View source for Eparchy of Nizhny Novgorod

The '''Metropolia of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas''' is an [[Ecclesiastical Province]] of the [[Church of Russia]] located in the area of northern European Russia around the confluence of the Volga and Oka Rivers. It was formerly the '''Eparchy of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas''' that was elevated to a Metropolia by the [[Holy Synod]] of the Russian Orthodox Church in March 2012.

==History==
The [[diocese|eparchy]] was established in 1672 and included, in addition to the city of Nizhny Novgorod, the towns of Alatyr, Kurmysh, and Yadrin. The first hierarch of the eparchy was Archimandrite Philaret, who had been [[abbot]] of Pechersky Ascension Monastery in Nizhny Novgorod. He was metropolitan from 1672 to 1682. The ruling hierarchs initially received the title of Metropolitan of Nizhny Novgorod and Alatyr. In 1719, the title for the ruling hierarch was changed to [[Bishop]] and remained so until 2001 when his title returned to that of Metropolitan.

In 1799, the title of the hierarch became '...of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas', and the territory of the Eparchy of Nizhny Novgorod coincided with the Nizhny Novgorod province. In 1866, vicar diocese of Balakhna was established. In 1912, just prior to the start of World War I, the Eparchy of Nizhny Novgorod included over 1,600,000 Orthodox people, 1131 churches, 28 monasteries and convents, a Theological Seminary, a Theological College each for males and females, 65 [[archpriest]]s, 1023 [[priest]]s, 412 [[deacon]]s, and 1002 Psalm [[reader]]s.

On [[March 15]], 2012, the [[Holy Synod]] of the Russian Orthodox Church established the Ecclesiastical Province (metropolia) of Nizhny Novgorod, that included the dioceses of Vyksa, Gorodets, Lyskovo and Nizhny Novgorod. On [[March 18]], 2012, Archbishop Georgy of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas was consecrated Metropolitan of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas metropolia by Patriarch [[Kyrill (Gundyayev) of Moscow|Kirill of Moscow]] at Christ the Savior Cathedral.

==Ruling hierarchs==
* Metropolitan Philaret   1672-1686
* Metropolitan Paul I  1686-1696
* Metropolitan Trifily (Inikhov)   1696-1699
* Metropolitan Isaiah  1699-1707
* Metropolitan [[Sylvester (Holmsky) of Kazan|Sylvester (Volynsky)]]   1707-1719
* Archbishop Pitirim   1719-1738
* Bishop John I (Dubinsky)   1739-1742
* Bishop Dimitry (Sechenov)    1742-1748
* Bishop [[Benjamin (Putsek-Grigorovich) of Kazan|Benjamin I (Putsek-Grigorovich)]]   1748-1753
* Bishop Theophan (Charnutsky)   1753-1773
* Bishop Anthony (Zybelin)   1773-1782
* Bishop Josaph (Zabolotsky)   1782-1783
* Bishop Damascene (Rudnev)   1783-1794
* Bishop Paul II (Ponomaryov)   1794-1798 
* Bishop Benjamen (Krasnopevkov)   1798-1811
* Bishop Moses (Bliznetsov-Platonov)   1811-1825
* Bishop Methodius (Orlov)   1826-1826
* Bishop Athanasius (Protopopov)  1827-1832
* Bishop Ambrose (Morev)   1832-1835
* Bishop John II (Dobrozrakov)   1835-1847
* Archbishop Jacob (Becherkov)   1847-1850
* Bishop Jeremiah (Soloviev)   1851-1857
* Bishop Anthony (Pavlinsky)    1857-1860
* Archbishop Nektarius (Nadezhdin)   1860-1869
* Bishop Philaret (Malishevsky)   1869-1873
* Archbishop Joannicius (Rudnev)   1873-1877
* Bishop Chrysanthus (Retivtsev)   1877-1879
* Bishop Macarius (Mirolyubov)    1879-1885
* Bishop Modest (Strelbitsky)   1885-1889
* Bishop Vladimir I (Petrov)   1889-1892
* Bishop Vladimir II (Nikolsky)   1892-1900
* Bishop Nazarius (Kirillov)   1901-1910
* Archbishop [[Joachim (Levitsky) of Nizhny Novgorod|Joachim (Levitsky)]]   1910-1918
* Archbishop [[Eudocimus (Meschersky) of Nizhny Novgorod|Eudocimus (Meschersky)]]   1918-1924
* Metropolitan [[Sergius (Stragorodsky) of Moscow|Sergius (Stragorodsky)]]   1924-1934
* Metropolitan Eugene (Zernov)   1934-1935
* Metropolitan Theophan (Tulyakov) (1935-1937)
* Archbishop Sergius (Grishin) (1942-1943)
* Bishop Zinovius (Krasovsky) (1944-1948)
* Metropolitan Cornelius (Popov) (1948-1961)
* Archbishop John (Alekseev) (1961-1965)
* Archbishop Mstislav (Volonsevich) (1965-1966)
* Archbishop Flavian (Dmitriyuk) (1966-1977)
* Metropolitan [[Nicholas (Kutepov) of Nizhny Novgorod|Nicholas (Kutepov)]] (1977-2001)
* Archbishop Eugene (Zhdan) (2001-2002)
* Metropolitan [[George (Danilov) of Nizhny Novgorod|George (Danilov)]] (2003 - present)

==Sources==
*[http://www.seminary.nne.ru/news/update   Holy Synod of the ROC forms Nizhny Novgorod Ecclesiastical Province 19 марта 2012]]
*[http://www.nne.ru/en/diocese.php  Metropolia of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas]

[[Category: Dioceses|Nizhny]]
[[Category: Moscow Patriarchate Dioceses|Nizhny]]