ROCOR Abuse Case Files: Gleb "Fr. Herman" Podmoshensky
The complete story of ROCOR's worst predator and its coverup of his heinous crimes.
One of the great tragedies of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR), is its dark history of clerical sexual abuse of children. For all its achievements of preserving Russian Orthodoxy in the diaspora during the 20th century, the Church has been plagued with numerous cases of child sexual abuse over several decades. Making matters worse, its hierarchy has always attempted to cover up such cases, often failing to report them to the police, and using tactics of intimidation and shunning to bully and silence victims from speaking out.
Without a doubt, one of the most horrific pedophiles & abuse perpetrators in ROCOR history, is Gleb “Fr Herman” Podmoshensky. Gleb Podmoshensky was the partner of the well-known American convert to Orthodoxy, the writer and co-founder of the St Herman Monastery in Platina California, Fr Seraphim Rose. Podmoshensky was active in the Church community for over 5 decades from the late 1950’s to the 2000’s and has never once been publicly condemned by ROCOR leadership.
Early Life
Fr. Herman, was born Gleb Dimitrievich Podmoshensky in Riga, Latvia. When the Nazis occupied Latvia during World War II, he fled with his mother and sister to Germany. Here they lived in poverty and uncertainty in refugee camps. At age fourteen in 1949 he and his family moved to the United States to be united with his grandmother, an accomplished ballet dancer, who had earlier immigrated to New York City. Here life continued to be difficult and Gleb had to work several jobs to support his sick mother and sister.
Gleb’s youth was dysfunctional and contributed to his mental health issues that became progressively worse throughout his life. When Gleb was a child, his father Dimitry was arrested and sent to the Vorkuta concentration camp in Siberia, located thirty miles north of the Arctic Circle. The absence of a father in his life was a lifelong trauma. In an interview, Gleb himself stated that:
All my life I suffered from the absence of a father. I was in need of an authority figure. Mother was no authority figure. Despondency reigned in my soul. The question of life was not so much negative as meaningless. At that time the idea of suicide didn’t exist. But I was extinguished. I didn’t want to go to college, to learn, I didn’t want to live. There was no point.
While this depressive mental state saw some improvement following Gleb’s first visit to the Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville in 1954, other psychological issues like megalomania (delusions of power, control and self-importance) and a defiant personality disorder, would only become apparent later in his clash with church hierarchy and descent into cult leadership. Gleb was also a homosexual. This became evident in his lack of any interest in women, or pursuing a family life in his younger years. It also saw expression in his progressively uncontrolled lust for young men, that ultimately led him to commit many sexual assaults from the 1960’s onwards.
From the late 1958 Gleb studied at the Holy Trinity Seminary in Jordanville. Here he was exposed to positive influences like Archbishop Averky (Taushev), Fr Vladimir Sulhobok and Fr Michael Pomazansky. Contemporaries of his time at seminary described him as nervous and prone to outbursts of excitement, tempered by periods of depression. Academically, Gleb was said to be a bright and intelligent student that had an excellent grasp of theology. His enthusiasm, intellect and charisma endeared him especially to Archbishop Averky who was the rector of the seminary and considered Gleb to be his “golden boy”.
On a darker note, not all of the monastery elders were so taken in by Gleb’s youthful radiance. When Gleb initially visited Jordanville, he had a meeting with Fr Adrian Rymarenko - the future Archbishop Andrew of Rockland. During this meeting, the clairvoyant elder revealed his perception of Gleb’s homosexual and pedophilic inclinations, that left the young man shocked and distraught. Fr Andrew attempted to counsel him about the incompatibility of these inclinations, with the pursuit of a life in Christ and service to the Church. It’s unclear how Gleb responded, but his subsequent enrolment at the seminary indicates that whatever his attitude was to his own sexuality, he was determined to pursue his theological studies regardless.
