MOSCOW: April 15, 2008
The Forthcoming Council of Bishops of the Moscow Patriarchate Will Consider the Church-wide Glorification of Bishop Antony (Smirnitsky) and St John (Maximovich)
 The recent meeting of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Moscow Patriarchate chaired by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II in Moscow heard a report by His Eminence Metropolitan Yuvenaly of Krutitsa and Kolomenks, President of the Synodal Commission on the Canonization of Saints, on materials received by that Commission regarding the glorification of the New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia who suffered in various dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church, and on materials on the veneration of Bishop Antony (Smirnitsky, 1773-1846) of Voronezh and of Archbishop John (Maximovich, 1896-1966) of Shanghai and San Francisco (Journal No. 13).
The Holy Synod approved Metropolitan Yuvenaly's report and decreed to include the following names of the Russian podvizhnik-martyrs of the 20th century:
- Moscow Diocese: Priest Mikhail (Vinogradov, 1873-1932), Nun Evgeniya (Lysova, 1892-1935), Nun Magdalena (Zabelina,1863-1931);
- Cheboksaro-Chuvash Diocese: Protopriest Nikolai (Troitsky, 1895-1945) and Priest Ilya (Izmailov, 1882-1937).
It was decided to communicate the names of these saints to the Primates of the fraternal Local Orthodox Churches for inclusion in their lists of saints.
The question of the Church-wide glorification of St Antony and St John will be included in the agenda of the forthcoming Council of Bishops to convene in June 2008.
Press Service of the Moscow Patriarchate
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