History of the Russian Orthodox community in Tunisia

HISTORY OF THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX COMMUNITY IN TUNISIA

The history of the Russian Orthodox community in Tunisia began in 1920 when the port of Bizerta became the last haven for the ships of what was left of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. They brought to Tunisia over 6 thousand Russian officers and members of their families and 13 priests.

One of the priorities for the Orthodox Christians who found themselves in a foreign land was to organize church life and permanent divine services. It can be said that the celebrations on board of one of the Russian squadron ships made a beginning of the parish life of the Orthodox community in Tunisia.

The naval church was later transferred to a private apartment in Bizerta, while in Tunis the celebrations were held at the facilities equipped for church services since 1922.

After permission was obtained in 1937 from the city council, the building of a church began in Bizerta. Dedicated to the Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky, it was consecrated in 1938. This church is a monument to the Russian Imperial Fleet. As a token of this commemoration, an Andrew’s flag is used as the church curtain, while the names of the Russian squadron ships are immortalized in inscriptions on the marble tablets of this church.

The Orthodox community in Tunis also managed to build a church for themselves later. The construction was accomplished in 1956, and Archbishop Ioann (Maximovich) consecrated and dedicated it to the Resurrection of Christ.

After Tunisia declared its independence, a considerable part of the Russian emigrants moved to Tunisia’ former metropolis, France. The Russian colony in Tunisia and Bizerta was reduced to a few families. The priests left Tunisia together with their flock. The Karlovci Synod, which exercised jurisdiction over the community and churches in Tunisia, failed to send priests to Tunisia and arrange the life of the compatriots remaining there. Only priests from the Patriarchate of Alexandria occasionally visited the orphaned Russian community.

In 1990 Alexandra Shirinskaya-Meinstein, the elder of the community in Tunisia, appealed to His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia to send a priest to Tunisia from Russia. With his blessing, Archimandrite Feofan (Ashurkov, now Bishop of Magadan and Sinegorye) came to Tunisia to meet the believers. On the basis of his report, the chairman of the Department for External Church Relations, Archbishop (now Metropolitan) Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, raised at the Synod in February 1992 the question about the need to accept the parish in Tunisia in the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Father Dimitry Netsvetayev was appointed rector of the churches in Tunisia. With his arrival the revival of church life in Tunisia began. The church became home not only for the first wave emigrants but also for the compatriots who came to Tunisia later. Today the parish in Tunisia has under its spiritual care not only Russians, but also Bulgarians, Romanians and Palestinians. Metropolitan Irenaios of Carthage (Patriarchate of Alexandria) comes to Tunis and Bizerta to celebrate on festive days.

The Orthodox churches in Tunisia have become a center of the spiritual life for our compatriots, a place for their communication. The parish in Tunis maintains cooperation with the Russian Center of International Scientific and Cultural Cooperation under the Russian government and the Scientific and Cultural Center in Tunis.

However, the church has also experienced some difficulties. For instance, the problem of the parish’s right to own the church plots remains unresolved. The plot in Bizerta remains under a continuous threat of alienation. The Russian Orthodox Church and the Tunisian authorities are holding negotiations at present to settle this matter.