Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov)

Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) of the Aleutians (1851-1915)

Mikhail may be spelt Mihail, Michel, Michael.

Nicholas may be spelt Nikolai, Nikolaj, Nicolas, Nikolaos.

Early life of Mikhail Zakharovich Ziorov

Mikhail Zakharovich Ziorov was born 21 May, 1851, into the family of the Archpriest Zakhariy Ziorov in Novomirgorod in the Kherson Governorate of Ukraine (then within the Russian Empire).

The Dnieper River flows through this province, and empties into the Black Sea at the City of Kherson.

Mikhail Zakharovich grew up in the Orthodox Christian Faith within the bosom of the Russian Orthodox Church, and in the parish of his father.

Mikhail Zakharovich completed his primary and secondary education where he grew up.

Higher education

Mikhail Zakharovich then went to Odessa, where he studied at the Seminary in Odessa.

After his graduation, he travelled to study at the Moscow Theological Academy, from which he graduated in 1878.

After this, still a layman, he served as Inspector in the Vologda and Moghilev Seminaries.

Monastic tonsure, 1887

In 1887, Mikhail Ziorov was tonsured to be a monk, and he was given the name Nicholas.

Ordinations, 1887

In that same year, he was ordained to the Holy Diaconate and then to the Holy Priesthood.

Pastoral service

The Hieromonk Nicholas (Ziorov) was then assigned to serve as the Rector of the Moscow Theological Seminary.

In 1891, the Hieromonk Nicholas (Ziorov) was elevated to the dignity of archimandrite.

In 1891, Archimandrite Nicholas (Ziorov) was chosen and elected by the Most Holy Synod of the Church of Russia to become a bishop.

Episcopal ordination, 1891

On 29 September, 1891, Archimandrite Nicholas (Ziorov) was ordained to the Holy Episcopate.

Episcopal service

Assignment to North America, 1891

Bishop Nicholas was then assigned to be the Bishop of the Aleutian Islands and Alaska.

Service in Alaska

During the time of his service in Alaska and North America, he made 2 major pastoral rounds of visits in Alaska to the 9 parishes and 30 chapels that served as the spiritual home and focus for the 15,000 indigenous Orthodox Christians in the original places in which the Orthodox Mission in North America planted the Orthodox Christian Faith. These visits were necessarily accomplished mostly by small boats.

In 1897, Vladyka Nicholas is known to have rebuked the State Department of the USA for their mismanagement of the affairs of Alaska.

Saint Nicholas Church, Juneau, Alaska (founded 1892, sanctified 1894)

The establishment of the Temple in Juneau, Alaska is a helpful example about the work of Bishop Nicholas. An article about the Temple provides this :

 St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church was built in 1894 to serve the native Tlinglit population after the Russian Orthodox Faith 
 took root during Alaska’s stint as a Russian territory.  The wood-frame house of worship is still functional today, a prized and 
 well-preserved relic of a formative time in the state’s history.  [...]
 
 According to local lore, in 1890 the chief of the Juneau Tlingit tribe, Ishkhanalykh, was baptized in Sitka, about 92 miles away, 
 along with several other members of the tribe.  In 1892, the designated Russian Orthodox bishop of Alaska, also named Nicholas, 
 paid a visit to Juneau to meet with a delegation of chiefs who 'said they wished to be baptized and that they would donate land, 
 lumber, and labour for a church', according to the building’s National Register nomination.  
 
 This eagerness stemmed from a common vision, shared by many members of the tribe, of a short, white, bearded elderly man encouraging
 them to convert to Christianity.  When they were shown a picture of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, they recognized him as the man 
 from their visions. 
 
 Bishop Nicholas [Ziorov] left a priest behind to minister to the burgeoning Orthodox population, which eventually led to the conversion 
 of about 700 Tlinglit.  The bishop allocated money for construction costs ; Chief Ishkhanalykh donated land, and other residents of 
 Juneau provided lumber and labour.  Early in 1894, Bishop Nicholas consecrated the church.

