Kyrill (Yonchev)
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The Most Reverend Kyrill (Yonchev) (October 9, 1945 – June 17, 2007) was the archbishop of the Orthodox Church in America's Diocese of Western Pennsylvania and Bulgarian Diocese. Kyrill was born in New York City and died in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
In the late 1950s, Metropolitan Andrei (Petkov), leader of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia's Bulgarian Diocese of North and South America and Australia, petitioned to be accepted into the Russian Metropolia but had been rebuffed by them for unclear reasons, so in 1964 he petitioned and was approved by the Holy Synod of the Church of Bulgaria to be readmitted to the Bulgarian episcopacy. One of his clergy, Archimandrite Kyrill (Yonchev), disagreed with his decision and was consecrated by the bishops of the ROCOR to serve as head of the Bulgarian Diocese in Exile. Due partly to Metr. Andrei's advanced age, Bp. Kyrill persuaded many Bulgarian parishes to accept his authority.[1]
In 1976, Bp. Kyrill and his diocese broke from the ROCOR and joined the Orthodox Church in America, thus creating its Bulgarian Diocese.[2]
Archbishop Kyrill died on June 17, 2007, after suffering from ill health for the previous year.[3]
[edit] Episcopal succession
| Episcopal Lineage | |
| Consecrated by: | ? |
| Date of consecration: | August 9, 1964 |
| Preceded by — |
Archbishop of the Bulgarian Diocese 1976–June 17, 2007 |
Succeeded by ???? |
| Preceded by ? |
Archbishop of Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania ????–June 17, 2007 |
Succeeded by ???? |
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ Surrency, Archim. Serafim. The Quest for Orthodox Unity in America: A History of the Orthodox Church in North America in the Twentieth Century. Saints Boris and Gleb Press, 1973.
- ^ Liberovsky, Alexis. "Synopsis of the 5th All-American Council". Retrieved on 2007-01-01.
- ^ "In Memoriam: His Eminence, Archbishop Kyrill of Pittsburgh, Western Pennsylvania, and the Bulgarian Diocese". Retrieved on 2007-06-18.
