Bishop Mark (Shavykin)

Bishop Mark (Shavykin) (1910-1989)

Mark may be spelt Markus.

Early life of Leonid Leontyevich Shavykin

On 28 May, 1910, Leonid Leontyevich Shavykin was born in the resort village of Raivola (later Roshchino) on the Karelian Isthmus, in the Vyborg Governorate, of the Grand Duchy of Finland, in the Russian Empire. Roshchino is situated on the north coast of the Gulf of Finland, about 60 km (37 mi) northwest of Saint Petersburg (about halfway to Vyborg).

Leonid was born to Leontiy Shavykin (a Saint Petersburg weapons technician) and his wife.

Leonid Leontyevich was raised as an Orthodox Christian in the bosom of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Saint Nicholas the Wonder-worker Temple, Roshchino

World War I, 1914-1918

World War I came when Leonid Leontyevich was a small child, and that was followed by the Russian Revolutions of 1917. Leonid was only 7 years old at that time.

Because of the fall of the Russian Empire and the establishment of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), the Finnish Grand Duchy was able to become the Republic of Finland (after having fought a civil war in 1918), and the border remained not far from Saint Petersburg. Thus, Leonid Leontyevich was able eventually to become a citizen of Finland. However, at that particular time, he and the family subsisted on a “Nansen Passport” (for stateless persons), and the Finns in general were not welcoming to the Russian Karelians. Before the Imperial Russian presence, Finland had had a long historical association with the Kingdom of Sweden.

As was the case with many Orthodox Christian families (including those in distant Estonia and Latvia), regular visits (pilgrimages) would have been made to Valaam Monastery (and sometimes perhaps one of the other monasteries in the region). Valaam Monastery in particular had a history of missionary work (especially through translations of texts), and it had been from there that the monks of the North American “Russian Mission” had departed for their work in 1793. At this monastery (which included many hermitages and sketes), there were special feast-day celebrations, but there were also experienced monks who could hear confessions and who could also give reliable spiritual direction.

Valaam Holy Transfiguration Monastery, Lake Ladoga

After having completed his primary education, Leonid entered a “Real School” (a German-origin school that resembled a “gymnasium”, but which concentrated more on mathematics and natural sciences. Such a school would have been found in Vyborg or another large centre.

Move of the Church in Finland to the Patriarchate of Constantinople, 1922

It is significant to be aware of the canonical state of the Church in Finland, and the influence of the Government of Finland in what had occurred during the childhood of Leonid Leontyevich. In the aftermath of the Bolshevik revolution in Russia, there soon arose the concern about the state of the Orthodox Church in Finland and who would be the next bishop. There were negotiations with Patriarch Tikhon (Belavin) about the possibility that the Church in Finland be given autonomy. To this, the patriarch agreed. However, in this context, the concern about an episcopal successor to the Finnish Diocese arose in newly-independent Finland. The candidate presented for Archbishop of Finland by the Russian Church, Archbishop Seraphim (Lukyanov) of Vyborg, did not satisfy the Finnish Government.

In fact, this government wished to sever contacts with the Church of Russia, and Archbishop Seraphim was perceived as being too considerate of the Church of Russia. The intent was to “nationalise” the Orthodox Church of Finland (which in time became the second "State Church" of Finland, after the Lutheran Church of Finland). After unsuccessfully looking for a qualified local candidate, the Finnish authorities approached the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church. Archpriest Herman Aav, a priest in Estonia since 1904, was presented as a candidate. Objections to his lack of Finnish language skills were satisfied because of the similarity between the Finnish and Estonian languages. This enabled him quickly to learn the Finnish language.

At an assembly of the Church in June, 1922, Archpriest Herman Aav was elected as the nominee for the Finnish diocese. However, confirmation to the choice was refused, while Archbishop Seraphim had been nominated by a separate panel of hierarchs. Further action on the 2 selections by Patriarch Tikhon (Belavin) was forestalled because he had been arrested by the communist-atheist government in Russia.

During a visit by Father Herman to Finland in the autumn of 1922 to the Finnish Minister of Education Niilo Liakka, he was found to be appropriate for the episcopal office. In preparation for his taking the episcopal office, Father Herman was nominated by the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church and accepted by the Finns who placed him on an accelerated route for change of citizenship. On 13 June, 1925, he was elected formally as the archbishop.