Early Relationship with Eugene Rose - The Future Fr Seraphim
Gleb Podmoshensky first met Eugene (the future Fr Seraphim) Rose in 1962 in San Francisco. Gleb had recently graduated from the ROCOR Holy Trinity Seminary in Jordanville, New York, and was travelling across the country, doing a slideshow presentation on “Holy Places in America”. Eugene Rose, like Gleb, was also a homosexual and had, up until recently, been living in an openly gay relationship with a Jon Gregerson, a Finish-born Russian Orthodox Christian. In 1962 Rose had converted to Orthodoxy and ended his relationship with Gregerson. A quietly spoken man of great intellect, Eugene had been seeking the true meaning of life for years and had dabbled in various eastern religions and philosophies. Ironically, it was Gregerson that had first introduced him to Orthodoxy. Gleb and Eugene were introduced by members of the San Francisco Russian Orthodox community and quickly became good friends.
Gleb & Eugene: A Gay Romance
In a short time, their relationship began to bloom. While Gleb returned to the East Coast for a while, he missed Eugene and soon returned to California and settled in Monterey to be closer to his new flame. The two young, handsome and virile men began spending increasing amounts of time together. They shared their ideas and dreams with each other, many of which revolved around the evangelization and conversion of Americans to Orthodoxy. They attended church together at the newly built Joy of All Who Sorrow Cathedral in San Francisco, as well as spending time amongst nature.
There are strong signs that at this time, Gleb and Eugene may have been involved in a homosexual romance. The circumstantial evidence for this is compelling. One would have to be extremely naive, to believe a fairy tale of two young, gay men spending days alone together on the beach and in the woods, during which time nothing sexual happened. That’s just not how the real world works. Given what we know of Gleb’s lack of sexual restraint, it is hard to see how at this time, he was able to restrain himself with Eugene.
On Eugene’s side, many accounts speak of how he was always submissive to Gleb. It would not be unreasonable to think that it was at this point, that his submission really first began and, for that matter, in a sexual way. If you think the suggestion of this romance is unrealistic, then I challenge you to read the section of the Damascene Christiansen’s Seraphim Rose biography “Fr. Seraphim: His Life & His Works” that covers the early days of their relationship and then come back and tell me it was all just innocent and platonic.
Whether intentionally or not, some of those parts of the Christiansen biography almost read like a gay Mills & Boon novel and include quotes from Gleb himself. For example:
On succeeding visits by Eugene to Monterey, Eugene and Gleb roamed for hours on the seashore and through the woods. “I was interested in what made him so deep and penetrating,” Gleb writes. (p.240 Kindle Edition)
“One night we were walking on the beach in Pacific Grove. The night was warm and fragrant because of the blooming oleanders and other plants which blossom early in the year. The sea was agitated and the moon was bright. I thought I sensed a feeling of inspiration in him, and was ready to devour what would come out from that highly inspired soul which was, as I thought, ready to open.” (p.241 Kindle Edition)
Or this gem:
“Of course I loved the whole thing. Of course I saw that my listener was gobbling up my own treasure. In his quiet, reserved way he was very happy. (p.241 Kindle Edition)
Early Publishing Ventures and the Transition Into Monasticism
In 1963, with the blessing of the future saint Archbishop John (Maximovich), Gleb and Eugene founded the St. Herman Orthodox Brotherhood with the aim of missionary work. In 1964 they opened an Orthodox bookstore near the Cathedral on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco. They acquired a small printing press and in 1965 began publishing an Orthodox periodical “The Orthodox Word” to share patristic spirituality in the English language.
As Eugene and Gleb continued their publishing activities, they began to consider that it was not enough to read and study the lives of saints but that they should try to emulate the way they lived. In 1967 they purchased a property in Platina, in a remote region of northern California in order to establish a skete. In Orthodox lexicon, a skete is a very rudimentary settlement of huts and a chapel, a sort of predecessor of a later monastery. It is important to note, that while Archbishop John of San Francisco had given his blessing for the two men to form a brotherhood, he passed away in 1966 and never blessed them to move away from the city, or to establish any kind of monastic community.
In 1969, Gleb & Eugene finally moved to their property at Platina, bringinging with them their printing press to continue their publishing work. Eventually the skete was transformed into the monastery of St Herman of Alaska. In October 1970, Gleb took monastic vows with the name “Herman” in honor of Herman of Alaska, who was canonized that same year. Eugene Rose was also tonsured as monk at this time with the name “Seraphim”. The tonsure of both men was carried out by Bishop Nektary of Seattle. In 1976, Gleb was elevated to the rank of hieromonk and became abbot of the monastery, a role for which he had no training or preparation, and which he would soon come to abuse for his own perverted ends.
