{"id":33335,"date":"2010-12-25T13:29:01","date_gmt":"2010-12-25T10:29:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mospat.ru\/"},"modified":"2019-05-13T15:33:46","modified_gmt":"2019-05-13T12:33:46","slug":"biografiya","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/old.mospat.ru\/en\/decr-chairman\/biografiya\/","title":{"rendered":"Biography"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate since 31 March 2009<\/strong><\/h1>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/h1>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk (secular name: Grigory Valerievich Alfeyev) was born in Moscow on 24 July 1966.<\/p>\n

From 1973 to 1984 he studied at the Moscow Gnessin Music School, majoring in violin and composition.<\/p>\n

At the age of fifteen he became a reader at the Church of the Resurrection in Uspensky Vrazhek in Moscow. From 1983 he was a subdeacon to Metropolitan Pitirim (Nechaev) of Volokolamsk and Yuriev and a non-staff worker at the Publishing Department of the Moscow Patriarchate.<\/p>\n

In 1984, upon finishing school, he entered the Composition Division of the Moscow State Conservatory.<\/p>\n

From 1984 to 1986 he did military service.<\/p>\n

In January 1987 he voluntarily terminated studies at the Moscow Conservatory and became a novice at the Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Vilnius, Lithuania.<\/p>\n

On 19 June 1987 he took monastic vows and on June 21 was ordained hierodeacon at the Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Vilnius by Archbishop Viktorin of Vilnius and Lithuania.<\/p>\n

On 19 August 1987, with the blessing of Archbishop Viktorin of Vilnius and Lithuania, he was ordained hieromonk at the Cathedral of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos in Vilnius by Archbishop Anatoly (Kuznetsov) of Ufa and Sterlitamak (now Archbishop of Kerch).<\/p>\n

From 1988 to 1990 he served as rector of churches in Tel\u0161iai city, Tytuv\u0117nai town and Kolainiai village in the diocese of Vilnius. In 1990 he was appointed rector of the Cathedral of the Annunciation in the city of Kaunas.<\/p>\n

In 1989 he obtained a correspondence degree from the Moscow Theological Seminary and in 1991 from the Moscow Theological Academy, as Candidate of Theology. In 1993 he completed postgraduate studies at the Moscow Theological Academy.<\/p>\n

In 1990 he participated in the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church as a member of the delegation from the diocese of Vilnius and Lithuania.<\/p>\n

From 1991 to 1993 he taught homiletics, New Testament, dogmatic theology and Greek language at the Moscow Theological Seminary and Academy. In 1992 and 1993 he taught New Testament at St. Tikhon\u2019s Orthodox Theological Institute and patrology at St. John the Theologian Russian Orthodox University.<\/p>\n

In 1993 he was sent to study to the University of Oxford under the guidance of Bishop Kallistos (Ware) of Diocleia (now metropolitan, Patriarchate of Constantinople). In 1995 the degree of D.Phil. was conferred on Fr. Hilarion for his dissertation \u2018St. Symeon the New Theologian and Orthodox Tradition.\u2019 While studying in England, Fr.\u00a0Hilarion served at the parishes of the diocese of Sourozh.<\/p>\n

In 1995 he became a staff member of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, and he headed its Secretariat for Inter-Christian Relations from August 1997 to 2002.<\/p>\n

From 1995 to 1997 he taught patrology at the Smolensk and Kaluga Theological Seminaries. In 1996 he delivered a lecture course on dogmatic theology at St.\u00a0Herman Theological Seminary in Kodiak, Alaska, USA.<\/p>\n

From January 1996 he served as a cleric of the Church of St. Catherine in-the-Fields in Moscow, the Representation of the Orthodox Church in America.<\/p>\n

From 1996 to 2004 he was a member of the Synodal Theological Commission of the Russian Orthodox Church.<\/p>\n

From 1997 to 1999 he delivered a lecture course on dogmatic theology at St.\u00a0Vladimir\u2019s Orthodox Theological Seminary in New York, USA, and on the mystical theology of the Eastern Church at the Faculty of Divinity of the University of Cambridge, Great Britain.<\/p>\n

In 1999 St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris conferred on him the degree of Doctor of Theology.<\/p>\n

At Easter 2000 he was elevated to the rank of hegumen at the Church of the Holy Trinity in Khoroshovo in Moscow by Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad (now Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia).<\/p>\n

On 27 December 2001 the Holy Synod decreed that upon being elevated to the rank of archimandrite Hegumen Hilarion (Alfeyev) was to be consecrated Bishop of Kerch, vicar of the diocese of Sourozh.<\/p>\n

On 7 January 2002, the feast of the Nativity of Our Lord, he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite at the Cathedral of the Dormition in Smolensk by Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad (now Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia).<\/p>\n