In December, 1922, the Finnish Government and the Finnish Orthodox Church approached the Patriarchate of Constantinople (Meletius IV (Metaxakis)) concerning autocephaly and the ordination of Father Herman as its head. After being informed that recognition would be in the status of autonomy, Father Herman's installation was confirmed on 8 February, 1926, as Archbishop of Karelia and All Finland.

Between 1920-1926, the church property of the former Vyborg and Finland diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church was nationalised and transferred to the newly-emerged Finnish Autonomous Church. Archbishop Seraphim was sent to retirement in 1925, and the Diocese of Vyborg had no bishop until 1935. Archbishop Seraphim left Finland, and he settled in Paris, France.

At that same time, the Patriarch of Constantinople was promoting the use of the New Calendar (Revised Julian Calendar). However, at the insistence of the government, the Finnish Church adopted the Gregorian version of the New Calendar. (The Patriarchate of Constantinople under Patriarch Meletius IV (Metaxakis) adopted the Revised Julian Calendar officially in 1923.)

Higher Education

In 1927, Leonid Leontyevich graduated from a Real School, after which he continued his education in Helsinki.

Marriage, bereavement

At about this same time, Leonid Leontyevich was married. However, his wife reposed in Christ during childbirth, and the newborn son was taken to be raised by the grandparents.

It was then that Leonid Leontyevich decided to enter Valaam Monastery in order to become a monk.

First, however, he completed the compulsory military service.

In September 1931, he left for the Valaam Monastery, where Abbot Pavlin (Meshalkin) accepted him into the monastery to learn monastic obedience.

In his free time from obedience, under the guidance of experienced elders, he studied theological and patristic literature in the library of the monastery. Including such spiritual literature, this library was known to have received and kept a copy of everything that had been published in Saint Petersburg during the time of the Russian Empire (before the separation of the monastery from Russia caused by the revolution). In less than 20 years, this library would be transported with the refugee monks into Finland. There, part of the library remained with the monks, while much of the library went to Helsinki.

Monastic tonsure, 1934

On 4 April, 1934, Igumen Khariton (Dunaev) tonsured Leonid Leontyevich Shavykin to be a monk. He gave him the name Mark.

Monk Mark (Shavykin) became the cell-attendant of Igumen Khariton (Dunaev).

1930s, with some Valaam brethren (back row, right)

Diaconal ordination, 1934

On 12 July, 1934, Archbishop Herman (Aav) of Karelia and All Finland ordained Monk Mark (Shavykin) to the Holy Diaconate.

Diaconal service

Hierodeacon Mark (Shavykin) continued in his usual monastic obediences for several years.

Then, during the Soviet-Finnish War ("Winter War", 1939-1940), Hierodeacon Mark was conscripted by the Finnish Army, and he was taken to serve at the fronts. He served as an interpreter for the captured combatants.

He was awarded the Finnish medal "For the Winter War".

Hierodeacon Mark during the Winter War military service

Move of the Holy Transfiguration Monastery from Valaam Island to New Valamo in Finland, 1940

It was in the context of this war that the Finno-Soviet border was moved far to the west into Finnish territory, and it included the great majority of the region of Karelia (with a very long history of a blend of Russian and Finnish languages and culture, and living mostly the Orthodox Christian Faith). Only the North Karelia and South Karelia counties remained in Finland. A large number of refugees moved likewise to the west at this time, very many of them Orthodox Christians. This included the Brotherhood of Valaam Monastery, which moved at the beginning of the conflict, during the winter of 1939-1940.

The brethren had found a suitable place in the Savo region, not far from Joensuu, in Heinävesi municipality. The site (the Papinniemi estate) included farmland and forest, and it was situated by one of the multitude of lakes in Finland. They called this territory “New Valaam” (“Uusi Valamo” in Finnish ; “New Valamo” in English).

When the about 190 monks moved there, they lived in great poverty, and in barrack-style accommodations. The hunger and illness which they had already begun to experience after 1917 now took many more monks quickly to their graves.

Other monastic communities flee to North Karelia

Moreover, there were refugees from other monasteries who joined them in time. There had already existed a relationship with the Saint Alexander of Svir Monastery. In 1944, the monks of the Saint Tryphon Monastery at Petsamo (Pechenga) on the Arctic Kola Peninsula were permitted to leave the USSR and to retire to New Valamo. In 1956, the remaining monks of the Nativity of the Theotokos Monastery on Konevets Island in Lake Ladoga did the same.

