Evdokim (Meschersky) of Nizhny Novgorod

His Eminence the Most Reverend Archbishop ‘‘‘Evodkim (Mischersky) of New York’’’ was assigned in 1914 to lead the Diocese of the Aleutian Islands and North America of the Church of Russia as the successor to Archbishop Platon. He continued the vision of St. Tikhon of Moscow of organizing church life into the various nationality groups within the diocese. In 1917 he returned to Russia to attend the All-Russia Church Council (Sobor), not to return as the October Revolution and Civil War consumed the Church.

Life

Archbishop Evdokim was born Basil Mikhailovich Mischersky on April 1, 1869 in the Vladimir diocese. From his youth he was an active participant in church life, participating in his home parish where his father was a reader. He attended the Moscow Theological Academy, graduating in 1894. After graduating he received his monastic tonsure and the name Evdokim and was ordained deacon and then priest. Heirmonk Evdokim continued his theological studies at the Moscow Academy, receiving a Master of Theology degree. At the same time he was appointed Inspector of the Novgorod Seminary.

He was raised to the rank of archmandrite in 1898, and five years later he was appointed Rector of the Novgorod Seminary and then Dean of the Moscow Theological Academy. On December 13, 1904 he was consecrated as a vicar bishop of the Moscow diocese. Then in 1909 he was named Bishop of Kashir in the Tula diocese.

On August 11, 1914, as World War I began, he was assigned to the Diocese of the Aleutian Islands and North America, succeeding Metropolitan Platon. With the commencement of the war in Europe his arrival was delayed. He arrived on May 27, 1915, and immediately became involved in the life of the North American diocese.

On August 6, 1917, he returned to Russia to attend the All-Russia Church Council with a group of clergy from the North American diocese, that included the Very Reverends Leonid Turkevich and Alexander Kukulevsky. At Archbishop Evdokim’s request, Bishop Alexander (Nemolovsky) was appointed to served as Administrator during Archbishop Evdokim’s absence. However, he was not to return to America. In 1919, he was assigned as Archbishop of Nizhegorod. Subsequently he became involved with the Living Church and was assigned as their Metropolitan of Odessa. He died in Moscow in 1935.

Works

In Russia, Archbishop Evdokim was actively involved with the “Russian religious renaissance