The Quarterly Journal of St. Philaret’s Institute

The article is devoted to little known episodes from the life and ministry of Professor-Archpriest Livery Voronov. The first part of the study refers to the time when Voronov began his church service on the occupied territory of the Leningrad Region, part of the Pskov Mission. His church and missionary work ended in Tallinn in October of 1944 with his arrest, prosecution and trial. The accused Voronov, pleaded not guilty on charges of anti-Soviet activities and cooperation with the German secret services but was nonetheless sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment in a correction labour camp. After his release Fr. Livery returned to church ministry and spiritual education. During the difficult time of the anti-religious campaign, he completed his studies and in 1961 started teaching at the Leningrad Theological Academy. At the same time, he began working in the Department of External Church Relations under Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov). In the early 1970s a series of events occurred which led to the dismissal of Fr. Livery from the Department of External Church Relations and the Educational Committee of the Russian Orthodox Church (the Moscow Patriarchate) and then to a strained relationship with the Publishing Department of the Moscow Patriarchate. As far as possible he found support in these difficulties from Metropolitan Nicodemus. At the same time, Archpriest Liverius was consistent and principled in his ministry in the field of spiritual education and ecclesiastical studies. Until recently, Professor-Archpriest Livery Voronov maintained his loyalty to the academy and his love for his mother Ekaterina Vassianovna. He left a good memory with his students and pupils, and served much to ensure that even under Soviet conditions the Theological Academy of the Northern Capital was the best spiritual school of the Russian Orthodox Church (the Moscow Patriarchate).