The Lack of Obedience & Monastic Formation
Many critics familiar with church life, have noted that a major problem with Gleb Podmoshensky and Seraphim Rose, was that neither had any proper monastic formation or guidance under an experienced abbot and spiritual father before deciding to set up their own monastery. Theirs was a D.I.Y - Do It Yourself monasticism driven by naïveté, pride, and worst of all prelest (spiritual delusion) of which all the Holy Fathers warn about.
The danger of false or “self-willed” monasticism is referenced by many Holy Fathers including St. Benedict of Nursia. He famously warned against “Sarabites,” whom he described as the most detestable kind of monks. These individuals lived without a rule or a pastor, “soft as lead” by their works, keeping their faith with the world while lying to God. They followed their own desires rather than a, “rule’s dictates,” and acted without humility or obedience, treating their personal whims as holy.
If Gleb or Eugene had genuine respect for Orthodox Tradition, and approached their monastic endeavour with the true humility it requires, they would have gone to live, for at least 3 years, in a well-established monastery like Holy Trinity Jordanville. Here they could have learned about the proper, traditional, monastic way of life from experienced elders who had lived in real monasteries, before going out on their own. Most importantly, in this way they could have learned OBEDIENCE, the most important of monastic qualities, without which, one is best to never embark upon such a serious, lifelong path.
St John of the Ladder cites obedience as one of the first qualities needed to be acquired by a monk. It is clear from his life both before and after Platina, that Gleb Podmoshensky had no desire for obedience to anybody, and that the need for power, control, and the satisfaction of his unholy lust, were the only things he was really prepared to be a servant of.
The Sexual Crimes of Gleb “Fr Herman” Podmoshensky
By the mid 1970’s, St Herman’s Platina became an increasingly popular place of pilgrimage for both existing Orthodox people, and those that were seeking the true faith. Many of these people were Anglo-Americans seeking their first contact with Orthodox Christianity. As is often the case with monasteries, it also attracted many troubled and vulnerable youth, especially young men. Some were from broken homes or struggling with mental health or substance abuse issues. Unfortunately it was exactly this kind of vulnerable young man that appealed to Fr Herman Podmoshensky. The isolation of the Platina compound and his powerful position of authority, provided him with the perfect environment to prey on his victims.
Complaints about Podmoshensky’s molestation and abuse of young men and boys, began to be referred to ROCOR leadership from the late 1970’s and continued throughout the 1980’s. The complaints were common knowledge in the Russian Orthodox community in the United States at that time. The official written complaints, continue to be locked away in the archives of the ROCOR’s Western American Diocese, and in those of the ROCOR Synod in New York. The evidence is there, but in line with ROCOR’s abuse coverup policy, it remains sealed and locked away. While at least some of the Epstein Files were released, it’s unlikely that we will ever see a single page of the Podmoshensky Files.
Many of the abuse complaints were submitted in writing to Archbishop Anthony (Medvedev) of San Francisco. His failure to take prompt action against Gleb, allowed Gleb to continue his offences and exposed more young men to his abuse. Fr Alexey Young, a well known former ROCOR priest who spent much time at Platina, and who personally knew both Fr Seraphim and Gleb “Fr Herman” Podmoshensky later attested that:
The Archbishop (Anthony Medvedev) treated these accusations against Fr. Herman with utmost discretion, with all his heart HE DID NOT WANT TO BELIEVE THEM and DID NOT PRESS THESE PARTICULAR CHARGES AGAINST FR HERMAN. (It is a fact, however, that Fr. Herman’s alleged problems in this area actually surfaced shortly before Fr. Seraphim’s death, and were known to him, undoubtedly contributing to the overwhelming sense of sadness that precipitated his final illness and repose, and which may explain his last words to Fr. Herman.)
PDF Format of Fr Alexey Young’s Testimony that includes the above quote:
It is worth noting that Fr Alexey Young errs when he says: “Fr. Herman’s alleged problems in this area actually surfaced shortly before Fr. Seraphim’s death”. The vast academic literature on pedophiles, is clear that tendencies of this kind begin to grow and manifest themselves long before they are acted upon. Along with the testimonies of victims, it is clear that Gleb’s active pedophilia commenced many years earlier than 1982.
