Kazan, November 20, 2020
Bp. Barnabas of Salamis (left), Met. Theophan of Kazan (right)
A hierarch of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus and another hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church reposed in the Lord in recent days.
Yesterday, November 19, His Grace Bishop Barnabas of Salamis of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus reposed in the Lord following a long illness. His funeral is being served today, reports Romfea.
He was distinguished for his asceticism, simplicity, and lively preaching. He was the spiritual father and inspirational guide to many, devoting much time to the Sacrament of Confession, and leading many of his spiritual children to the priesthood.
His Eminence Metropolitan Theophan of Kazan and Tatarstan of the Russian Church reposed in the Lord today at the age of 74 from complications due to the coronavirus, reports the site of the Russian Church.
He served the Church both within Russia and around the world, including 20 years as a hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church.
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Bp. Barnabas was born on July 8, 1931, in the village of Pano Lefkara. He studied theology and graduated from the University of Athens in 1955.
He joined several theology brotherhoods and served as a popular preacher and catechist in Athens and throughout Greece. He returned to Cyprus in 1960 and also served as a popular preacher in the Diocese of Paphos and the Archdiocese.
On October 26, 1969, he was ordained to the diaconate, and on October 4, 1970, to the priesthood. He was consecrated as Bishop of Salamis on August 12, 1973. He was an auxiliary bishop to and close collaborator of Archbishop Makarios III and Archbishop Chrysostomos I.
For 35 years, he ran the administrative affairs of the Holy Archdiocese, supervising the catechism movement, youth camps, and other pastoral endeavors. He also gave weekly radio speeches for a number of years. He authored 20 books analyzing theological and spiritual issues, including family and marriage issues.
Met. Theophan was born on May 25, 1947, in the Kursk Province. He graduated from the Moscow Theological Seminary in 1972 and enrolled in the Academy. In 1973, he was enrolled as a novice in the brotherhood of the Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra, and was tonsured as a monk on December 19 of that year.
On January 14, 1974, he was ordained as a hierodeacon, and in 1976, on the feast of the Annunciation, he was ordained as a hieromonk. In 1977, he was sent to serve the Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem, until 1982. From 1984 to 1987, he served as secretary of the Exarchate of Central and South America; from 1987 to 1989 he served in the Department of External Church Relations; from 1989 to 1993, he served as Exarch of the Russian Patriarch under the Patriarch of Alexandria; from 1993 to 1999, he was Deputy Chairman of the DECR; and from 1999 to 2000, he served as representative of the Patriarch of Moscow to the Patriarch of Antioch.
He was consecrated as Bishop of Magadan and Sinegorsk on November 26, 2000. On May 7, 2003, he was appointed to the Diocese of Stavropol and Vladikavkaz. On February 25, 2008, he was elevated to the rank of Archbishop. On March 22, 2011, he was appointed to the Diocese of Chelyabinsk and Zlatoust.
On August 1, 2012, he was elevated to the rank of Metropolitan. On May 30, 2014, he was appointed as head of the Simbirsk Metropolia, and on July 13, 2015, he was appointed head of the Tatarstan Metropolia.
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