Zaporizhia, May 24 (Interfax) - Acclaimed Russian traveler Fyodor Konyukhov has been ordained to deaconship in his home region of Zaporizhia.
Bishop Josef of Zaporizhia and Melitopol performed the rite on Holy Trinity Day on May 23. Metropolitan Volodymyr of Kyiv and all Ukraine made Fyodor a hipodeacon two days earlier.
It is symbolic that the first ceremony coincided with the Day of Nicholas the Miracle Maker, the heavenly patron of sailors and travelers, Bishop Josef said, adding that the second ceremony took place on Holy Trinity Day when the entire Church celebrates the birth.
The newly ordained deacon was presented with a full set of deacon clothing.
Konyukhov decided to call it a day and end his traveling ways, which has included trips to the South Pole, North Pole and Mount Everest.
"How much longer can I be traveling?" Father Fyodor said in response to a question from the Interfax-Religion portal.
He said he had spent most of his life traveling. "I have been traveling for 40 years, just like Moses. There is little time left to pray," he said.
