-Confessor of the Faith:Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith, but not to the point of death. The term is still used in this way in the East. In Latin Christianity it has come to signify any saint, as well as those who have been declared...
.
Early life
Potapy Emelianov was born into a family of Priestless Old BelieversOld Believers
In the context of Russian Orthodox church history, the Old Believers separated after 1666 from the official Russian Orthodox Church as a protest against church reforms introduced by Patriarch Nikon between 1652–66...
who were later received into the Edinoverie
Edinoverie
Edinoverie is an arrangement between certain Russian Old Believer communities and the official Russian Orthodox State Church, whereby the communities are treated as a part of the normative Orthodox Church system, while maintaining their own traditional rites...
by the Russian Orthodox Bishop of Ufa, Antony (Khrapovitsky) of Kiev
Antony (Khrapovitsky) of Kiev
Metropolitan Antony of Kiev was a Russian Orthodox metropolitan bishop, founder of Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia.-Biography:He was born Aleksey Pavlovich Khrapovitsky in Vatagino to a family with a noble background. and studied theology at Saint Petersburg Theological Academy. In 1885 he...
. He was tonsured and subsequently ordained as a hieromonk
Hieromonk
Hieromonk , also called a Priestmonk, is a monk who is also a priest in the Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholicism....
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...
. When Bishop Antony was named Metropolitan of Kiev, he brought the young hieromonk with him and assigned him to the Old Ritualist parish at Nizhnaya Bogdanovka, near Lugansk, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
.
Catholicism
By 1918, the Hieromonk Potapy had become convinced that true Orthodoxy could not be ordained except through Communion with the Holy SeeHoly See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
. After learning that 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...
Andrei Sheptytsky had formed an Exarchate for Russian Rite Catholics, Father Potapy travelled to St. Petersburg to meet with the Exarch, Blessed
Beatification
Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
Leonid Feodorov
Leonid Feodorov
Blessed Leonid Ivanovich Feodorov was Exarch of the Russian Catholic Church, in addition to being a survivor of the GULAG. After painstaking investigation, he was beatified by Pope John Paul II on June 27, 2001.-Early life:...
. After questioning him closely, Exarch Leonid received Father Potapy and his entire parish into the Russian Catholic Church
Russian Catholic Church
The Russian Catholic Church is a Byzantine Rite church sui juris in full union with the Catholic Church. Historically it represents a schism from the Russian Orthodox Church. It is now in full communion with and subject to the authority of the Pope as defined by Eastern canon law...
.
Persecution
Father Potapy and his parishioners underwent severe harassment and violent persecution from both the Red Guards and the White Army during the Russian Civil WarRussian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
. He survived a ten year GULAG
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
sentence at Solovki prison camp. He died while building the White Sea Canal.
Legacy
Father Potapy is greatly venerated among Russian Greek-Catholics and is now being investigated for possible BeatificationBeatification
Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
. His present title is Servant of God
Servant of God
Servant of God is a title given to individuals by various religions, but in general the phrase is used to describe a person believed to be pious in his or her faith tradition. In the Catholic Church, it designates someone who is being investigated by the Church for possibly being recognized as a...
.
External links
- Catholicmartyrs - Fr. Potapy Emelianov at google.com
Further reading
- Fr. Paul Mailleux, "ExarchExarchIn 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....
Leonid FeodorovLeonid FeodorovBlessed Leonid Ivanovich Feodorov was Exarch of the Russian Catholic Church, in addition to being a survivor of the GULAG. After painstaking investigation, he was beatified by Pope John Paul II on June 27, 2001.-Early life:...
; Bridgebuilder Between Rome and Moscow," 1964. - Irina I. Osipova, Hide Me Within Thy Wounds; The Persecution of the Catholic Church in the USSR, Germans From Russia Heritage Collection, 2003.
- Fr. Christopher Zugger, "The Forgotten; Catholics in the Soviet Empire from Lenin to Stalin," University of Syracuse Press.