The Holy Trinity Women’s Monastery of Lintula (which had formerly been in Finnish territory quite near to Saint Petersburg/Leningrad) had settled in the Savo region of Finland (about 20 km distant from New Valamo) near Palokki, but only in 1946.

A total of 47 nuns and other persons had to leave the monastery before the Winter War broke out. Most of their journey took place on foot from the monastery to Terijoki (50 km northwest of Saint Petersburg) in October, 1939, and from there by train to the village of Maavesi in the municipality of Joroinen. The evacuees thought they were leaving for only a short time, but the opposite happened. Only a few objects were saved from the belongings of the monastery, such as the Icon of the Mother of God of Jerusalem, taken by Nun Nina on 11 October, 1939. It is now considered one of the miraculous icons of the Finnish Orthodox Church. To begin with, the nuns were housed in various houses, and they retained a strong hope to return to Kivennapa (67 km northwest of Saint Petersburg). However, since most the monastery's buildings were destroyed in the war, and the border became permanent, the nuns gave up hope of a return. In 1945, they acquired a farm owned by Hackman and Company from the village of Koskijärvi in Heinävesi, and the nuns moved to their new home in January, 1946. Thereafter, monks from New Valamo travelled to provide liturgical and pastoral services for the nuns.

New Valamo brotherhood

Neither the monks nor the laypersons who arrived were warmly received in the predominately Protestant territory of what remained of Finland, and the experiences of the immigrating refugees at the beginning were quite painful. This was but one of the reasons that many of the monks had difficulty making the drastic adjustment required in this move. Some had not yet adjusted to the separation from the Moscow Patriarchate after 1917. However, the Finns in general were discomforted by a large influx of mostly Orthodox Christian Slavs (a mixture of Karelians, ethnic Russians and others) into their communities. The displacement of the population was hard on all concerned.

Original New Valamo Monastic Temple of the Transfiguration

In 1941, Hierodeacon Mark (Shavykin) took Finnish citizenship and he received a passport as well.

Presbyteral ordination

On 14 December, 1942, in the Saint Nicholas Cathedral in the city of Kuopio, Finland, Hierodeacon Mark (Shavykin) was ordained to the Holy Priesthood.

Pastoral service

Hieromonk Mark (Shavykin) fulfilled pastoral obediences under the omophor of Archbishop Herman (Aav).

At the end of World War II, Hieromonk Mark returned to New Valamo Monastery. Then, in the fall of 1947, by order of the Finnish Archdiocese, he was sent to serve as a missionary and a substitute priest in various Finnish parishes (in particular, he served in the Saint Nicholas parish of the city of Kotka, a port city 131 km (71 mi) east of Helsinki, on the north coast of the Gulf of Finland).

Saint Nicholas Temple, Kotka

In the American Metropolia, 1954

In 1954, with the blessing of Igumen Nestor (Kiselenkov) of New Valamo Monastery, and with the blessing of Archbishop Herman (Aav), Hieromonk Mark moved to the USA, where he was accepted into the jurisdiction of the “Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church of North America” (“Metropolia”).

On 25 September, 1954, Hieromonk Mark (Shavykin) was sent by Metropolitan Leonty (Turkevich) to serve as second priest in Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco.

Holy Trinity Cathedral, San Francisco

In February, 1956, Hieromonk Mark (Shavykin) was awarded a pectoral Cross, and he was elevated to the dignity of Igumen.

In the autumn of 1956, Hieromonk Mark was transferred, and he was assigned to serve as rector of Saints Peter and Paul’s parish in Phoenix, Arizona.

Soon, however, Metropolitan Leonty (Turkevich) transferred him again, and he assigned Igumen Mark (Shavykin) to be rector of Holy Trinity parish in Springfield, Vermont.

In the Moscow Patriarchate, 1959

The state of rupture from prayerful communion with the Moscow Patriarchate (under which he had lived since childhood) seems to have weighed heavily on him (or there was perhaps some other reason). Therefore, Igumen Mark filed a petition addressed to the Exarch of the Moscow Patriarch in America, Metropolitan Boris (Vik) of North America and the Aleutians, with a request to be accepted into the Patriarchal Exarchate in North America. The request was accepted.

