ROCOR bishop gives details on glorification of Fr Seraphim Rose

Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose). Photo: open sources

Bishop Irenei of London and Western Europe of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR) has shared details about the planned glorification of Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose).

The hierarch stressed that media reports claiming the canonization has already been completed are false. In reality, “it is a prayerful process of recognising the sanctity of an individual, and taking the sober, careful steps necessary to lift him up for the universal veneration of the faithful.”

“We acknowledge that his glorification is, if I may use a popular phrase, ‘on the horizon’ of our ecclesial life, and we are actively working towards it,” Bishop Irenei emphasized.

He noted that the Council had carefully heard the report on the work of the commission for the canonization of Hieromonk Seraphim and resolved that its work should continue.

“And this was our stating clearly – and I can say that I rejoice in my heart that we have been able so to state – that the Council of Bishops recognises even now, at this point in the process, the righteous way of life of Fr Seraphim,” the hierarch stressed. “We feel his sanctity and acknowledge it. We pray others will, too. And we wish to continue along this path with the same kind of spiritual seriousness that Fr Serafim himself exemplifies, that such holiness might be ours also.”

Hieromonk Seraphim Rose (1934–1982) was an American Orthodox monk and spiritual writer whose books Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future, The Soul After Death, and The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation had a significant influence on Orthodox life in the United States and abroad. His spiritual mentor was St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco. If the glorification takes place, Seraphim Rose will become the first native-born American canonized by ROCOR.

As the UOJ reported, in February 2023, Hieromonk Seraphim Rose was numbered among the locally venerated saints of the Georgian Church – he was glorified in the Akhalkalaki Eparchy. The ascetic’s broad popular veneration throughout the Orthodox world over recent decades became one of the main grounds for beginning the official process in ROCOR.

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