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| ==Early life== | ==Early life== | ||
| Platon was born as Porphyry Theodorovich Rozhdestvensky in February 23, 1866 to a priest near ], ].<ref name=bio>{{cite web |title=Past Primates: His Eminence, Metropolitan Platon (Rozhdestvensky) |url=https://www.oca.org/holy-synod/past-primates/platon-rozhdestvensky |website=www.oca.org |access-date=22 January 2025}}</ref> In 1886 he graduated from Kursk Seminary and |
Platon was born as Porphyry Theodorovich Rozhdestvensky in February 23, 1866 to a priest near ], ].<ref name=bio>{{cite web |title=Past Primates: His Eminence, Metropolitan Platon (Rozhdestvensky) |url=https://www.oca.org/holy-synod/past-primates/platon-rozhdestvensky |website=www.oca.org |access-date=22 January 2025}}</ref> In 1886 he graduated from Kursk Seminary and in 1894 he enrolled in the ] where he took on the name Platon and graduated the following year and obtaining a Master of Theology in the same institution in 1898. After graduation he continued to work at the university as professor and rector.<ref name=bio /> | ||
| ==Bishop== | ==Bishop== | ||
| Line 46: | Line 46: | ||
| Platon was elected as Archbishop of North America for the first time on June 8, 1907, where he would preside for the next seven years. He faced many challenges including a priest shortage, ethnic nationalism amongst the diaspora populations, and unpopularity of the church (in part due to resistance towards Russian hegemony). Platon's primary concern was the question of administering Ukrainian and Russian churches, and most ethnic missions were largely overlooked.<ref name=t127>{{harvtxt|Tarasar|1975|p=127-128}}</ref> In December 1908, he also founded the Russian Orthodox Christian Immigrant Society of North America, with the goal of protecting newly arrived immigrants from ], ], and ].<ref>{{harvtxt|Tarasar|1975|p=133-134}}</ref> | Platon was elected as Archbishop of North America for the first time on June 8, 1907, where he would preside for the next seven years. He faced many challenges including a priest shortage, ethnic nationalism amongst the diaspora populations, and unpopularity of the church (in part due to resistance towards Russian hegemony). Platon's primary concern was the question of administering Ukrainian and Russian churches, and most ethnic missions were largely overlooked.<ref name=t127>{{harvtxt|Tarasar|1975|p=127-128}}</ref> In December 1908, he also founded the Russian Orthodox Christian Immigrant Society of North America, with the goal of protecting newly arrived immigrants from ], ], and ].<ref>{{harvtxt|Tarasar|1975|p=133-134}}</ref> | ||
| Under Platon's leadership, efforts were made in an attempt to try and nationalize the church. In February 1908, Platon organized an Albanian Orthodox Mission in America that included six parishes in ], ] in response to a petition made by the local Albanian population after an independently owned Greek church refused to bury an Albanian nationalist.<ref>{{harvtxt|Stokoe|1995|p=25}}</ref> In 1909, a bill was vetoed by Governor ] in the ] after protests by the local ].<ref>{{harvtxt|Hughes|1910|p=107-108}}</ref> The law would have effectively placed the Greek parishes under Russian control. In a letter to ] discussing the possibility of a more unified church in North America, Platon expressed frustration with the Greek led opposition, stating "...it seems it is unfeasible when taking into consideration the self sufficiency of the Greeks...in all matters religion and faith".<ref name=t127></ref> In 1913, a group of 19 Serbian churches briefly seceded until reconciliation was made in which the Russian delegation agreed to be more solicitous of Serbian complaints.<ref>{{harvtxt|Michalopulos|2003|p=50-53}}</ref> | |||
| In 1912, he moved the first seminary in North America, St. Tikhon's, from ], ] to ], ] in order to be closer to church administration, and was renamed St. Platon's Seminary.<ref>{{harvtxt|Michalopulos|2003|p=41}}</ref> It would be closed down in 1923 due to financial difficulties.<ref>{{harvtxt|Tarasar|1975|p=110}}</ref> | In 1912, he moved the first seminary in North America, St. Tikhon's, from ], ] to ], ] in order to be closer to church administration, and was renamed St. Platon's Seminary.<ref>{{harvtxt|Michalopulos|2003|p=41}}</ref> It would be closed down in 1923 due to financial difficulties.<ref>{{harvtxt|Tarasar|1975|p=110}}</ref> | ||
| ==Return to Russia== | ==Return to Russia== | ||