Gleb’s assaults young men and boys occurred both while they were visiting the monastery at Platina, and while Gleb was traveling to other places on his lecture tours. It was alleged that he would grope and try to kiss them, either while they were asleep, or when he was alone with them. Some of the allegations also reference genital fondling and penetrative sexual acts. Pokrov Truth has spoken to sources that lived at Platina both before, and after Fr Seraphim’s death and they confirm many of the assaults happening on the monastery grounds. One ex-novice stated that:
I was there for 2 and a half years and the culture there was even worse than what many people imagine. The molestation by Gleb incessant and unrestrained.
Such is the trauma of what occurred there, that some of his victims later ended their lives, unable to cope with what Gleb did to them.
The late Reader Daniel Everiss, one of Gleb Podmoshensky’s victims who spent time at Platina, is one of the most important sources on the truth about Gleb “Fr Herman” Podmoshensky. He was a lifelong member of ROCOR and had a blog for many years which covered church affairs and revealed the abuse that had been inflicted upon him. He passed away in 2023 but his testimony about Podmoshensky gives an excellent insight into the toxic, evil culture that existed at St Herman’s Platina.
Herman totally lost control of the passions of his flesh, (his main spiritual problem) and he taught others, that such a licentious false way of monastic life, was alright & acceptable in Orthodox practice and monastic life as long as it was hidden from view. As one, among the many, whom he deeply hurt and wounded, and slandered and maligned and calumniated against, because I reported, IN ORDER TO STOP HIM, with a number of others, his terrible misdeeds and harm to our souls to our Archbishop Anthony. I can only say now: MAY ALMIGHTY GOD HAVE MERCY UPON HIS SOUL, FORGIVE HIS MANY SINS, and help me to forgive him!.... I still cannot totally forgive him.
He never apologized to me, nor asked my forgiveness. He needed to.
I am unable to say or sing, 'Memory Eternal' for him.
His nickname for me, after he left ROCOR, to his many past deluded zombie like cultic followers, who thought that he was 'our living saint', was: 'That scum Everiss!'. This he repeated over many years to many.
God only knows how many souls, he drove away from Orthodoxy, and even from God.
Other Testimonies of Gleb “Fr Herman’s Abuse
Other testimonies about Gleb’s abuse and its consequences can be found in comments from Reader Daniel’s, and other forums.
Commenter 1:
Fr. Herman hurt a lot of people. Some quite directly. Others were caused to stumble just from learning that Fr. Herman was a pervert. The more someone looked up to him the more devastating it was for them, – for some the damage seems to be for life. The sorry condition of Platina today is not entirely Fr. Herman's fault, but he is at the root of it. I forgive Fr. Herman for his failings towards me. I managed to survive. But there are others who have not fared as well.
And
For a number of Fr. Herman's victims, the offense hasn't stopped. Not completely. It is still a devastating memory. It is a permanent stumbling block causing a lifetime of confusion, paranoia, depression, inability to trust people. But the worst, the hardest for the victims to bear, is the people who believe Fr. Herman is innocent and that the victims are lying. In this sense the injury first caused by Fr. Herman years ago is still injuring his victims today.
Commenter 2:
I watched as Gleb stroked MacKay's hair and told him longingly how special he was. MacKay thusly became an instant devotee of Gleb.
Daniel J. MacKay is a former priest with the Serbian Orthodox Church who was convicted of prostitution-related charges in Oregon in 2017.
2001 Letter of Gerasim Eliel, Former Abbot St Herman’s Platina to Bishop Jovan of Serbian Orthodox Church in America.
This letter references an abuse allegation against Gleb Podmoshensky by a boy who visited Platina. It is significant because Gerasim Eliel was a monk at Platina who was close to Gleb and later left with him into schism. It is noteworthy who Eliel attempts to downplay the matter, given he knew the truth about Gleb. Eliel is now a bishop with the OCA - Orthodox Church in America and part of his responsibilities are child safeguarding. How a person of such background is appointed to the episcopate is truly mystifying.
