Alexy I of Moscow

Alexius I ( Church Slavonic actually Алексий / Alexy; . * 27 Oktoberjul / November 8 1877greg in Moscow, . † April 17, 1970 in Peredelkino near Moscow ) was the 13th Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia from 1945 to 1970 head of Russian Orthodox Church.

Life

Alexius was born as Sergei Vladimirovich Simanski into a wealthy noble family. His father was a lawyer and senior official, who sat down to bed early. Sergei targeted initially appeared to have the same career, and studied law at Moscow University before he decided to study theology and monasticism. After a time as a teacher and principal of a theological seminary, he was ordained a bishop in 1913.

After the revolution he was repeatedly in custody, including in exile in Kazakhstan; from 1926 Bishop of Novgorod, he joined the Metropolitan Sergius, the Patriarch Sergius later I, who advocated cooperation with the Soviet state. This line he has remained true to life. Here, the occurrence of the theological conservatives for cooperation with the atheistic state power should be categorized on the basis of many national religious utterances in an appropriate nationally conscious tradition of the Russian Orthodox Church.

In 1933, Alexius, Metropolitan of Leningrad. As such, he was one of the church leaders, the Joseph Stalin in 1943 received to discuss with them the reorganization of the Church and among other things, the election of a new patriarch after the Patriarchate had been vacant since 1925. Stalin sought by the concession to the Church their support in the fight against Nazi Germany. February 2, 1945 Alexius was elected to succeed Sergius I. Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia. He held that post for 25 years until his death, and was thus the longest serving Patriarch in the history of the Russian Church.

During his tenure, the renewed tightening of government pressure fell on the church under Khrushchev; but at the same time, the Russian Orthodox Church came under his Patriarchate at the World Council of Churches. He was a member of the Christian Peace Conference, he participated at the I. Allchristlichen Peace Convocation in 1961 in Prague. He was elected to the Advisory Committee.

Alexius I died well advanced in years, but suddenly and unexpectedly. He was buried in Uspenski Cathedral in the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, then Sagorsk.