John Kochurov was born June 13, 1871,
in the village of Bigildino (Surka), in the Donkovsky District of the Ryazan
province in Russia, His father was the village priest.
John studied at the Saint Petersburg
Theological Academy in the early 1890s, when he met Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov)
of the Aleutians and Alaska (the missionary diocese in America). Upon his
graduation in 1895, John asked Bishop Nicholas to let him become part of the
American Mission. Even though he was not yet ordained, he was assigned to be
the rector of St. Vladimir Parish in Chicago, as well as priest-in-charge of
a Slovakian mission in Streator, Illinois, 90 miles from Chicago. After
graduating from the theological academy, he married Alexandra Vasilievna,
the daughter of a priest in St. Petersburg. By August, John had been
ordained to the priesthood, and by October he was in Chicago.
Died: October 31, 1917 - Tsarskoye Selo
Glorification Date:- December 3-4, 1994
Commemoration Date: October 31 (repose)
Canonization of Archpriest John
Kochurov
November 29 - December 2, 1994
St Daniel's Monastery, Moscow, Russia
In the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit!
Cognizant of Her unbroken connection
with the synaxis of the new martyrs of Russia, the Russian Orthodox Church
continues to glorify individually those who, during the persecutions to
which the Orthodox Church in Russia was subjected, through their righteous
lives and martyrs' death, manifested the highest ideal given to the Church
of Christ by the Holy Apostle Paul:
"For if we live, we live to the Lord;
and if we die, we die to the Lord" (Romans 14:08).
The first clergyman of the Russian
Orthodox Church whom Our Lord Jesus Christ made worthy of bearing a martyr's
crown in the twentieth century from the hands of the godless Bolshevik
authorities, the first murdered Russian Orthodox priest, about whom the Holy
Confessor Patriarch Tikhon said:
"Adorned with a martyr's crown, the reposed
pastor now stands before the throne of God among the chosen faithful of
Christ's flock,"
was destined to be the zealous parish priest, and inspired
witness "even unto death" (Revelations 12:11) of Christ's Truth - Archpriest John
Kochurov, who met a martyr's death at the hands of apostates and fighters of
God on October 31, 1917, in Tsarskoye Selo.
The Holy Council, having examined the
zealous service and martyr's death of Archpriest John Kochurov, is convinced
of the holiness of his deeds and hereby decrees:
That Archpriest John Kochurov, killed
in Tsarskoye Selo by persecutors of the Church of Christ on October 31,
1917, be numbered among the hieromartyrs for Church-wide veneration.
That the righteous remains of
Hieromartyr John, buried in Tsarkoye Selo, henceforth be considered holy
relics and be left to the care of God's mercy, until such time as they may
be uncovered..
That the service to Hieromartyr John,
following this, the day of his glorification, be the general service for
martyrs and that a blessing is given for the composition of a special
service to him.
That the memory of Hieromartyr John be
celebrated on October 31 according to the Julian Calendar.
That the memory of Hieromartyr John be
included in the synaxis of the new martyrs and confessors of Russia.
That an icon for veneration of the
newly-glorified Hieromartyr John be written according to the Decree of the
Seventh Ecumenical Council.
That the life of Hieromartyr John be
published for the edification of the Church's faithful in piety.
That, on behalf of the Holy Council,
the great and grace-filled joy of the glorification of the new hieromartyr
of Russia be announced to the flock of All Rus'.
That the name of the newly-glorified
hieromartyr be made known to the Primates of the sister Orthodox Churches
for inclusion in their calendars.
Through the intercessions and prayers
of Hieromartyr John, may the Lord strengthen the faith of all the faithful
of the Russian Orthodox Church and bestow His blessing upon them. Amen.
St. Vladimir Parish in Chicago worshiped on the
ground floor of a house, and the upstairs served as living quarters for the
priest, the choir director and their families. The congregation consisted of
Russians, Serbs, Galicians, Bulgarians, and Arabs. He knew that the parish
would require a proper church building to meet the needs of the Orthodox
faithful of Chicago. Father John traveled to Russian and raised considerable
funds to be added to the parish's building account. Yet this amount was not
sufficient to build a church. He returned to Chicago and appealed to
prominent citizens for assistance. Eventually, and with the help of one of
the most renowned architects of the time, Father John saw to the design and
construction of Holy Trinity Cathedral--an innovative amalgamation of
traditional Russian church architecture and 20th-century American
architecture. When the cathedral was completed, St. Tikhon (Belavin)
celebrated the service of consecration.
In addition to his monthly mission trips to Streator,
Father John traveled to Hartshorne, Oklahoma; Slovaktown, Arkansas; Buffalo,
New York; and Joliet and Madison, Illinois. An ongoing concern of Father
John's was the conversion of Byzantine Catholics, to allow them to return to
their mother Church. He worked to this end and encouraged others to do the
same. He also held a deep commitment to the Christian education of young
people, so as to instill in them the firm religious and moral foundations
they would need in secular society.
Living in Illinois made Father John one of the most
isolated priest in the American diocese. Yet his wife Alexandra and their
three sons were for him the source of strength and community he needed. His
brother clergy throughout the church held him in high honor and love. The
tsar awarded him with the Order of St. Anna in 1903. St. Tikhon elevated him
to the rank of archpriest before they both departed from America in 1907.
