Metropolit Guriy Bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church Date of Birth: 13.07.1891

1. Early Life and Monastic Calling
2. Theological Studies and Ordination
3. Pastoral Ministry and Missionary Work
4. Persecutions and Imprisonment
5. Post-War Ministry and Episcopal Consecration
6. Episcopal Service and Controversies
7. Later Years and Legacy

Early Life and Monastic Calling

Bishop Guriy (Chezlov) was born into a middle-class family in 1891. His father owned a team of carting izvozchiks in St. Petersburg. At a young age, Guriy lost his parents and was raised by his uncle, who ran the Alexander Nevsky Market. In 1911, he graduated from the St. Petersburg Petrovsky Commercial School with a degree in commercial sciences.

Despite promising career prospects, Guriy felt a calling to monasticism. He sought guidance from Elder Hieroschemamonk Anatoly at Optina Pustyn and later met Archpriest Yegor Kossov. These encounters cemented his resolve to become a monk and priest.

Theological Studies and Ordination

In 1912, Guriy enrolled in the St. Petersburg Theological Academy. From 1914 to 1915, he served as a mercy brother at the front during World War I, where he contracted tuberculosis. After recovering, he returned to the academy. In 1915, he was tonsured a monk and ordained a hieromonk. In 1917, he graduated from the Petrograd Theological Academy with a degree in theology.

Pastoral Ministry and Missionary Work

Upon ordination, Father Guriy became an active pastor, serving at a women's monastery near St. Petersburg. Together with his brother, Archimandrite Lev, and Hieromonk Innokenty (Tikhonov), Guriy established the "Brotherhood of St. Alexander Nevsky" and embarked on intensive missionary work. They targeted the working class and marginalized individuals, engaging them through lectures, slideshows, and discussions on alcoholism and spirituality.

Persecutions and Imprisonment

In 1922, Archimandrite Guriy became the abbot of the Cross Church in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. However, he faced persecution from the authorities and was arrested twice, in 1922 and 1927. He was sentenced to three years of exile in Turkmenistan and later imprisoned in a labor camp on the White Sea Canal for five years.

Post-War Ministry and Episcopal Consecration

After his release in 1934, Guriy lived in exile in Tashkent and Fergana, where he secretly celebrated the liturgy with the blessing of Metropolitan Arseny (Stadnitsky). In 1944, he became the rector of the Intercession Cathedral in Samarkand and served as secretary of the diocesan administration. In 1946, he was consecrated as Bishop of Tashkent and Central Asia and later promoted to Archbishop in 1952.

Episcopal Service and Controversies

As Archbishop of Tashkent, Guriy ordained Archimandrite John (Wendland), who later became a metropolitan. He was a vocal opponent of ecumenism and Western influence on the Russian Church. He served as Archbishop of Saratov, Chernihiv, and Dnipropetrovsk, before becoming Metropolitan of Minsk and Belarus in 1959 and Metropolitan of Leningrad in 1960.

Later Years and Legacy

Due to deteriorating health, Guriy requested a transfer to a more peaceful diocese. In 1961, he became Metropolitan of Simferopol and Crimea. Despite his illness, he remained actively involved in liturgical services. He passed away in Simferopol in 1965 and was buried in the city's All Saints Cemetery.