Some of the testimonies about Gleb Podmoshensky are also found in online forums, chat rooms and comments sections of blogs. These sources, while mostly anonymous, are also just as valid as more formal and identified ones. The shame and stigma that accompanies sexual abuse, means many victims are quite understandably unwilling to come forward openly. In many ways, such anonymous accounts are actually more reliable, because they are often spoken from the heart and in quite straightforward, everyday language. This is as opposed to more formal, legalistic depositions made for court proceedings. Also, the fact that, as in this case of Gleb Podmoshensky, there is such a large number of these accounts, the idea that this is all just concocted rumour becomes a non-argument. When you have so many different people at different times, speaking in unison about the same person and events, it is manifestly compelling and believable.
Testimony of former St Herman’s novice S.K. from an ex-Orthodox online forum written 2009.
I am very glad and shocked to find your community. I have searched the internet for years and have not been able to find anything from people who are talking specifically about the monastery or the "brotherhood". Anyway I lived at St. Herman's Monastery from 1996 to 1998. From there I moved to Alaska to the St. Innocent’s Academy until 2000. I lived for awhile in Eugene with the community there, but did not have a very good experience. I now live in Boise Idaho, totally separated from "the church" or any part of Christianity for that matter. I often think about my experiences with Orthodoxy, because they had such an impact on my formative years.
I had a great struggle in 2000 when I decided to separate myself from Orthodoxy. I had a difficult time for a number of reasons, but mostly it had to do with the fact that while living in the monastery as a novice, Fr. Herman tried numerous times to make out with me and use my own sexual frustration for his benefit. I am not the only person this happened to and other people have left the church for the same reason. I was reticent about saying these things but I recently found him speaking on Youtube, spouting his propaganda. I was under the impression that he was sent to reclusion by his spiritual father, a Romanian priest that I cannot remember his name, but the monastery wrote a book about him because he spent some time in the Romanian gulag.
People are under the impression that Fr. Herman is some type of Holy Father, but he is nothing more than a confused old gay man that has nothing left to hang on to other than his Orthodox beliefs. It makes more sense when … was also talking about Fr. Seraphim's homosexuality, and frustrates me to think that two gay guys from San Francisco moved to the mountains and became heiromonks ended up brainwashing a huge multitude of people. I'm not saying these things from a homophobic bias either. I have no problem with homosexuality, it's only ironic that the Orthodox church looks heavily down on it. Please don't let these words discourage you from believing in Orthodoxy.
I would just not have anything to do with those people. These are my experiences that have probably driven me further from Orthodoxy, and I would not want to discourage other's beliefs.
I just want to help people get the hell away from St. Herman's monastery and those associated with it. People should be able to be Orthodox Christians and still exist in the world, and not fell like they have to live a monastic lifestyle. I did not feel like I could do both, so I left. I would be very interested in hearing others' experiences, I hope they may be less depressing than mine.”
Testimony of a another former St Herman’s Platina novice M.J, also from an ex-Orthodox online forum
"Fr Herman hurt several men that I know personally. The accusations are real. The damage done is real and has been life altering for them. It is hard to hear him lauded. I realize he brought many to the church, but he abused many as well. The men I know were in their teens when it happened. Barely adults (late teens) but they were not minors. The shame they bare is horrible as well as feeling duped. One of them can barely stand to be in church. He goes with his wife but always stands in the back holding his youngest child. Even though they were not minors, this is still abuse. They were young and in the presence of someone telling them he was their spiritual father. It was an incredible abuse of power. And those he brought to the church eventually had to deal with a difficult transition from outside the canonical church to inside it and all the mental and emotional changes associated with that. Please be careful reading his works and know that they come from a man who was spiritually sick. And pray for mercy for his soul."
The Death of Fr Seraphim Rose and the Beginning of Gleb’s Mental Breakdown
In August 1982, after feeling acute pains for several days while working in his cell, a reluctant Fr Seraphim Rose was taken by fellow monks to Mercy Medical Center in Redding for treatment. When he arrived at the hospital, he was declared to be in critical condition and fell into semi-consciousness. After exploratory surgery was completed, it was discovered that a blood clot had blocked an artery supplying blood to his intestines, which had become a mass of dead tissue. He slipped into a coma after a second surgery, never regaining consciousness.
As Fr Seraphim’s body was returned to Platina to lie in state in the monastery church, a wave of grief swept over the Californian,and broader American, Orthodox community. Continuous prayers were read over his body with a multitude of mourners attending to pay their respects.
