The city of Gomel is one of the oldest centers of settlement in Russia and in modern Belarus. Its roots are lost in the depths of history, but it is known that in the ninth century the territory of modern Gomel region was subordinated to the Kiev prince. Therefore, after the baptism of Rus, Christianity began to spread rapidly here. In the end, of course, this led to the formation of an independent Gomel diocese in the region, a photo of which can be seen in the review.
Ancient history of the diocese
The first archaeologically confirmed information about the presence of Christian communities in the Gomel region dates back to the eleventh century. However, when it was the first time the adherents of the church appeared in this territory, it is difficult to say. It is possible that even before 988, the official date of the adoption of Christianity by Russia, missions and communities of believers functioned in the settlements of the region.
In 1054, when the Principality of Chernigov was formed, Gomel became part of it as one of the significant fortified cities. And in church terms, his parishes and monasteries were ruled by the Chernigov bishop. In addition, a number of territories, which today also feeds the Gomel diocese, were subordinated to the Turov and Smolensk departments.
Diocese from the 14th to the 18th centuries
Not much is known about the church life of this period. In the 30s of the fourteenth century, Gomel joined the Principality of Lithuania.
Documents from various centuries mention various Orthodox churches of the city. This is St. Nicholas Cathedral at the end of the fourteenth century, then the Prechistensky Church and the Trinity Church at the beginning of the sixteenth century.
In the eighteenth century, work began on the construction of a religious school, and a few months later, in 1772, in connection with the partition of Poland, Gomel came under the control of the Russian crown. Moreover, the affairs of the Orthodox Church on its territory are under the jurisdiction of the Minsk Diocese.
Department in the 19th century
So Gomel exists until the mid-nineteenth century, when it becomes a county center in the Mogilev province. At the same time, new churches were erected on its territory - in honor of the First Supreme Apostles Peter and Paul and the Holy Trinity. In total, in the middle of the nineteenth century, five Orthodox churches and one monastery functioned in Gomel. The need for spiritual education was met by a spiritual school.
As before, the Gomel diocese did not have independent management; all its affairs were led by the Mogilev bishop. This position of her remained for a long time, right up to the twentieth century. This was caused by the fact that the number of Orthodox people was not so large for the establishment of an independent department.
Gomel diocese in the XX century (until 1990)
The situation changed at the beginning of the twentieth century. Due to the increase in population and the construction of a number of new churches, the Gomel diocese gained some weight. As a result, in 1907, the Gomel Vicariate was established as part of the Mogilev diocese . This status of the region remained after the revolution of 1917. Only in 1924 the vicar department left the guardianship of the Mogilev bishop and gained independent status. Her first ruling bishop was Nikon (Degtyarenko).
But together with independence, the Gomel diocese was faced with opposition from the authorities. In 1925, the second ruling bishop Tikhon (Sharapov) was arrested a few months after being appointed to the department. Although legally he remained its head until 1934, the actual management of the parishes was carried out by other bishops. A little later, with the closure of the Cathedral of the Apostles Peter and Paul in 1935, the diocese ceased to exist at all.
A brief thaw period occurred during the years of World War II. At that time, the Gomel diocese of the Belarusian Orthodox Church functioned, which retained the status of an autonomous structure. After the war, it ceased to exist.
Diocese of Gomel after 1990
The revival of full-blooded church life in the region occurred only in the 90s. twentieth century. Officially, the Gomel diocese was restored in 1990 in the status of an independent department, whose canonical territory coincided with the borders of the region. The first bishop called to administer the newly opened diocese was Bishop Aristarchus (Stankevich) with the title "Gomel and Mozyr."
Two years later, the Mozyr department was removed from the diocese into an independent structure. As a result of this, Zhlobin became the second center of the diocese.
In 2007, within the Gomel department, by the decision of the Holy Synod, the Rechitsa Vicariate was formed, which, however, did not last long - until 2012.
After the death of Archbishop Aristarchus, the department was headed by Bishop Stephen (Nescheret).
Gomel diocese: parishes and deaneries
To date, the territory of the department occupies a significant area and has a large number of believers, which makes direct management of church structures in places from the city center difficult. Therefore, the Gomel diocese, whose parishes are dispersed in many regions of the region, is divided into ten deanery districts, whose leadership oversees all parish activities and liaises with the administration of the ruling bishop.
In total, at present, the department has about 140 temples. In addition, there are four monasteries, three of which (Tikhvin, Uspensky and Kormyansky) are female and one (Nikolsky) male.
The interaction of the church and society in Gomel
Between various layers of civil society and church structures, contact is made through ten specialized departments, which are localized in the building of the diocesan administration. In addition to them, several commissions function on certain issues relating to the life of the diocese.
As for church education, there are two youth fraternities at the subordinate department of the territory - the diocesan and the monastery of St. Nicholas. In the same monastery, for lay people, educational lectures on spiritual, local history and other relevant topics are regularly read, a children's Bible studio and gospel study groups for young people and adults operate.
At the general diocesan level, various events are also held, for example, the February Tabor intellectual games tournament, which has international status, or a number of events dedicated to the Orthodox Book Day.
Youth fraternities are engaged in work related to children from orphanages. A number of clergymen of the diocese are working in prisons. Also, from time to time, charity events and other events are held in the region.
Pilgrimage trips
An important place in the life of the Gomel department is occupied by pilgrimage activities. On the part of the church leadership, it is supervised by the pilgrimage department. The programs offered by the Gomel diocese include pilgrimage trips to the saints and memorial sites for the Orthodox places in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. Groups are also regularly sent abroad, for example, to Italy. Every year, believing youth travels to France to the Teze interfaith monastery. But the most popular program provided by the Gomel diocese is a trip to Jerusalem to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. However, her schedule provides for visits to other Christian shrines located on the territory of modern Israel.