Changes

Our father among the saints [[saint]]s [[Bishop ]] '''Gorazd (Pavlik) of Prague''' was the [[hierarch]] of the revived Orthodox Church in Moravia, the Church of Czechoslovakia , after World War I. During World War II , having provided refuge for the assassins of SS-Obergruppenfuher Reinhard Heydrich, called ''The Butcher of Prague'', in the [[cathedral ]] of SS[[Ss. Cyril and Methodius Cathedral (Prague, Czech Republic)|Ss. Cyril and Methodius ]] in Prague, he St. Gorazd took full responsibility for protecting the patriots after the Nazi overlords found them in the crypt of the [[cathedral]]. This act guaranteed his execution, thus his martyrdom[[martyr]]dom, during the reprisals that followed. His [[feast day]] is celebrated on [[August 22]] (OC) or [[September 4]] (NC).

Matthias Pavlik was born on Historically, his [[May 26monastic]], 1879 in name of Gorazd was significant as it was the Moravian town name of Hrubavrbka in what would later be the Czech Republicbishop who succeeded St. Born into a Roman Catholic society Methodius as Bishop of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Matthais continued into the Roman Catholic theological faculty Moravia after he died in Olomouc after finishing his earlier education885. He was subsequently ordained a Subsequently, [[priestPope]]. During his studies he was interested in Stephen V drove the mission [[disciple]]s of SS Cyril and St. Methodius and of Orthodox Christianityfrom Moravia as the Latin rite was imposed. With Thus, by the end choice of his monastic name of World War I and Gorazd, the establishment continuity of the new country Czechoslovakia the legal constraints forcing Roman Catholicism were broken. In this environment many people left the Roman church, and many looked to Orthodox Christianity. Fr. Pavlik was among them. The Serbian Orthodox Church provided a shelter for those looking to Orthodoxy. As a leader in Moravia, Fr. Pavlik the [[Church of Serbia]] agreed to consecrate him to the episcopate for his home land. On [[September 24]], 1921, from some eleven hundred years before was consecrated [[bishop]] with the name of Gorazdrecognized.

Historically, his monastic name of Gorazd was significant as it was the name of the bishop who succeeded St Methodius as Bishop of Moravia after he died in 885. Subsequently, Pope Stephen V drove the disciples of St. Methodius from Moravia as the latin rite was imposed. Thus, by the choice of his monastic name of Gorazd the continuity of the Orthodox Church in Moravia from some eleven hundred years before was recognized. [[Archimandrite]] Gorazd was named Bishop of Moravia and Silesia on [[September 24]], 1921 , and consecrated bishop on the next day at the Cathedral of the Holy Archangel Michael in Belgrade, Yugoslavia , by [[Patriarch Dimitri]] [[Dimitrije (Pavlovic) of Serbia|Dimitrije]].

With the conquest of Czechoslovakia by the Nazis in 1938, the church was placed under the Orthodox Metropolitan in Berlin, Germany. Assigned as ruler of Czechoslovakia was Reinhard Heydrich, who was reputed to be designated successor to Adolf Hitler. On [[May 27]], 1942, a group of Czech resistance fighters attacked and killed Heydrick as his car slowed down on a curve near the Cathedral of SSSs. Cyril and Methodius in Prague. In making their escape the group found refuge in the crypt of the Cathedral. When Bp. Gorazd found out a few days later, he recognized the serious position this placed on the Czech Orthodox Church and before he left for the consecration to the episcopate of Fr. John (Gardner) in Berlin he asked that the resistance fighters move else where elsewhere as soon as possible. However, on [[June 18]], the Nazis found out the hiding places, after a betrayal by two members of the resistance group , and the all members of the group were killed.

Reprisals came quickly. The two priests and the senior [[laity|lay ]] church officials were arrested. Bp. Gorazd, wishing to help his fellow believers and the Czech Church itself, took the blame for the actions in the Cathedral on himself, even writing letters to the Nazi authorities. But, on [[June 27]], 1942 , he was arrested and tortured. On [[September 4]], 1942, Bp. Gorazd, the Cathedral priests and senior lay leaders were executed by firing squad.

The reprisals went further, much further as the Nazis conducted widespread roundups of Czechs, including the whole village of Lidice, then summarily killing killed the men and placing placed the survivors in forced labor camps. The Orthodox churches in Moravia and Bohemia were closed and the Church forbidden to operate. Metropolitan Seraphim courageously refused to issue any statement condemning Bp. Gorazd. It wasn’t wasn't until the end of the war before that the Orthodox Church in Czechoslovakia would function again.

By these actions by the Orthodox Faithful, who led by their bishop, proved the qualities of their little church in bravery and devotion to matters of justice and showed how firmly it was connected to the Czech nation==External links==*[http://orthodoxresearchinstitute.org/resources/hierarchs/czech/former. On [[May 4htm#gorazd_pavlik_arch_prague Listing]], 1961, at the Serbian Orthodox Church recognized BpResearch Institute*[http://ocafs. oca.org/FeastSaintsViewer.asp?FSID=102375 Martyr Gorazd as a new martyrof Prague, Bohemia and on Moravo-Cilezsk] ([[August 24OCA]], 1987 he was glorified in the Cathedral of St)*[http://www.orthodoxengland.btinternet.co. Gorazd in Olomouc in Moraviauk/oeczech. His feast day is on [[August 22htm "A Twentieth Century Western Orthodox Missionary"]].by Monk Gorazd

[[Category: Bishops]][[Category:20th-century bishops]][[Category:Bishops of Prague]][[Category:Martyrs]][[Category:Saints]][[Category:Serbian Saints]][[Category:Carpatho Russian Saints]][[Category: BishopsModern Saints]][[Category:Metropolitans of the Czech Lands and Slovakia]][[Category:20th-century saints]]