On 14 January 2002 he was consecrated bishop at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow. The consecration was performed by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia in concelebration with ten archpastors.<\/p>\n

On 17 July 2002 the Holy Synod appointed him Bishop of Podolsk, vicar of the diocese of Moscow, and the head of the Representation of the Russian Orthodox Church to European and International Institutions in Brussels.<\/p>\n

On 7 May 2003 the Holy Synod appointed him Bishop of Vienna and Austria and entrusted with the temporary administration of the diocese of Budapest and Hungary; he retained his position as representative of the Russian Orthodox Church to European and International Institutions in Brussels.<\/p>\n

On 1 February 2005 Bishop Hilarion was elected privatdozent of the Chair of Dogmatic Theology at the University of Freiburg, Switzerland.<\/p>\n

On 24 August 2005 he was awarded the St. Macarius Prize for his book \u2018The Sacred Mystery of the Church. Introduction to the \u201cName-Glorification\u201d Controversy.\u2019<\/p>\n

On 31 March 2009 he was relieved of his duties as administrator of the dioceses of Vienna and Austria and Budapest and Hungary by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and appointed chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate and permanent member of the Holy Synod with the title \u2018Bishop of Volokolamsk, vicar to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia.\u2019<\/p>\n

On 9 April 2009, by the decree of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, Bishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk was appointed rector of the Church of the \u2018Joy of All Who Sorrow\u2019 Icon of the Mother of God in Bolshaya Ordynka Street in Moscow.<\/p>\n

On 20 April 2009 he was elevated to the rank of archbishop.<\/p>\n

On 27 May 2009 the Holy Synod appointed him chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate\u2019s Commission for Old Rite Parishes and Cooperation with the Old Rite Community under the Department for External Church Relations (Minutes No.\u00a042).<\/p>\n

Since 28 May 2009 he has been a member of the Council for Cooperation with Religious Associations under the President of the Russian Federation.<\/p>\n

From 27 July 2009 he has been a member of the Inter-Council Presence of the Russian Orthodox Church and its presidium. He is chairman of the commission of the Inter-Council Presence on relations with non-Orthodox confessions and other religions, deputy chairman of the commission on opposing and overcoming church schisms, and a member of the commissions on theology and on liturgical practice and church art.<\/p>\n

Since 13 January 2010 he has been a member of the Board of Trustees of the Russkiy Mir Foundation.<\/p>\n

On 1 February 2010 he was elevated to the rank of metropolitan in consideration of his diligent service to the Church and by virtue of his position as chairman of the Department for External Church Relations \u2013 permanent member of the Holy Synod.<\/p>\n

Since 26 July 2010 he has been a member of the Patriarchal Council for Culture.<\/p>\n

Since 22 March 2011 he has been a member of the Supreme Church Council of the Russian Orthodox Church.<\/p>\n

On 5 October 2011 the Holy Synod appointed him chairman of the Synodal Biblical and Theological Commission (Minutes No. 100).<\/p>\n

On 25 December 2012 the Holy Synod appointed him chairman of the Interdepartmental Coordinating Group for Teaching Theology in Higher Education Institutions (Minutes No. 114).<\/p>\n

On 25-26 December 2013 the Holy Synod appointed him head ex officio<\/em> of the Coordinating Centre for Promoting Theology as a Science in the Russian Orthodox Church (Minutes No. 156).<\/p>\n

On 24 December 2015 the Holy Synod appointed him representative of the Russian Orthodox Church to the Interreligious Council of Russia (Minutes No. 98).<\/p>\n

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk heads the Dissertation Council for Theology under the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Academic titles and degrees<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

    \n
  • D.Phil., University of Oxford, Great Britain (1995)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor of Theology, St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute, France (1999)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor of Philosophical Science (certificate no. 568\/nk dated 20.05.2016 of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science)<\/li>\n
  • Professor of the Moscow Theological Academy (2011)<\/li>\n
  • Professor of the University of Freiburg, Switzerland (2011)<\/li>\n
  • Professor and head of the Department of Theology at the National Research Nuclear Institute MEPhI (2012)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the Russian State Social University (2010)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor of Theology honoris causa<\/em> of the Faculty of Theology, Catholic University of Catalonia, Spain (2010)<\/li>\n
  • Professor emeritus of the Russian Christian Academy for the Humanities (2010)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy<\/li>\n
  • Doctor of Theology honoris causa<\/em> of the Faculty of Theology, University of Lugano, Switzerland (2011)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the University of Pre\u0161ov, Slovakia (2011)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor of Theology honoris causa<\/em>, Minsk Theological Academy, Belarus (2012)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor of Theology honoris causa<\/em>, Villanova University, USA (2012)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa <\/em>of Nashotah House Theological Seminary, USA (2012)<\/li>\n
  • Professor emeritus of the Ural Mussorgsky State Conservatory (2012)<\/li>\n
  • Professor emeritus of the Ural State Mining University (2012)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the Institute of Theology at the Belarusian State University (2013)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the Russian State University for the Humanities (2014)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria (2014)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor of Divinity honoris causa<\/em> of St. Vladimir\u2019s Orthodox Theological Seminary in New York, USA (2014)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the Moscow State Linguistic University (2017)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the Theological Faculty of Puglia, Italy (2017)<\/li>\n
  • Professor emeritus of the Moscow State Pedagogical University (2017)<\/li>\n
  • Professor emeritus of the Lomonosov Moscow State University (2018)<\/li>\n
  • Doctor honoris causa<\/em> of the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia (2018)<\/li>\n
  • member of the Russian Union of Composers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Chairman of the editorial boards of the Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate, The Church and The Time journal and The Theological Studies journal (Moscow).<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Education:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

