At the age of 69, Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov, Chairman of the Russian Church’s Patriarchal Commission for Family and Protection of Motherhood and Childhood, Rector of St. Mitrophan Church in Moscow, reposed in the Lord.
Vasily Rulinsky, press secretary of the Synodal Department for Church Charity, told the RIA news agency, “Vladyka Panteleimon [Bishop of Orekhovo-Zuevo] performed a memorial service [panikhida] for Fr. Dimitry.”
It was reported before that Fr. Dimitry received treatment after COVID-19, that he suffered from in May. In august he was released from his position due to health reasons, in September he was hospitalized.
Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov was born in Moscow on March 7, 1951. During his studies, he graduated from the Moscow Theological Seminary as an external student, and then from the Academy. He performed all his priestly service in Moscow.
In 2003-2013, Father Dimitry was the chairman of the Synodal Department for Cooperation with the Armed Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies, and from 2013 to 2020 he was the chairman of the Patriarchal Commission for Family and Protection of Motherhood and Childhood.
Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov was the great-grandson of Hieromartyr Vasily Smirnov. He was both one of the most respected priests in Moscow, and also one of the most controversial, as his bold statements about the Orthodox faith and life in modern Russia were often picked up by the secular media.
