Patriarch Leonid of Georgia
Encyclopedia
Leonid (1860 – 1921) was a Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia
from 1918 to 1921.
Born Longinoz Okropiridze (ლონგინოზ ოქროპირიძე) in Georgia
, then part of Imperial Russia, he graduated from the Theological Academy of Kiev
, Ukraine
in 1888. He was later involved in missionary activities, chiefly in the Caucasus
.
Ogropiridze served as an inspector of the schools operated by the Society for the Restoration of Orthodox Christianity
in the Caucasus, an organization established by the Russian authorities. From the 1890s to the 1910s he served as an archimandrite
of the monasteries of Zedazeni, Khirsi and of St. John the Baptist in Georgia. He also chaired the Commission for Correction of the Georgian Bible
and was a member to the Georgia-Imeretia Synodal
office. Leonid was actively involved in the Georgian autocephalist
movement which succeeded in the restoration of the independent Georgian church from the Russian Orthodox Church
in 1917. During 1918, he functioned as a bishop
of Gori
, Imereti, Guria
-Samegrelo
and as a metropolitan of Tbilisi
.
On November 28, 1918 following the murder of Kyrion II
he was elected a Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia. During his tenure he faced several problems such as the lack of international recognition of the Georgian autocephaly and the persecution of the Georgian church by the Bolshevik
regime established by the invading Russian army
in February 1921.
Leonid died on June 11, 1921, during the cholera
epidemics in the Georgian SSR.
Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia
Catholicos–Patriarch has been the title of the heads of the Georgian Orthodox Church since 1010. The first Catholicos–Patriarch of All Georgia was Melkisedek I...
from 1918 to 1921.
Born Longinoz Okropiridze (ლონგინოზ ოქროპირიძე) in Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
, then part of Imperial Russia, he graduated from the Theological Academy of Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, 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...
in 1888. He was later involved in missionary activities, chiefly in the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
.
Ogropiridze served as an inspector of the schools operated by the Society for the Restoration of Orthodox Christianity
Orthodox Christianity
The term Orthodox Christianity may refer to:* the Eastern Orthodox Church and its various geographical subdivisions...
in the Caucasus, an organization established by the Russian authorities. From the 1890s to the 1910s he served as an archimandrite
Archimandrite
The title Archimandrite , primarily used in the Eastern Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic churches, originally referred to a superior abbot whom a bishop appointed to supervise...
of the monasteries of Zedazeni, Khirsi and of St. John the Baptist in Georgia. He also chaired the Commission for Correction of the Georgian Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
and was a member to the Georgia-Imeretia Synodal
Most Holy Synod
The Most Holy Governing Synod was the highest governing body of the Russian Orthodox Church between 1721 and 1918, when the Patriarchate was restored. The jurisdiction of the Most Holy Synod extended over every kind of ecclesiastical question and over some that are partly secular.The Synod was...
office. Leonid was actively involved in the Georgian autocephalist
Autocephaly
Autocephaly , in hierarchical Christian churches and especially Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches, is the status of a hierarchical church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop...
movement which succeeded in the restoration of the independent Georgian church from 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 1917. During 1918, he functioned as a 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...
of Gori
Gori, Georgia
Gori is a city in eastern Georgia, which serves as the regional capital of Shida Kartli and the centre of the homonymous administrative district. The name is from Georgian gora , that is, "heap", or "hill"...
, Imereti, Guria
Guria
Guria is a region in Georgia, in the western part of the country, bordered by the eastern end of the Black Sea. The region has a population of 143,357 and Ozurgeti is a regional capital.-Geography:...
-Samegrelo
Samegrelo
Samegrelo/Samargalo or Megrelia, Mingrelia is a historic province in the western part of Georgia, formerly also known as Odishi.It is inhabited by the Megrelians, an ethnic subgroup of the Georgians.-Geography and Climate:...
and as a metropolitan of Tbilisi
Tbilisi
Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
.
On November 28, 1918 following the murder of Kyrion II
Patriarch Kyrion II of Georgia
Kyrion II was a Georgian religious figure and historian who served as the first Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia after the restoration of independence of the Georgian Orthodox Church from the Russian Orthodox Church in 1917 until his assassination in 1918...
he was elected a Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia. During his tenure he faced several problems such as the lack of international recognition of the Georgian autocephaly and the persecution of the Georgian church by the Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
regime established by the invading Russian army
Red Army invasion of Georgia
The Red Army invasion of Georgia also known as the Soviet–Georgian War or the Soviet invasion of Georgia was a military campaign by the Soviet Russian Red Army against the Democratic Republic of Georgia aimed at overthrowing the Social-Democratic government and installing the Bolshevik regime...
in February 1921.
Leonid died on June 11, 1921, during the cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
epidemics in the Georgian SSR.