Vladimir Shipulin Bishop of the Russian Church, Archbishop of Tashkent. Date of Birth: 27.12.1876 Country: Uzbekistan

1. Early Life and Education
2. Ecclesiastical Career
3. Episcopal Service
4. Arrests and Imprisonment
5. Martyrdom

Early Life and Education

Bishop Innocent was born in Velsk, Vologda Governorate (now Velsky District, Arkhangelsk Oblast). He completed primary school in 1886 and went on to graduate from Vologda Theological Academy in 1896. Subsequently, he studied at Moscow Theological Academy from 1896 to 1900, earning a degree in theology.

Ecclesiastical Career

After graduating from the academy, Bishop Innocent was appointed assistant inspector of the academy and ordained into the monastic order. He was consecrated into the diaconate on January 14, 1901, and into the priesthood on March 31, 1901. From 1902 to 1905, he served as inspector of the Kursk and Pskov Theological Seminaries and was elevated to the rank of archimandrite.

In 1905, Bishop Innocent was appointed synodal sacristan and rector of the Church of the Twelve Apostles in the Moscow Kremlin. The following year, he became abbot of the Novospassky Monastery. In 1909, he was appointed rector of the Moscow Theological Seminary.

Episcopal Service

On June 24, 1912, Bishop Innocent was consecrated bishop of Vinnitsa, the second bishop of the Podolsk diocese. On February 14, 1914, he was appointed bishop of Balt, the first bishop of the same diocese. On February 12, 1915, he became bishop of Cheboksary, the second bishop of the Kazan diocese, and concurrently served as abbot of the Kazan Kizich Monastery.

Between 1917 and 1918, Bishop Innocent participated in the Local Council of the Orthodox Russian Church. From December 1918, he was bishop of Kirensk, vicar of the Irkutsk diocese. In 1918, he temporarily administered the Perm and Kungur Dioceses. From 1921 onwards, he served as bishop of Ufa.

Arrests and Imprisonment

In October 1922, Bishop Innocent was arrested in Ufa and released in 1923. In 1927, he was elevated to the rank of archbishop and appointed archbishop of Tula on September 15, 1927. He held the post until the end of 1927 but did not administer the diocese until 1934 due to his arrest and subsequent imprisonment in the Solovki prison camp.

In 1934, Archbishop Innocent was appointed archbishop of Tobolsk (never assuming the role). From May 8, 1935, he served as archbishop of Tomsk and was relieved of his duties on May 27. In 1936, he was appointed archbishop of Olonets (never assuming the role). From February 26, 1936, he became archbishop of Tashkent.

Martyrdom

Archbishop Innocent was arrested in 1937 and shot in the prison of the NKVD Internal Guard Administration of the Uzbek SSR on February 23, 1938, in Tashkent.