Eparchy of Barnaul
The Eparchy of Barnaul is a diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church with jurisdiction over the Orthodox faithful living in the Russian Federation's Altai Republic and Altai Territory.
History
Orthodox Christianity came to Altai with the first Russian Orthodox pioneers to settle in the region. Following the founding of the Eparchy of Tomsk in 1834 the area came under its jurisdiction and in 1908 it was organized as a vicariate within the diocese. After 1924 the vicariate came under the jurisdiction of the Eparchy of Novosibirsk and in 1930 it was established as a freestanding diocese in its own right.
During the Soviets' severe persecution of the Russian Orthodox Church during the 1930s the Eparchy of Barnaul was dissolved and reabsorbed into the Diocese of Novosibirsk, but in 1994 it was revived in post-Soviet Russia, with the Holy Synod electing Bishop Anthony (Masendich) of Barnaul and Altai as its first eparchial hierarch. In January 2002 Archimandrite Maxim (Dmitriyev) was consecrated Bishop of Barnaul and Altai to lead the diocese.
Eparchy today
The Eparchy today consists of some 156 parishes and 6 monasteries. (Prior to the Bolshevik Revolution there were over 600 parishes in Altai.) The diocesan seat is the Cathedral of the Holy Protection in Barnaul.
Hierarch
- Bishop Maxim of Barnaul and Altai (2002-present)
External links
- Eparchy of Barnaul and Altai (Official Website)
- Eparchy of Barnaul (Moscow Patriarchate)