| Upon his return to Russia, Platon was appointed Archbishop of ] and ] on March 20, 1914, before being transferred to the see of Kartalin and Kakheti on December 5, 1915 until the restoration of autocephaly of the ] in 1917, after of which he served as bishop of ] and ] until having to flee due to the ].<ref name=t127></ref> Platon was a major participant in the ], and was considered as a candidate for ] of the Russian Church. Platon also suggested appointing a ] bishop "who has studied in a Russian theological institute" in North America.<ref>{{harvtxt|Tarasar|1975|p=144}}</ref> | Upon his return to Russia, Platon was appointed Archbishop of ] and ] on March 20, 1914, before being transferred to the see of Kartalin and Kakheti on December 5, 1915. Platon remained there until the restoration of autocephaly of the ] in 1917, after of which he served as bishop of ] and ] until having to flee due to the ].<ref name=t127></ref> Platon was a major participant in the ], and was considered as a candidate for ] of the Russian Church. Platon also suggested appointing a ] bishop "who has studied in a Russian theological institute" in North America.<ref>{{harvtxt|Tarasar|1975|p=144}}</ref> | ||
| During the Council, Platon was also given the task of negotiating with the ] during the ]. On December that year he was elected to the ] and represented a delegation in Kiev in January 1918 in order to address the movement for autocephaly in Ukraine.<ref name=bio /> | During the Council, Platon was also given the task of negotiating with the ] during the ]. On December that year he was elected to the ] and represented a delegation in Kiev in January 1918 in order to address the movement for autocephaly in Ukraine.<ref name=bio /> | ||
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| == External links == | == External links == | ||
| * https://orthodoxwiki.org/Platon_(Rozhdestvensky)_of_New_York | * | ||
| {{s-start}} | {{s-start}} | ||
| {{s-rel|eo}} | {{s-rel|eo}} | ||
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| {{Primates of the Orthodox Church in America}} | {{Primates of the Orthodox Church in America}} | ||
| {{DEFAULTSORT:Rozhdestvensky, Platon}} | |||
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Revision as of 06:23, 24 January 2025
Russian-American Orthodox bishop In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Theodorovich and the family name is Rozhdestvensky .| His Eminence Platon | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of the Aleutians and North America | |
.jpg) | |
| Archdiocese | Archdiocese of the Aleutians and North America |
| Elected | 1907 |
| Predecessor | Alexander (Nemolovsky) |
| Successor | Theophilus (Pashkovsky) |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1887 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Porphyry Theodorovich Rozhdestvensky February 23 [O.S. February 11] 1866 Kursk, Russian Empire |
| Died | April 20, 1934(1934-04-20) (aged 68) New York, New York |
| Buried | Saint Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Seminary |
| Denomination | Eastern Orthodox |
| Spouse |
(m. 1886; died 1891) |
| Children | 1 |
| Alma mater | Kiev Theological Academy |
Platon (Rozhdestvensky) (Russian: Платон (Рождественский), romanized: Platón Rozhdestvenskij; February 23 [O.S. February 11] 1866 - April 20, 1934), born Porphyry Theodorovich Rozhdestvensky (Russian: Порфи́рий Фёдорович Рожде́ственский, romanized: Porfírij Fjodorovich Rozhdéstvenskij), was the Archbishop of the Aleutians and North America from 1907 to 1914 and again from 1922 to 1934.
Early life
Platon was born as Porphyry Theodorovich Rozhdestvensky in February 23, 1866 to a priest near Kursk, Russia. In 1886 he graduated from Kursk Seminary and in 1894 he enrolled in the Kiev Theological Academy where he took on the name Platon and graduated the following year and obtaining a Master of Theology in the same institution in 1898. After graduation he continued to work at the university as professor and rector.
Bishop
On June 3, 1902, he was consecrated as Bishop of Kiev. He was elected to the Second State Duma on February 12, 1907 due to his popularity amongst the locals in Kiev.
Arrival in America
Platon was elected as Archbishop of North America for the first time on June 8, 1907, where he would preside for the next seven years. He faced many challenges including a priest shortage, ethnic nationalism amongst the diaspora populations, and unpopularity of the church (in part due to resistance towards Russian hegemony). Platon's primary concern was the question of administering Ukrainian and Russian churches, and most ethnic missions were largely overlooked. In December 1908, he also founded the Russian Orthodox Christian Immigrant Society of North America, with the goal of protecting newly arrived immigrants from Austria-Hungary, Galicia, and Russia.
