Fr. Sophrony Sakharov
Elder Sophrony (Sakharov) was born in 1896 in Moscow. He studied at the State School of Fine Arts in his homeland and devoted himself to painting. After a brief period of studies at the Theological Institute of St. Sergius in Paris, he departed in 1925 for Mount Athos and settled in the Holy Monastery of St. Panteleimon. There he met and formed a close bond with Saint Silouan. The encounter between Elder Sophrony and the Saint became a decisive milestone in his spiritual journey. He remained near the Saint until his repose and afterwards, with the blessing of the Abbot and the Elders of the Monastery, he withdrew to the desert of Mount Athos. From there he served as a spiritual father in the Holy Monasteries of St. Paul, St. Gregory, Simonopetra, Xenophontos, as well as in many other cells and sketes. In 1948 he published in France the manuscripts entrusted to him by Saint Silouan, appending an extensive analysis of the Saint’s teachings along with several biographical details. From 1959 he resided in the Holy Patriarchal and Stavropegic Monastery of St. John the Baptist in Essex, England, of which he was the founder, builder, and spiritual father. He fell asleep in the Lord on 11 July 1993. His writings, originally composed in Russian, have been translated into English, Arabic, French, German, Italian, Serbian, Swedish, Flemish, Spanish, and partially into many other languages.