There are two particular incidents during the time of Fr. Seraphim’s death that add further weight to Gleb Podmoshensky’s guilt as a sexual abuser. These are the deathbed condemnations of Gleb by Fr. Seraphim on his deathbed and the hysterics of Gleb himself by the coffin of his life partner.
Fr. Alexey Young, a former ROCOR priest that was very close to the fathers, stated in his review of Damascene Christiansen’s biography of Fr Seraphim, that Fr. Seraphim’s final words to Podmoshensky were a harsh rejection:
I’m finished with you! Damn you!
Most interestingly, Fr Alexey states that it was Gleb Podmoshensky himself, that made this revelation to him:
Fr. Herman himself told me that the very last words spoken to him by Fr. Seraphim were: “I’m finished with you. Damn you!” Fr. Seraphim’s uncharacteristically angry words bespeak a mind deeply troubled over Fr. Herman’s general behavior and suggest that there was more going on than any of us suspected at the time.
Fr Alexey’s full review, that includes the above quote, can be found at:
These words of condemnation are significant because they indicate that even Fr. Seraphim had knowledge of Gleb’s crimes. As has been highlighted in our recent article arguing against the canonization of Fr. Seraphim, even he was acutely aware of Gleb’s pedophilia and his countless assaults of boys both on the grounds of the Platina monastery, and while Gleb was away on his lecture tours across America. The assaults outside of Platina often occurred in private homes that Gleb stayed in while travelling.
The aforementioned Reader Daniel Everiss, also speaks of these deathbed condemnations. He attests:
He (Fr. Seraphim) suffered from the sins of his monastic partner. On Fr. Seraphim’s intensive care hospital death bed, he was heard clearly to say in Herman’s face, three times before he died: “I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!” When later these last death-bed words were repeated to Archbishop Anthony, he replied: “But then, Fr. Seraphim cannot be a saint!”
And:
He (Gleb “Fr. Herman” Podmoshensky) gave in to his passions, and then made excuses for doing it. He harmed many souls, myself included. He drove me away from his Platina Monastery. He drove only God knows, how many wounded souls, especially of young men, from the Church, even from God.
https://readerdanielsharing.blogspot.com/2016/04/english-letters-of-fr-seraphim-rose.html
Reader Daniel also describes a pathetic scene following Fr Seraphim’s death, where in a rare expression of regret for his sodomy & pederasty, Podmoshensky belatedly begged for Fr Seraphim’s forgiveness:
When Fr. Seraphim died, and I was at his all night vigil over his coffin, and funeral on the following day, Herman was totally out of his mind with remorse and guilt and weeping and self-accusation , kneeling down many times at night, in front of the coffin and trying to tell Fr. Seraphim, that he was sorry.
Source: https://readerdanielsharing.blogspot.com/2014/07/death-of-fr-herman-podmoshensky.html
Reader Daniel corroborates the testimony of Fr Alexey Young, and even goes further because he himself is a survivor of Gleb’s abuse. His validity and sincerity as a reliable source is unquestioned. The behaviour of Gleb Podmoshensky by Fr. Seraphim’s coffin can only be described as pathetic. It goes beyond a normal expression of grief and in fact, can be seen more as an expression of deep, profound guilt over his sexual perversion and abuse of children. It’s certainly not the behaviour of a humble and pious monk that grieves quietly in the assurance that his brother’s soul is now in the hands of the Lord. While defenders of Gleb Podmoshensky attempt to write off this incident as insignificant, we would would argue on the contrary, that it was more significant than many realize, because it was one of the first times that Gleb’s mask of sanctity truly fell off and revealed the perverted demoniac and Judas priest underneath.
The Post Fr. Seraphim Rose Era. Gleb’s Complete Apostasy, Mental Illness and the Fall of St Herman’s Platina.
The death of Fr. Seraphim Rose in 1982 marked the end of one era and the beginning of another, darker one, for Gleb “Fr Herman” Podmoshensky. For Gleb this meant:
A descent into complete mental breakdown and spiritual delusion (prelest).
Conflict with Archbishop Anthony (Medvedev) of San Francisco, leading to his suspension, eventual defrocking and exit from ROCOR - the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia.
A complete abandonment of Christianity and fall into cultism and sectarianism through his association with the New Age cult - the Holy Order of MANS, and the sect known as “The Archdiocese of Vasiloupolis”
His further descent into sexual depravity through his association with a convicted pedophile, the heresiarch “Metropolitan” Pangratios Vrionis.