Under Platon's leadership, efforts were made in an attempt to try and nationalize the church. In February 1908, Platon organized an Albanian Orthodox Mission in America that included six parishes in Hudson, Massachusetts in response to a petition made by the local Albanian population after an independently owned Greek church refused to bury an Albanian nationalist. In 1909, a bill was vetoed by Governor Charles E. Hughes in the New York State Legislature after protests by the local Greek population. The law would have effectively placed the Greek parishes under Russian control. In a letter to Dean Pashkovsky discussing the possibility of a more unified church in North America, Platon expressed frustration with the Greek led opposition, stating "...it seems it is unfeasible when taking into consideration the self sufficiency of the Greeks...in all matters religion and faith". In 1913, a group of 19 Serbian churches briefly seceded until reconciliation was made in which the Russian delegation agreed to be more solicitous of Serbian complaints.
In 1912, he moved the first seminary in North America, St. Tikhon's, from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Tenafly, New Jersey in order to be closer to church administration, and was renamed St. Platon's Seminary. It would be closed down in 1923 due to financial difficulties.
Return to Russia
Upon his return to Russia, Platon was appointed Archbishop of Kishinev and Khotyn on March 20, 1914, before being transferred to the see of Kartalin and Kakheti on December 5, 1915. Platon remained there until the restoration of autocephaly of the Georgian Orthodox Church in 1917, after of which he served as bishop of Kherson and Odessa until having to flee due to the Russian Revolution. Platon was a major participant in the All-Russian Council, and was considered as a candidate for Patriarchate of the Russian Church. Platon also suggested appointing a Greek bishop "who has studied in a Russian theological institute" in North America.
During the Council, Platon was also given the task of negotiating with the Bolsheviks during the Russian Revolution. On December that year he was elected to the Holy Synod and represented a delegation in Kiev in January 1918 in order to address the movement for autocephaly in Ukraine.
John Dudikoff
Platon first met Father John Dudikoff sometime in 1913, over a disagreement over finances. Dudikoff followed Platon to Russia in which he accused, in his expose, of various scandals of violence within the church, including adultery, homosexuality, orgies, embezzlement, prostitution and rape. Platon was also accused of being a close advisor and friend of German ally Pavlo Skoropadsky and of instigating a pogrom while in Ukraine. Both would come to sue each other in 1923 over these accusations.
Second tenure in America
Due to the advances of the Bolsheviks in the Russian Civil War, Platon fled to America in 1919 as a refugee with his family. Facing resistance led by Father John Kedrovsky over the current bishop's alleged handling of church finances, Archbishop Alexander Nemolovsky in 1922 resigned and asked the Metropolitan to take over as the ruling hierarch of the diocese before leaving for Europe. On November 9 of that year he was confirmed in a sobor and established as the canonical Primate of North America; however this would be contested by Kedrovsky in later years.
While serving as Archbishop of North America, Platon was pro forma retired by Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow in order to satisfy Bolshevik demands. Since Platon was already Metropolitan of Odessa, he kept this title during his second reign. Consequently the Archdiocese of North America was elevated to Metropolia status and enjoyed a considerable amount of freedom from the Moscow Patriarchate. Metrpolitan Platon inherited many new difficulties from his predecessor, such as a financial crisis and uncertainty of the future of the Moscow Patriarchate. By 1921, all funds from Russia to the North American diocese had been terminated.
A second sobor was called on April 2, 1924 in Detroit, Michigan in which the North American diocese was declared "temporarily self-governing" due to difficulties in communication with the church in Russia. In later years, Platon would continue to rebuff affiliations with Russian Orthodox Church outside of Russia and the Moscow Patriarchate in order to maintain the diocese's independence.
During his second tenure as hierarch, Platon was less amicable to movements to create a new, independent multi-ethnic church, and actively worked to undermine such efforts including any support for the newly established American Orthodox Catholic Church. Platon also faced many challenges to his own tenure; in 1925 Archbishop Adam Phillipovsky stormed Platon's residency with the assistance of a bomb squad from the Manhattan Police Department and physically threw the Archbishop out of the cathedral and onto the street; Phillipovsky would later be charged and arrested for contempt of court.
