Visarion Puiu

Visarion Puiu (born Victor Puiu on 27 February 1879 in Paşcani, Romania – 10 August 1964 in Viels-Maisons, France) was a metropolitan bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Church and convicted war criminal.

After attending primary school in his native town, Puiu studied at seminaries in Roman (1893-1896) and Iaşi (1896-1900), and later at the Bucharest Faculty of Theology, where he received a licentiate in 1905. On 22 December 1905, he became a monk at Roman, being ordained a deacon three days later. From January 1907 to July 1908, he studied at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. From 1905 to 1908, he was, as a deacon, attached to the Cathedral of the Holy Voievods, Roman, while in 1908 he was transferred to the Cathedral of Saint Nicholas, Galaţi. There, on 6 December 1908, he was ordained a priest, being elevated to the dignity of Archimandrite on 1 January 1909. Three months later, he was named director of the Galaţi Theological Seminary and Vicar of the Archbishopric of the Lower Danube. On 1 September 1918, he became director of the Chişinău Theological Seminary, being named Exarch of Bessarabia's monasteries two months later (soon after that province united with the Kingdom of Romania).

On 17 March 1921, Puiu was elected Bishop of Argeş. He was consecrated in that position on 25 March by Metropolitan of Wallachia Miron Cristea in the Bucharest Metropolitan Cathedral and invested into the office that day by King Ferdinand. Two days later he was installed in the episcopal chair at Curtea de Argeş Cathedral; he remained there for two years. In 1923 he became bishop of Hotin, where he remained until 1935. During his time in that position, he undertook a number of actions to try to improve the lives of the inhabitants of the Bălţi area, his seat being in that city. On 17 October of that year, he was elected Archbishop of Cernăuţi and Metropolitan of Bukovina, being seated on 10 November. In May 1940, he left that position and retired to a monastery (Puiu later claimed that this was due to a conflict with King Carol II due to the latter's alleged attempts to take Bukovina's riches for himself). While Metropolitan of Bukovina, Puiu had tens of churches changed from wooden construction to concrete, repaired a few hundred others, established eateries for foresters, and gave free wood to peasants (which helped rebuild the ski resort of Vatra Dornei).

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