Ηegumen / Abbot
He was born in the village of Sameli, in the Racha region, in 1865 to pious spouses Solomon and Martha Kereselidze. At birth, he was named Eustathius. After finishing the church-parish school, fifteen-year-old Eustathius went to Kutaisi, then to Tbilisi in search of work. Together with another pious young man, he organized something like a theological book club in Tbilisi, striving to better understand the ancient church chants and strengthen the Orthodox faith among the Georgian people. In the 1890s, the circle acquired printing presses and for 25 years published theological texts, spreading them among the people.
Eustathius decided to take on the heavy burden of monasticism, for which he had been preparing since his youth, and his spiritual father, the venerable Alexius (Shushaniani), approved his decision. In 1912, with the blessing of the Bishop of Imereti, George (Aladashvili), he began to serve as a novice in the Gelati Monastery. On December 23, 1912, he was tonsured into monasticism with the name Euphemios. In May 1913, he was ordained as a hierodeacon, and in 1917 – to the priestly rank by the same bishop.
In 1921, after the communists seized power, Euphemios was arrested but released due to insufficient evidence. At that time, the Gelati Monastery was undergoing persecution, but Euphemios continued to collect ancient chants. In 1924, after the destruction of the cathedral of King David the Builder and the execution of the Metropolitan of Kutaisi, Nazarius, he decided to leave the monastery and, taking the manuscripts with him, went to a safer place, reaching Mtskheta.
The manuscripts were placed in storage at the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral, and Euphemios was appointed the rector of this church. He continued the study of ancient manuscripts and the translation of chants into modern notation. In 1929, he was transferred to the Zedazeni Monastery, where he buried ancient manuscripts in metal cases. In November 1935, he handed over 34 collections, including 5532 chants, to the Georgian National Museum.
During World War II, life in Georgian monasteries was particularly difficult. Father Euphemios remained the only monk in the Zedazeni Monastery. In the winter of 1944, he was found by the nun Zoil in a state of exhaustion and soon departed to the Lord. Blessed Euphemios was a monk-ascetic and scholar, an example of chastity, humility, and patience; thanks to his labors, the ancient school of Georgian chants was preserved.
