Before the separation, the diocese of Syktyvkar occupied the territory of the Komi Republic. It is located in the northeastern part of Russia. In the north and northeast, Komi borders on the Arkhangelsk region, in the east - on the Tyumen region, in the southeast - on the Sverdlovsk region, in the south - on the Perm region, and in the southwest - on the Kirov region. Most of the territory of the republic is occupied by taiga. There are only a few cities here: the capital of the Republic of Syktyvkar, Vorkuta, Ukhta, Pechora, Vuktyl, Inta, Sosnogorsk, Usinsk, Emva, Mikun.
St. Stephen
The Diocese of Syktyvkar was founded about 650 years ago. In the XIV century, there were settlements of pagans - Western Permians or Zyryans - on the land of Komi. In one of the cities bordering with her - Ustyug - then the future Saint Stephen was born. Even as a child, he became acquainted with the language and customs of the people, among whom he subsequently conducted missionary work. The saint did not want to support their Russification along with the baptism of the Zyrians. Therefore, he created the Zyryanskayawriting based on local runes and translated liturgical books and the Bible into the Zyryan language. That is, Saint Stephen became for Komi what Cyril and Methodius were for Russia.
The hierarch began preaching the Gospel from Ust-Vym, the main settlement of the Zyrians. Having defeated the local sorcerer in a dispute, he began to preach Christianity in the Komi land with great success. The magnificent temple built by Stefan in Ust-Vym became a kind of sermon of beauty. The pagans came just to admire the church and its decoration. Throughout the Zyryansk land, the saint began to build churches and paint icons for them. In addition to the apostolic labors, Stefan was also worried about the daily bread for the people, who enlightened, which earned the love and trust of the Zyrians.
Establishment of the Perm diocese
In 1383, a church decree was issued, supported by Grand Duke Dimitry Donskoy, on the creation of the Perm diocese on the Komi land with the elevation of St. Stephen to the bishopric. This bishopric became the first Russian diocese among non-Russian peoples. The XV century gave the Zyrians three saints - Bishops Gerasim, Pitirim and Jonah. Four saints became patrons of the Komi land. The diocese at that time was called Perm-Vologda. In 1564, the leadership of the diocese moved to Vologda, and it became known as Vologda-Great Perm. Subsequently, the Zyrian flock was part of the first Vyatka, then Tobolsk dioceses.
Appearance of the diocese of Syktyvkar and Vorkuta
Almost until the end of the 20th century, the Komi land was part of the diocese of Arkhangelsk and Murmansk. By decree of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia dated October 6, 1995, an independent diocese of Syktyvkar and Vorkuta was re-established on the territory of the Komi Republic, separated from Arkhangelsk and Murmansk.
The leadership of the diocese was entrusted to Bishop Pitirim (Pavel Pavlovich Volochkov). He received his new name on January 1, 1984, in honor of St. Pitirim, Wonderworker of Ust-Vymsk, at the time of taking monastic vows. The episcopal consecration (ordination) was performed over him on December 19, 1995 at the Moscow Epiphany Cathedral.
Grounds for separation
As can be seen from history, the process of fragmentation of large bishoprics into smaller ones has been going on almost continuously, from the very beginning of the existence of Orthodoxy in Russia and the territories conquered by it. On April 16, 2016, a meeting of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church was held, which considered, among other things, the proposal of Bishop Pitirim to separate the new diocese from Syktyvkar - Vorkuta.
The grounds for making such a proposal can be considered the following. The diocese of Syktyvkar occupies the entire area of the Komi Republic. The population of Komi is about 856,831 people at a density of 2.06 people per 1 sq. km. km. The area of the republic is 416,774 sq. km. It stretches for 1275 km from southwest to northeast. All this serves as a serious basis for the division of the territory in connection with the physic althe impossibility of one bishop regularly traveling around such a vast territory and fully supporting the parishes.
Another important aspect of the division and renaming of the diocese is that its name should contain the name of the Komi people. Thus, it is emphasized that Russian Orthodoxy enlightens the hearts of non-Russian people as well. Instead of the name "Syktyvkar diocese", the "Syktyvkar and Komi-Zyryan diocese" was proposed as a new name.
Result of consideration of proposal
Following the consideration of the proposal of Bishop Pitirim, a decision was made on the formation of the Vorkuta diocese. It was decided to include in its composition those selected from the Syktyvkar diocese:
- Ust-Tsilimsky district;
- Izhma region;
- Pechora region;
- Vuktyl city district;
- Int city district;
- Vorkuta City District;
- Usinsky city district.
Management of the Syktyvkar diocese was entrusted to Vladyka Pitirim with the title of Archbishop of Syktyvkar and Komi-Zyryansk. One of the clergy of the Shuya diocese, hegumen John (Rudenko), became the head of the Vorkuta diocese, conferring on him the title of Bishop of Vorkuta and Usinsky.
Diocese before separation
The Diocese of Syktyvkar at the time of separation included 258 parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church located on the land of the Komi Republic. On herThere are 4 women's and 3 men's monasteries on the territory. In addition to numerous churches, there are several prayer rooms in the diocese. They are in prisons, hospitals, educational institutions, orphanages, a nursing home and a veterans' hospital. The diocese includes a special Prison Deanery District.
The Consequences of Separation
The division of the Syktyvkar diocese should entail a significant increase in the number of parishes. One of the questions that worried the public in connection with the division was whether it would be expedient to appoint a cleric from the Ivanovo region to the post of head of the Vorkuta diocese. This decision is due to the fact that a leader of this level must have appropriate training. Among the clergy of the Syktyvkar diocese, unfortunately, there was no suitable candidate. Therefore, Abbot John (Rudenko), a clergyman of the Shuya diocese, became the new bishop.
So why was it necessary to divide the diocese?
Any news about the activities of the Russian Orthodox Church traditionally and inevitably causes a lot of negative assessments and comments, and mostly from people who have nothing to do with the church. Appeared in the media and the question of why it was necessary to divide the Syktyvkar diocese. The answer may be as follows. In connection with the growing number of churches being restored, back in 2011 the Russian Orthodox Church began the process of dividing large regional dioceses into smaller ones. This was due to the fact that there was a need to reduce the number of parishes per bishop in order to get more attentionwas given to everyone. The result of such a division should be closer communication between archpastors and parishioners, the opening of new churches, the creation of new communities and the ordination of new priests. The former diocese of Syktyvkar and Vorkuta is no exception.