In addition to his work of caring for the Alaskan Orthodox Christians, his responsibilities began to increase to the south, in the main part of the USA. There, the Orthodox Christian population was increasing, and the number of parishes grew from 5 to 17 during the time of his archpastoral service.

Increasing work and development in the "Lower 48", the contiguous states

Bishop Nicholas gathered together able assistants, many of whom would come to be recognised as being amongst the significant personalities in the growth of the North American Mission. These included :

 the priests (Saint) Alexander Hotovitzky, (Saint) John Kochurov, (Saint) Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich), 
 Theodore Pashkovsky, (Saint) Alexis Toth, (Saint) Archimandrite Raphael (Hawaweeny), (Saint) Hieromonk Anatoly (Kamensky), 
 Jason Kappanadze, and others.

In the context of the increasing immigration from Eastern Europe, Greece and the Levant, it was Bishop Nicholas who initiated the publication of the English-Russian-language weekly, the “Russian Orthodox American Messenger” under the editorship of Father Alexander Hotovitsky, the future hieromartyr.

Holy Trinity Cathedral, San Francisco, California

With the shift of the focus of pastoral activity towards the eastern USA, Bishop Nicholas transferred the mission school from San Francisco, California, to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Vladyka Nicholas acquired a good library, which he eventually gave to the seminary. He also sent several American theological students to Russia, where they studied at the Saint Petersburg Theological Academy.

Influence in Canada

In 1896, the Greek Orthodox Community of the Annunciation was established in Montréal, Québec, Canada.

In 1897, Bishop Nicholas was the first bishop of the Russian Mission to pay a visit to some of the faithful who had settled in central Canada, around Winnipeg, Manitoba. Access would have been from the south, through Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Saint Mary's Temple, and the seminary, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Furthermore, it was under the blessing of Vladyka Nicholas that the Priest Dmitry Kamnev and Deacon Vladimir Alexandrov made the first missionary journey to the Edmonton area in what was then the Northwest Territories (now the Province of Alberta) of Canada. This visit brought about the formal beginning of Orthodox Christian communities amongst the newly-arrived immigrants from the Russian Empire and from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

During these years of service in North America, Bishop Nicholas extended the foundation he had inherited, as he prepared the way for the work of his successor, and for the developing of the diocese. He also enabled a smooth and rapid transition for his successor, Bishop Tikhon (Belavin). It was under Vladyka Nicholas' leadership and blessing that many young priests were recruited and ordained, and that the beginning of the return of Uniats to the Orthodox Christian Faith truly began.

As Matthew Namee wrote,

The reality is that much of what St. Tikhon is credited with doing was actually accomplished
by his predecessor, Bishop Nicholas. Yes, St. Tikhon was a visionary — but in many respects
he was continuing, implementing, and expanding upon the vision of Bishop Nicholas.
It was Nicholas, not Tikhon, who recruited gifted young men like St. Alexander Hotovitzky, St. John Kochurov,
and St. Anatolii Kamenskii to serve in America. Bishop Nicholas ordained Hotovitzky and Kochurov
to the priesthood, as well as the great Serbian priest Fr. Sebastian Dabovich.
And it was Nicholas, not Tikhon, who first set up special ministries for different ethnic groups,
empowering Dabovich and importing talented clergy such as St. Raphael Hawaweeny and
Fr. Theoclitos Triantafilides. The flood of Uniates into Orthodoxy began with the conversion of
St. Alexis Toth shortly before Bishop Nicholas arrived in America, but it was under Nicholas
that the 'return of the Unia' really picked up steam.

