Hegumen Lazar (Gurkin), the monastery father
superior.
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Lazar (Gurkin Alexander Nikolayevich,
was born on March, 13 1969) is the hegumen and the Father
superior of St. John the Theologian monastery.
After leaving school he acquired a civil profession, then
was called up to the military service in 1987- 1989 and
later he entered the church celebrant school, situated
in the village Kolopino in Krasnoslobodskoy region and
headed by Iyeromin (Verendikin), hegumen having taken
vows of great schema. In 1991 Alexander Gurking took the
monastic vows under the name Lazar and after chirotony
to hieromonach he occupied the place of his teacher, who
retired to Sanaksarskiy monastery. Later Father Lazar
passed through the obedience of cellarer and housekeeper
in the same monastery. Since 1992 he got a clerical appointment
of father superior in the church in the name of the icon
of the Mother of God “It is truly meet” in his native
village Drakino. At the same time he served in the churches
of the village Kazyoniy Maidan in Kovylinskiy region and
in the Monastery of Our Savior and the Transfiguration
of Christ in the village Uchkhoz (Krasnoslobodskoy region).
Since February 1993 the Father Lazar fulfilled the duties
of the rural dean of the 8th district of Saransk’s and
Mordovian Eparchy. On December, 16 1993 he got an appointment
to the newly opened Holy Trinity Chufarovo Monastery,
being utter ruined. Hegumen Lazar and the brethren have
put a lot of work to restore the monastery. Finally it
got changed dramatically: Hegumen’s and living buildings
were restored including the hotel; the Temple in the name
of the newly canonized martyrs of Russia and the Cathedral
church in the name of the sinless Lazar were rebuilt;
the refectory was built and a new hospital with a church
was built especially on the occasion of the 2000 anniversary
of the Nativity of Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ.
The monastery economy was put in order. In April 1994
Father Lazar was consecrated to hegumen and at the same
time till 2000 he was the rural dean in Chamzinskiy region.
In December 2000 he moved to Saransk and got an appointment
of the Father superior of St. John the Theologian Makarovka
monastery and at the same time was appointed the secretary
of Saransk Eparchy administration. In 2001 Father Lazar
graduated from the Seminary in Saransk. He was rewarded
with several church awards including the cross with gems.
Present time Father Lazar studies in Moscow Clerical Academy.
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