The rector of the Church of the Ascension of the Lord, Archpriest Vasily Rachok, reposed in the Lordtranslated

With the blessing of Metropolitan John of Belgorod and Stary Oskol, we are sad to announce that at the 69th year of his life, after a long illness, the rector of the Church of the Ascension of the Lord in the city of Stary Oskol, Archpriest Vasily Rachok, passed away to the Lord. This is an irreparable loss for the entire Belgorod Metropolis, for his spiritual children and for everyone who knew this amazing shepherd. Archpriest Vasily Ivanovich Rachok was born on June 12, 1958 in the village of Sokyrnitsa, Khust district, Transcarpathian region. After graduating from school in 1976, he completed military service in the air defense engineering forces. In 1980, he was ordained to the rank of deacon, and then to the rank of priest at the Ascension Church in the city of Ulan-Ude. From 1980 to 1984, Father Vasily studied at the Moscow Theological Seminary. His pastoral ministry began in 1983 as rector of the St. Nicholas Church in the village of Listvyanka, Irkutsk region.

Two years later, life inextricably linked him with Stary Oskol and the district: in 1985, he was appointed rector of the Alexander Nevsky Church, and since 1994, Father Vasily has been obedient to the rector of St. Panteleimon's Church in the village of Dolgaya Polyana. In 2012, he was appointed to the position...