Hilarion (Kapral)

Hilarion
Metropolitan Hilarion
Church	Russian Orthodox Church
See	Washington
Term ended	Incumbent
Orders
Ordination	10 April 1976
Consecration	10 December 1984 by Philaret (Voznesensky)
Personal details
Birth name	Igor Alexeyevich Kapral
Born	(1948-01-06) 6 January 1948 (age 69) Spirit River, Alberta, Canada

Metropolitan Hilarion (born Igor Alexeyevich Kapral, Russian: Игорь Алексеевич Капрал; January 6, 1948 in Spirit River, Alberta, Canada) — bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia (ROCOR), Metropolitan of Eastern America and New York, First-Hierarch of ROCOR (since 18 May 2008); he is the first in its history First-Hierarch of ROCOR, approved by the Holy Synod of the Moscow Patriarchate. He also remains the ruling bishop of the Diocese of Australia and New Zealand.

On May 17, 2007 (the signing of the Act of Canonical Communion between the ROCOR and the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) he became a part of the episcopate of the latter.

The youngest child of the Alexei and Euphrosynia Kapral family, Igor Kapral was born on 6 January 1948 in Spirit River, and spent his childhood in the countryside. He had to walk 2.5 miles to school every day, and describes his childhood as "pleasant ... absolutely free of any harmful influences". Later he transferred to another school in Blueberry Creek, but returned to finish high school.

From his youth, Kapral felt drawn to the Church, and loved to read books and periodicals on religion and morals. From a young age, around 6 or 7, he knew that he wanted to become a priest. He went to Holy Trinity Church in Spirit River, part of ROCOR and composed of ethnic Ukrainians. Services were held monthly or bi-monthly, and often Archbishop Panteleimon (Rudyk) would celebrate these services. Archbishop Panteleimon was revered by Igor, and he was told by Panteleimon that "someday you will be a priest".

In 1966, he found a spiritual guide, Right Reverend Sava (Saračević), Bishop of Edmonton, a Serb who greatly revered John of Shanghai and San Francisco. In 1967 he entered the Holy Trinity Theological Seminary in Jordanville, New York. While here, he was able to learn the Russian language, as well as sing on the kliros and serve in the altar, learning the order of divine services. From his second year at seminary, Kapral was tasked with typesetting "Orthodox Life" in English, under the editorship of archimandrite Constantine Zaitsev; Igor soon succeeded him as editor. After some time, hieromonk Ignatius (who was in charge of the printery) asked him to do the Russian typesetting as well.