Bishop Nicholas came in 1891 to a diocese [...] that had not experienced hierarchical stability [...].
The diocese in 1891 was centered in Alaska, with only two parishes in the contiguous United States
(San Francisco and Minneapolis). While not neglecting Alaska (he was a great advocate for the Orthodox
natives), Bishop Nicholas oversaw dramatic growth in the rest of the US, with an average of about two
new parishes founded every year. Whereas the diocese was tiny and weak in 1891, by the time of Nicholas’
departure in 1898, it was thriving and healthy. St. Tikhon, Nicholas’ successor, was able to accomplish
so much because he was a genuinely great man, but also because he took the reins of a diocese made
strong by Bishop Nicholas.

By 1898, Bishop Nicholas had embraced more parishes in their return to the Orthodox Faith from the Unia. These included those in Chicago in Illinois ; Cleveland in Ohio ; Pittsburgh, Osceola Mills, Old Forge, Wilkes-Barre, Catasaqua, in Pennsylvania ; Buffalo in New York ; Ansonia, Bridgeport, in Connecticut.

Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) was recalled to Russia in 1898.

Transfer to Russia, 1898

In 1898, Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) was transferred back to Russia. In Russia, he was assigned to serve as the Bishop of Tavria and Simferopol in Crimea.

Bishop Nicholas was elevated to the dignity of archbishop.

In 1905, Archbishop Nicholas (Ziorov) was assigned to become the Archbishop of the Diocese of Tver and Kashin.

From 15 July, 1906, Archbishop Nicholas (Ziorov) was elected by the monastic clergy to be a member of the State Council.

On 5 April, 1908, Archbishop Nicholas (Ziorov) was assigned to be the Archbishop of Warsaw in Poland.

In 1912, Archbishop Nicholas (Ziorov) was re-elected to the State Council by the monastics (including the "black clergy") and the "white clergy" (married clergy).

As World War I overcame the Warsaw region, Archbishop Nicholas (Ziorov) was moved to Saint Petersburg in Russia.

Repose, 1915

Archbishop Nicholas (Ziorov) reposed in the Lord in Saint Petersburg on 20 December, 1915.

— Bishop of the Aleutian Islands and Alaska 1891-1898. Preceded by : Bishop Vladimir (Sokolovsky-Avtonomov). Succeeded by : Bishop Tikhon (Belavin).

— Bishop of Tavria and Simferopol 1898-1905. Preceded by : Bishop Alexei (Molchanov). Succeeded by : Bishop Michael (Gribanovskiy) and Bishop Nikon (Sofiiskiy).

— Archbishop of Tver and Kashin 1905-1908. Preceded by : Bishop Nikanor (Kamenskiy). Succeeded by : Bishop Dimitriy (Sambikin).

— Archbishop of Warsaw 1908-1915. Preceded by : Bishop Nikanor (Kamenskiy). Succeeded by : Bishop Ioasaph (Kallistrov) ; Bishop Vladimir (Tikhonitskiy) ; Metropolitan Seraphim (Chichagov).

Reflections

It was commented about Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) that in personality, he was known to be short-tempered, but at the same time very quick in repentance. That people may be short-tempered is a common experience ; however, being quick to repent is not all that common (unless a person be a serious Christian).

However, his reputation generally reflects the fruit of repentance. When it was time for Bishop Tikhon (Belavin) to replace him in North America, Vladyka Tikhon learned that he was succeeding a very popular hierarch, who had turned around a failing “enterprise”, and had given hopeful confidence to his flock. Indeed, following after the work of Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) would be a formidable task for the young hierarch.

After his arrival in New York, and after his having served the Divine Liturgy for the second time there, when Bishop Tikhon (Belavin) left New York, the new bishop left the distinct impression amongst the clergy and laity alike that Divine Providence had sent them a man who would not seek his own good. Rather, he would continue and build upon all the good which Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) had done ; that the Orthodox Church in North America would, as they had hoped but scarcely dared to believe, go “from glory to glory”.

