Eleutherius (Kozorez) of Shymkent

His Eminence Archbishop Eleutherius (Kozorez) of Chimkent and Akmola is the ruling bishop of the Eparchy of Pavlodar, which is one of the constituent dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church's Metropolia of Kazakhstan.

Life

Archbishop Eleutherius was born on 17 September 1955 as Yuriy Feofanovich Kozorez in the Rovno region of the Ukrainian SSR. In 1979 he entered the Moscow Theological Seminary, graduating in 1984. In 1985 Yuriy was ordained a deacon and then a priest and appointed to serve in St. Nicholas' Cathedral in Alma-Ata in the Kazakh SSR. In 1987 Fr. Yuriy was tonsured a monk as Eleutherius and in 1988 elevated to the rank of igumen.

In February 1991 Fr. Eleutherius was elevated to the rank of archimandrite and consecrated Bishop of Chimkent and Tselinograd, with his title changing in 1993 to reflect the change in the name of his diocese. Between 2002 and 2003 Bishop Eleutherius administered the Eparchy of Astana and Almaty and in 2004 was elevated to the rank of archbishop.

External Link

• Bishop Varnava of Pavlodar and Ust-Kamenogorsk (Moscow Patriarchate)