« A New Bishop for the Diocese of Sourozh »

Press Release

The Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church, at its quarterly meeting on December 28th, 2017, made a number of decisions concerning the appointment of bishops to its dioceses in Western Europe. Among these was the appointment of His Eminence Archbishop Elisey (Ganaba) as Archbishop of the The Hague and the Netherlands.

Archbishop Elisey has headed the Diocese of Sourozh, which unites the parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate in Britain and Ireland, since 2007. During that that time, the diocese has grown, particularly in the North of England, Scotland and Ireland.New parishes have been opened, new clergy ordained and many people have found their spiritual home in the diocese, both those who have come to these islands in recent years and those who were born here. He has also presided over and taken an active role in the restoration of the Russian Orthodox Cathedral in Ennismore Gardens, London. A listed building of considerable architectural and artistic interest, it has now been fully and sensitively adapted for worship in the Orthodox tradition. Moreover, it is a place of quiet prayer open daily for whoever wishes to make use of it.

Archbishop Elisey is succeeded as Ruling Bishop of the Diocese of Sourozh by His Grace Bishop Matthew (Andreev) who served as a missionary priest of the diocese in Northern England and Scotland from 2009 to 2015, when he was consecrated as Bishop of Skopin and Shatsk, a Russian diocese not far from his native town of Tambov. A former teacher of English and French, he studied at the University of Northumbria in Newcastle and also through the distance learning faculty of the University of Manchester. He has  a particular interest in the ancient saints of the British Isles.

Press service of the Diocese of Sourozh