On 17 January, 1959, he was assigned to serve as rector of Saint Nicholas Cathedral in San Francisco by Metropolitan Boris.

After having received the responsibility of rector on 1 February, 1959, he worked diligently over the next 10 years to improve the parish life of the cathedral parish.

On 24 July, 1960, the sanctification of the cathedral’s building took place according to the great hierarchal order of service, which was performed by the Exarch of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Boris (Vik) of North America and the Aleutians, in concelebration with Archbishop Dionysius (Dyachenko) of San Francisco and Western America, Igumen Mark (Shavykin), Archpriest Joseph Havrilyak, Archpriest Peter Kotlyarov, Archpriest Fyodor Kochetov and Archpriest Nikolai Levkovich (from San Diego).

Sanctification of Saint Nicholas Sobor, 1960

Igumen Mark (Shavykin) was elevated to the dignity of archimandrite.

During his rectorship, the activities of the parish expanded : a new building for the cathedral and a church house were purchased ; a rich sacristy was assembled in the Temple ; the economic situation of the parish improved significantly.

In 1965, at the 12th All-American Council, Metropolitan Ireney (Bekish) was chosen to become Metropolitan of The Orthodox Church in America following the repose of Metropolitan Leonty (Turkevich).

In 1968, following the repose of Archbishop Panteleimon (Rudyk) in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Archimandrite Mark (Shavykin) was assigned to serve as temporary administrator of the parishes of the Canadian Diocese.

On 17 January, 1969, by decision of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church, Archimandrite Mark (Shavykin) was chosen to become Bishop of San Francisco.

Episcopal ordination, 1969

On 2 February, 1969, at Saint Nicholas Cathedral in New York City, Archimandrite Mark (Shavykin) was ordained to the Holy Episcopate. The ordination was performed by Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov) of Leningrad and Novgorod ; Archbishop Jonathan (Kopolovich) of New York and the Aleutians and Patriarchal Exarch in the Americas ; Bishop Dosifei (Ivanchenko) of Brooklyn ; Bishop Alexei (van der Mensbrugge) of Philadelphia.

Saint Nicholas Cathedral, New York City

Episcopal service

Bishop Mark (Shavykin) was assigned to serve as Bishop of San Francisco.

Saint Nicholas Cathedral, San Francisco

He was also assigned as bishop to serve as temporary administrator of the Diocese of Edmonton and Canada.

Autocephaly of The Orthodox Church in America, 1970

On 31 March, 1970, the Church of Russia and the Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church of North America (ROGCCNA) reconciled in mutual forgiveness. On the same day, the Church of Russia gave autocephaly to the ROGCCNA, which immediately became known as “The Orthodox Church in America” (OCA).

This change produced many other changes in North America, and these included the status of Bishop Mark. The Russian dioceses in North America were dissolved, and they were each replaced by an administration for those parishes which chose to remain with the Moscow Patriarchate.

On 10 April, 1970, by decision of the Holy Synod of the Church of Russia, Bishop Mark (Shavykin) was released from the Patriarchal Diocese of San Francisco.

On 26 May, 1970, by decision of the Holy Synod of the Church of Russia, Bishop Mark (Shavykin) was released from the responsibility of temporary administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in Canada.

Bishop of Ladoga, 1970

On 11 August, 1970, the Holy Synod conferred on Bishop Mark the title : Bishop of Ladoga, Vicar-Bishop of the Leningrad Diocese, He remained as rector of the San Francisco Saint Nicholas Cathedral.

On 5 June, 1977, at the invitation of Archbishop Paavali (Olmari) of Kuopio and All Finland, Bishop Mark participated in the solemn sanctification of a new Temple (catholicon) in honour of the Transfiguration of the Lord in the New Valamo Monastery.

This new Temple replaced the original wooden structure which had, since 1940, served as both the monastery's main place of worship, and also as its refectory. The original Temple was used afterwards on an occasional basis, rather than a daily basis.

Holy Transfiguration Temple, New Valamo Monastery (winter : left) ; (summer : right)

Archbishop Paavali (Paul) (Olmari) of Finland was of similar age to Bishop Mark, and they were both monks of Valaam Monastery. They had been tonsured in the original monastery before the 1939 war.

Also in 1977, at the 5th All-American Council of The Orthodox Church in America (OCA), Metropolitan Theodosius (Lazor) succeeded the newly-departed Metropolitan Ireney (Bekish) as head of the OCA.