Another threat to the diocese was Kedrovsky's schismatic "Living Church". Kedrovsky, who was suspended by Nemolovsky in 1918, claimed to be the true successor to the Russian Church in America by claiming he derived his authority from the Soviet Government, in contrast to Platon's staunch anti-Bolshevik stances. Kedrovsky would use this claim to sue over a hundred church properties. While mostly unsuccessful, he achieved a major victory in 1925 when the US courts recognized him as the legitimate owners of St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Cathedral in New York City.
Personal life and death
Platon was married in 1886. His wife gave birth to a daughter before dying in 1891; his daughter lived in Bulgaria with her family until the 1920s, where she eventually join him in North America with her family.
On April 20, 1934 Platon died in New York, New York at the age of 68. He was buried at Saint Tikhon's Seminary. In 1946, Patriarch Alexy I posthumously lifted all ecclesiastical sanctions on him.
See also
- List of primates of the Orthodox Church in America
- 1917–18 Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church
- Renovationism
Notes
- Евангельские дела в Америке Его Высокопреосвященство Митрополит всея Америки и Канады Платон [Gospel Affairs in America His Eminence Metropolitan of All America and Canada Plato]. New York, NY: Orthodox Publishing Committee. May 23, 1927.
- ^ "Past Primates: His Eminence, Metropolitan Platon (Rozhdestvensky)". www.oca.org. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ Tarasar (1975, p. 127-128) harvtxt error: no target: CITEREFTarasar1975 (help)
- Tarasar (1975, p. 133-134) harvtxt error: no target: CITEREFTarasar1975 (help)
- Stokoe (1995, p. 25) harvtxt error: no target: CITEREFStokoe1995 (help)
- Hughes (1910, p. 107-108)
- Michalopulos (2003, p. 50-53)
- Michalopulos (2003, p. 41)
- Tarasar (1975, p. 110) harvtxt error: no target: CITEREFTarasar1975 (help)
- Tarasar (1975, p. 144) harvtxt error: no target: CITEREFTarasar1975 (help)
- Dudikoff (1924, p. 25-29)
- Dudikoff (1924, p. 10)
- Dudikoff (1924, p. 72-73)
- Dudikoff (1924, p. 132-134)
- Psarev, Andrei (16 January 2024). "Metropolitan Platon (Rozhdestvenskii) - ROCOR Studies". Retrieved 21 January 2025.
- Michalopulos (2003, p. n13)
- Tarasar (1975, p. 177) harvtxt error: no target: CITEREFTarasar1975 (help)
- Damick, Fr Andrew Stephen (4 November 2009). "The Reversal of Platon Rozhdestvensky". Orthodox History. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- "Religion: St. Nicholas Cathedral". Time. 24 February 1934. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ Jillions, Fr John (November 1, 2013). "Chancellor's Diary: November 1, 2013". www.oca.org. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- "Religion: Settled". Time. 15 July 1923. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
References
- Dudikoff, John F. (1924). Beasts in Cassocks: the Crimes of the Heads of the Russian Greek Catholic Orthodox Church in America. Newark, NJ: Nurkin Press. ISBN 1014991609.
- Hughes, Charles E. (1910). Public Papers of Governor Charles E. Hughes. Albany, NY: State Printers.
- Michalopulos, George C. (2003). The American Orthodox church : a history of its beginnings. Salisbury, MA: Regina Orthodox Press. ISBN 1928653146.
- Stokoe, Mark; Kishkovsky, Leonid (1995). Orthodox Christians in North America (1794 - 1994). Orthodox Christian Publications Center (OCPC).
- Tarasar, Constance J.; Erickson, John H. (1975). Orthodox America, 1794-1976 : development of the Orthodox Church in America. Syosset, NY: Orthodox Church in America. ISBN 0913836478.
External links
| Eastern Orthodox Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byTikhon (Bellavin) | Primate of the Orthodox Church in America 1907 – 1914 |
Succeeded byEvdokim (Meschersky) |
| Preceded byAlexander (Nemolovsky) | Primate of the Orthodox Church in America 1922 – 1934 |
Succeeded byTheophilus (Pashkovsky) |
| List of Primates of North America | |
|---|---|
| Diocese of North America |
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| Bishops of North America |
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| Archbishops of North America |
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| Orthodox Church in America |
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