Archbishop
The future saint, Archbishop of Chernihiv and Nizhyn, was born on October 23, 1805, in the village of Konobeevka, Tambov Province, in the family of a priest. He received his initial education in the family of his parents, who were distinguished by their piety. In 1826, he entered the Moscow Theological Academy, where on August 19, 1829, he was tonsured into monasticism with the name Philaret.
In 1830, he was ordained as hierodeacon, and in 1830 - as hieromonk. In 1835, he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite and appointed rector of the Moscow Theological Academy. In 1841, he was appointed archimandrite of the Riga diocese, where he demonstrated extraordinary diligence, opening 63 parishes and establishing 20 permanent and 43 temporary churches.
In 1848, he was transferred to the Kharkiv diocese, where he paid attention to the spiritual education of youth, organizing seminaries and diocesan schools. In 1857, he was elevated to the rank of archbishop, and in 1859, he was appointed Archbishop of Chernihiv and Nizhyn. During the cholera outbreak in 1866, he undertook a visit to the diocese to encourage the people.
He passed away on August 9, 1866, in Konopotepe, and his burial was attended by a multitude of people, and cholera did not reach Chernihiv. His work includes the 'Historical and Statistical Description of the Kharkiv Diocese.' On April 14, 2009, he was glorified by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the rank of locally revered saints, and on November 30, 2017, the Archdiocesan Council of the Russian Orthodox Church made the decision for the universal glorification of Saint Philaret of Chernihiv.