Retirement, 1983

On 29 December, 1983, in accordance with his petition, Bishop Mark (Shavykin) was retired from his duties as rector of Saint Nicholas Cathedral in San Francisco.

There was an unconfirmed rumour that in 1983, he went under the omophor of one of the groups of Old Calendarist Greeks in the USA.

Not long after his retirement, Bishop Mark (Shavykin) returned to Finland, and he settled in Lahti, 99 km (61 mi) northeast of Helsinki.

Holy Trinity Temple, Lahti

Repose, 1989

On 13 January, 1989, Bishop Mark (Shavykin) fell asleep in the Lord at Lahti, Finland.

The Funeral Service for the Burial of a Hierarch was performed at Holy Trinity Orthodox Church in Helsinki, Finland.

After the completion of the funeral services, the body of Vladyka Mark (Shavykin) was transported to New Valamo Monastery in North Karelia.

His body was interred at the cemetery of the New Valamo Monastery in Finland, next to the grave of Igumen Khariton (Dunaev).

Grave-Cross at New Valamo Cemetery

New Valamo Cemetery

Saint Herman of Alaska Cemetery Chapel

– Bishop of San Francisco 1969-1970. Preceded by : See established. Succeeded by : See dissolved.

– Bishop of Ladoga 1970-1989. Preceded by : ____. Succeeded by : ____.

– Vicar-Bishop of the Leningrad Diocese 1970-1989.

Reflections

The events of the early days of Bishop Mark's life are listed in the main part of this "biography". However, the upheavals of that time (following the 1917 Russian Revolution) and their consequences could only have been at the least painful for him, and very likely traumatic as well. He had to have experienced the fear and suffering that goes with revolutionary changes in government and subsequent drastic changes in society. Further, the pain of the loss of his wife (and, effectively, his child) added to the suffering. Yet further, when he had become a monk at Valaam, further upheavals came, and he found himself taken into the army during a war. Included in this would also have been the difficulties that he and all the other Karelian refugees experienced after 1939 as they were forced into a very different and very Protestant milieu. All this must have been borne by him in his life, and addressed prayerfully in search of healing. His transfer to the USA eventually brought about his transfer to the Moscow Patriarchate, and this seems to have been beneficial for him personally. The good effects bore fruit in his pastoral care for the cathedral parish of Saint Nicholas in San Francisco. However, although he had moved to the Moscow Patriarchate, his ties with the Church of Finland of his birth, and his ties with New Valamo Monastery, the brotherhood of his monastic tonsure and attachment remained very much alive. His obedience to the Lord throughout his life did sustain him.

Bishop Mark (Shyvikin) maintained good relations with the clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia (ROCOR), thanks to which many of his personal belongings and the Holy Relics he kept later ended up in the San Francisco Diocese, as well as in the Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, New York.

Awards :

• Finnish medal "For the Winter War"

• Order Saint Prince Vladimir, Equal-to-the-Apostles, 2nd degree (27 March, 1973)

• Order of Saint Sergius of Radonezh (9 June, 1980 ; on his 70th birthday)

Writings

Writings by others about the bishop

• Loima, Jyrki, “Esipaimen siunaa : Suomen orthodoksiset piispat 1892-1988” (luku Laatokan piispa Markus, kannakselainen kosmopoliitti), pp. 268-271. [in English : “Master Bless : The Orthodox Bishops of Finland 1892-1988” (chapter on Markus, Bishop of Ladoga), pp. 268-271.]

• ‘The Election and Ordination of Archimandrite Mark (Shavykin) as Bishop of San Francisco’ in “Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate” (JMP), no. 5 (Moscow, 1969), pp. 12-18.

– 1969, no. 2, p. 1 ; no. 5, pp. 12-18 ; no. 11, p. 23.

– 1970, no. 5, pp. 23, 24 ; no. 7, p. 9, no. 9, pp. 2, 29.

– 1973, no. 5, p. 2 ; no. 9, p. 11.

– 1976, no. 4, p. 30 ; no. 12, p. 10.

– 1979, no. 10, p. 11.

– 1980, no. 8, p. 4, ‘Bishop Mark of Ladoga : Congratulations on his 70th Birthday’.

– 1984, no. 2, p. 4.