In her book, “Orthodox America 1794-1976”, Constance J Tarasar presented on p. 73 a citation from "The Washington Post" of 5 November, 1897, entitled "The Bishop's Complaint", of which a portion is reproduced here :

He Tells the President that his Church is Made to Suffer

Bishop Nicholas, of San Francisco, who is the head of the Russian Church in North America, with special charge over
that body in Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, is the guest of the Russian legation. His especial mission to Washington
is to place before the President a protest against certain severities imposed upon the people of his Church, and to ask
for an investigation, and to also ask that a survey be made of the Russian Church properties. Yesterday morning Bishop
Nicholas and Mr. de Wollant, Chargé d'Affaires of the Russian legation, called upon the Secretary of State, and, later,
were granted an audience with President McKinley, to whom the Bishop stated his grievance.

One of the matters complained of was that the trading companies refuse to recognize the Church holydays, and compel the
Bishop's people to work even on Sunday. In regard to the request for the survey, he complained that the trading companies
are endeavoring to steal their properties. When the Russian government sold Alaska to the United States it withheld certain
properties owned by the Church, and it is these properties for which the Bishop asks protection. President McKinley requested
the Bishop to submit a detailed report, giving him the facts in the case, that he might submit it to Congress. It was stated
at the legation that a very unpleasant condition of affairs has been existing for some time between the trading companies and
the church, but the lack of facilities for communication has made it impossible until now to bring the matter before the
President. The Bishop feels satisfied with his visit, and will submit the report in a few weeks.

As there is no Russian Church in Washington, Mr. de Wollant, the Chargé d'Affaires of the legation, has requested the Bishop
to solemnize the rites of the Church in the parlors of the legation. The Bishop was assisted by Priest Hotovitsky of the New
York parish, Priest Protopopoff of Chicago and Priest Dabovich of San Francisco. In the afternoon a luncheon was given at the
legation and next day Bishop continued his tour south. [...]

On p. 72 of the same book, Constance Tarasar provided details about the state of the Church in Alaska in 1897, which are reproduced here :

Alaska
By 1896, the Orthodox population as registered by priests in parish records totaled 15,064 persons listed as follows by
nationalities and tribe :
Male Female Total
1. Russians 51 31 82
2. Creoles 965 1020 1985
3. Americans 7 4 11
4. Japanese 1 - 1
5. Aleutians 1581 1472 3053
6. Indians 605 624 1229
7. Kuskokwims 1049 1208 2457
8. Kenaians 453 362 815
9. Kvikhpakhs 430 345 775
10. Oglemuts 316 251 567
11. Magemuts 198 145 343
12. Ingkalits 737 723 1460
13. Koltchans 229 304 603
14. Kuyukans 170 166 336
15. Nagmuts 154 115 269
16. Maglemuts 154 115 269
17. Nuvivaks 4 1 5
18. Agletuts 197 161 353
19. Kiatins 202 182 385
20. Miednofs 77 49 126
21. Greeks 6 1 7
Altogether 15,064

The membership of the major parishes and regions was : Unalaska - 970 ; Nushagak - 2929 ; Kuskokwim - 1484 ;
St. George Island - 88 ; St. Paul Island - 197 ; Juneau - 228 ; Kodiak - 1118 ; Afognek - 652 ;
Bielkovsky - 515 ; Kvikhpakh - 4204 ; Sitka - 844 ; Kilisno - 376 ; Kenai - 1017 ; and Nutchek - 452.
The 'Messenger' which recorded this data states that this represents the minimum of the Orthodox population and
does not include Orthodox transients who come to Alaska for work - principally Russians, Slavs and Greeks. It
also excludes natives who are in areas where there are no Orthodox churches, chapels or priests within reach
(i.e. the southern portion of the territory where there are three Indian parishes : Khuno, Yakutat and Chilkoot,
whose members were converted to Orthodoxy long ago, but live far away from clergy and do not receive the sacraments
every year). The figures contrast sharply with those of the eleventh American census 'Population Report,' which
diminishes the number of Christians in Alaska and reports the Orthodox population at 10,335 in 1890, a discrepancy
that the Messenger states cannot be attributed merely to an abrupt increase in population, but to inaccurate census
figures which attempt to present the picture of a dying aboriginal population.