    1989 \u2013 Moscow Theological Seminary<\/p>\n

    1991 \u2013 Moscow Theological Academy (Candidate of Theology)<\/p>\n

    1993 \u2013Moscow Theological Academy (Postgraduate Studies)<\/p>\n

    1995 \u2013 University of Oxford (D. Phil.)<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Places of work: <\/strong><\/p>\n

    \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Department for External Church Relations, chairman<\/p>\n

    Synodal Biblical and Theological Commission, chairman<\/p>\n

    Ss. Cyril and Methodius Theological Institute for Postgraduate Studies, rector<\/p>\n

    Church of the \u2018Joy of All Who Sorrow\u2019 Icon of the Mother of God (Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord) on Bolshaya Ordynka Street in Moscow, rector<\/p>\n

    Chernigov Patriarchal Metochion, rector<\/p>\n

    Christian Interconfessional Consultative Committee of the CIS and Baltic Countries, co-chairman<\/p>\n

    Interdepartmental Coordinating Group for Teaching Theology in Higher Education Institutions, chairman<\/p>\n

    Interreligious Council of Russia, representative of the Russian Orthodox Church<\/p>\n

    Coordinating Committee for Promoting Theology as a Science in the Russian Orthodox Church, head<\/p>\n

    Moscow Patriarchate\u2019s Commission for Students Exchange, chairman<\/p>\n

    Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate, chairman of the editorial board<\/p>\n

    Theological Works journal, chairman of the editorial board<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Scholarly works and publications:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Publications<\/strong><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Metropolitan Hilarion is the author of more than a thousand publications, including monographs on the New Testament, patristics, dogmatic theology and church history, as well as of translations of the Church Fathers\u2019 works from the Greek and Syriac languages into Russian.<\/p>\n

    Among Metropolitan Hilarion\u2019s books are: \u2018The Mystery of Faith. Introduction to Dogmatic Theology\u2019 (1996), \u2018The Life and Teaching of St. Gregory the Theologian\u2019 (1998), \u2018The Spiritual World of Isaac the Syrian\u2019 (1998), \u2018St. Symeon the New Theologian and Orthodox Tradition\u2019 (1998), \u2018Orthodox Theology between Two Ages\u2019 (1999), \u2018The Sacred Mystery of the Church. Introduction to the \u201cName-Glorification\u201d Controversy\u2019 (in 2 volumes, 2002), \u2018What Do Orthodox Christians Believe In? Catechetical Discourses\u2019 (2004), \u2018Orthodox Christianity\u2019 (in two volumes, 2008-2009), \u2018Patriarch Kirill. His Life and Worldview\u2019 (2009), \u2018Jesus Christ. His Life and Teaching\u2019 (in six volumes, 2016-2017), \u2018Sermons\u2019 (in three volumes, 2016-2018), \u2018The Apostle Paul. A Biography\u2019 (2017), \u2018The Apostle Peter: A Biography\u2019 (2018), \u2018Grace and Law. A Commentary on the Epistle of St.\u00a0Paul to the Romans\u2019 (2018).<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Bibliography<\/strong><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Musical Compositions<\/strong><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Metropolitan Hilarion is the author of numerous musical compositions, including \u2018The Divine Liturgy\u2019 and \u2018The All-Night Vigil\u2019 for \u00e1 capella <\/em>choir, \u2018A Song of<\/p>\n

    Ascents\u2019 symphony for choir and orchestra, \u2018St. Matthew Passion\u2019 oratorio for soloists, choir and orchestra, \u2018Christmas Oratorio\u2019 for soloists, boys\u2019 choir, mixed choir and symphony orchestra.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Awards<\/strong><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Church Awards<\/strong><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n