Michael Pomazansky

Who was Michael Pomazansky?

Protopresbyter Michael Ivanovich Pomazansky was a Russian theologian.

He was born in the village of Koryst, in the governorate of Volhynia. His father was Archpriest Ioann Pomazansky who was the son of Father Ioann Ambrosievich. Fr. Michael's mother, Vera Grigorievna, was the daughter of a protodeacon and later priest in the city of Zhitomir. From 1920 until 1934 Fr. Michael taught Russian philology, literature, philosophical dialectics and Latin at the Russian lycée in Rivne.

In 1936 Fr. Michael was ordained a priest and moved to Warsaw where he was the first assistant to the rector, a position he held until June, 1944.

Upon his arrival in America in 1949, Fr. Michael was appointed by Archbishop Vitaly as an instructor at Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary in Jordanville, New York. After the death of his wife, he moved into the monastery, where he remained until his death on November 4, 1988.

Father Michael Pomazansky was known for his adherence to the teaching of dogmatic theology as a way to maintain understanding and unity within the various Eastern Orthodox communities. The work that he is most remembered for indeed named after this percept: Orthodox Dogmatic Theology.