In the fall of 1897, Bishop Nicholas made one of his final pastoral visitations to his flock in America, making a
complete circuit from San Francisco to the Midwest, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, and the Southwest. On this
visit, he also spent three days in Washington, D.C., protesting the treatment of the native people in A1aska. The
following news notes from the September and November issues of the 'Messenger' (1897, No. I and No. 6) reveal the
extent of the growth and development of the Diocese as well as some of the problems faced by the Church prior to
the arrival of Bishop Tikhon on December 12, 1898.

Russian American Messenger, 1897 :

 News & Notes
 
 In memory of the Enlightener of the Aleuts, Metropolitan Innocentius, the one hundredth anniversary of whose birth was 
 solemnly celebrated by our Mission on the 26th of last August (7th of September), His Grace the Right Reverend Nicholas, 
 Bishop of Alaska and Aleutian Islands, is undertaking a series of publications aiming at the spiritual improvement and 
 religious well-being of the Orthodox Aboriginals of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands.  The text of the Liturgy and of the 
 Vespers and Vigils is being prepared for the press in the Aleut dialect.  It is also intended to print the Aleut church 
 tunes, some of which are very touching : for instance that to which they sing 'Holy God,' 'Glory to God on High,' 
 'Christ is Risen,' and others.  In the Kolosh dialect are being prepared for the press the Histories of the Old and New 
 Testaments, and in the Kvikhpakh dialect the Catechistical instructions.  Such books are a great boon for those on whose 
 behalf they are being prepared.  We may remark here that prayers and hymns in all these dialects had already been published 
 in several pamphlets by the care and effort of the Right Reverend Arch-pastor, and are of invaluable assistance as well to 
 the Orthodox missionaries in Alaska as for the Aboriginals themselves - Aleuts, Koloshes, Kvikhpakhs, Kuskokwims, etc.
 
 In two localities of Canada - at Lime Stone Lake, and at Rabbit Hills, a community of Ruthenians residing there, and 
 numbering no less than 700, with the blessing of the Right Reverend Nicholas, Bishop of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, 
 left the Uniate Church and joined the Orthodox Church.  They are all natives of Galicia and Bukovina.  They had repeatedly 
 and for a long time expressed their earnest wish to be received back into the bosom of the Orthodox Mother Church ; and now 
 the Bishop, being unable personally to visit Canada, because of his late long tour of inspection through the Orthodox churches 
 of Alaska, has commissioned the Rector of the Mission at Seattle, D. Kamnev, to perform the formal act of reception of the 
 communities in Canada.  Thus it is that the Union's inefficacy is shown more and more clearly every day by the hearty rejection 
 of the allegiance to Rome, which was, several centuries ago, forced on Russian men and women, doing violence to their thoroughly 
 Orthodox moral consciousness.

Writings

• ‘Archpastoral message to the Oldfords’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 4 (1897), pp. 150-153.

• “Several Teachings and Speeches of the Most Reverend. Nicholas ..., given by him during his Ministry in the Seminaries of Ryazan, Mogilev and Tiflis”, vol. 2 (New York, 1898), p. 147.

• ‘Conversations, Teachings, Words and Speeches’ in “Orthodox Assembly in Simferopol, 1902”, 2 nos. (June 1905).

• "American Sermons : with the Appendix of five Messages ....", no. 3 (Simferopol, 1902), p. 133.

• “Yalta conversations of 1905-1906 and Speeches” (St. Petersburg, 1907).

• ‘Feedback from Prof. A Bronzova about Conversations’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 1 (1908), p. 43.

• “Yalta Conversations and Speeches of 1909-10” (St. Petersburg, 1910).

• ‘Speech on the Old Believers at the 48th Meeting of the State Council, St. Petersburg, 1910’, Khr. Read., October, 1910, in “According to the Church Messenger”, no . 27 (October, 1910) p. 1283, pp. 1121-1126.

• "Emperor Alexander the Blessed and his Time" (St Petersburg, 1912).

• ‘On the draft Law on the Empowerment of Women’ in “Voice of the Church”, (November, 1912), pp. 141-145.

• ‘Talk about Freedom of Conscience’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 42 (1910), p. 1765.

• ‘Speech in the State Council on the Bill on the Transition from one Religion to Another’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 48 (1911), p. 2035.

• ‘To the Bill of 35 Members of the State Council on the Reduction of Holidays and non-Business Days’ in “Church Messenger”, no. 1 (1912), p. 8, & in “Voice of the Church” 1912, (May-June, 1912), pp. 207-221.

• ‘Warsaw Conversations and Speeches’, no. 4 (St. Petersburg, 1912) with a Review in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 10 (1912), p. 445.

• ‘Speech at the Consecration of the new Cathedral in Warsaw’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 21 (1912), p. 843.

• ‘Talk on the Birthday of Tsarevich Alexy’ in "According to the Church Messenger", no. 31 (1912), p. 1237 ; no. 22, p. 895.

• ‘A Speech given to Bishop Joasaph of Novo-Georgievsky, when the pastoral Staff was handed to him at the Alexander Nevsky Monastery’ in "According to the Church Messenger", no. 50 (1912), pp. 1985-1986.

• ‘Speech delivered in the State Council in discussing the Bill on Holidays for Employees in commercial and industrial Establishments, 21 November, 1912’ in "According to the Church Messenger", no. 1 (1913), p. 9.

• ‘Speech to High School Students who have completed the Programme’ in "According to the Church Messenger", no. 29 (1913), p. 1331.

• ‘Words on the Day of the Elevation of the Holy and Life-giving Cross’ in "According to the Church Messenger", no. 37 (1913), p. 1649.

• ‘Talk about the Responsibilities of attending Church and Worship’ in “According to the Church Messenger’, no. 48 (1913), p. 2217.

• ‘Speech delivered at a Meeting of the State Council on 20 November, 1913’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 50 (1913), p. 2314.

• ‘Speech delivered in the old Cathedral before a public Prayer Service on the Occasion of the Declaration of War by Germany to Russia’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 31 (1914), p. 1355.

• ‘Speech delivered before the Prayer Service in the new Cathedral on the Occasion of the Teutonic Invasion’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 31 (1914), p. 1356.

• ‘Speech delivered at Holy Trinity Cathedral on the Occasion of Victory over the Austrians and Prussians’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 40 (1914), p. 1707.

• ‘Speech delivered at Holy Trinity Cathedral before the Thanksgiving Prayer Service on the Occasion of Victory’ in “According to the Church Messenger”, no. 43 (1914), p. 1813.

• ‘Doctrine of Repentance’ in “LMP”, no. 12 (1976), pp. 34-35.

References

Archdiocese of Canada – Orthodox Church in America, “The Orthodox Church in Canada : A Chronology” (Ottawa : Archdiocese of Canada, 1988).

“The Russian Mission in North America”

Tarasar, Constance J, ed., “Orthodox America 1794-1976 : Development of The Orthodox Church in America” (Syosset, NY : The Orthodox Church in America Department of History and Archives, 1975). ASIN : B000ZLZAUE.

Orthodoxwiki biography

Russian Wikipedia biography

Drevo Encyclopaedia biography

Russian Orthodox Parishes in the USA biography

Youtube recitation of the biography (in Russian)

Additional information :

Farley, Bridgit, “Missionary Priests and the Establishment of the Russian Orthodox Church in the American West 1890-1910”

The “Russian Mission” in North America

Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral in San Francisco, California

Orthodoxwiki history of the Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco

Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church in Juneau, Alaska

'Juneau's St. Nicholas Church : An Icon of Alaska's History' in "National Trust for Historic Preservation"