His mysterious trip to Russia in the early 1990’s, strongly suspected to have been a case of horrific child sex tourism.
His irresponsible and scandalous acceptance by the Serbian Orthodox Church in America without any investigation of his child abuse history or requirement for accountability and repentance.
The 1980’s. Gleb’s Bereavement & Mental Illness
Following the death of Fr Seraphim, the mental state of Gleb Podmoshensky declined significantly. While the grieving process is normal following the death of loved ones, in Gleb’s case it was particularly severe. The previous speculation about the homsexual nature of Gleb’s relationship with Fr Seraphim, is given further weight in this period.
Gleb’s grief was very much like the grief experienced by someone in the case of the death of a spouse. The Holmes-Rahe Life Stress Inventory measures stress by assigning numerical values to common life events, with higher scores indicating a greater risk of illness. The highest rated event, with a stress score of 100, is the death of a spouse. With Gleb’s already pre-existing conditions of manic-depression / bipolar and megalomania, it was a given that with the loss his life partner and the love of his life , his mental state would plunge to a new critical low.
Research has shown that the death of a same-sex spouse or partner, can be an even more difficult experience, primarily due to external social, legal, and emotional factors often referred to as disenfranchised grief—grief that is not openly acknowledged or socially supported. Certainly, in the case of a gay monk like Gleb, there was no question of any recognition by the Church of his “disenfranchised grief” or of the fact that, for all intents & purposes, Gleb was now a defacto widower.
There likewise was no question either, about the continuation of the St Herman’s Monastery. Christiansen’s biography (p.1128 Kindle edition) states that after the funeral:
Bishop Nektary had told the fathers that they should continue doing what they were doing even if only one of them remained. And now, with Fr. Seraphim buried in the earth, he said these words to the Brotherhood: “Platina is the lead violin; and now one of its strings is broken. But you must finish the melody with that broken string.”
The only problem was that from here on in, Platina would not sound like a melody, but the demonic growls & shrieks of a death metal band in full flight. The allusion to one broken string was all well and good if there were in fact other strings. But the great hoax of Platina is that other than Fr Seraphim, there was no one else left there, least of all Gleb “Fr Herman”, who could provide any pastoral or spiritual leadership in true Orthodox monastic tradition. It was a place of spiritual poverty and desolation now headed by an unstable and mentally ill pedophile.
Following the death of Fr Seraphim Rose in 1982, more complaints began to pour in to Archbishop Anthony of San Francisco and the ROCOR Synod in New York about Podmoshensky’s predatory behaviour and abuse. At this time, he also got into severe conflicts with Platina’s ruling bishop, Archbishop Anthony over issues of obedience. In 1983 Podmoshensky also became associated with a San Francisco-based New Age cult called the Holy Order of MANS. Similar to other esoteric cults that originated from the turbulent cultural milieu of the 1960s, the Order of MANS incorporated a variety of faith traditions from Christianity and Buddhism to Rosicrucianism. By the late 1970s, the ever-dwindling group began to turn towards Orthodoxy with the guidance of Gleb “Fr Herman” Podmoshensky.
With the allegations of sexual abuse reaching a crescendo, an investigation was finally launched by the ROCOR Western American Diocese leading to Podmoshensky’s suspension in 1984. Due to his obstructionist stance, and his refusal to give up the office of abbot, he was defrocked by ROCOR altogether in 1988 without issuing a decision on the underlying moral charges. Unwilling to accept his defrocking, he left the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia together with the inhabitants of Platina and was accepted into the jurisdiction of a schismatic, non-canonical sect called the “Greek Orthodox Missionary Archdiocese of America.” Monk Damascene Christensen, who wrote Fr Seraphim Rose’s biography, followed Gleb into schism, as did Monk Gerasim Eliel, who eventually became abbot of St Herman of Alaska monastery and brought it back under the canonical Serbian Orthodox church, and is now a bishop in the OCA (Bishop of Fort Worth, Texas). Even Podmoshensky was allowed back into communion, and received this relatively glowing obituary from Orthochristian: https://orthochristian.com/71886.html
In 2000, Herman Podmoshensky retired from his role as abbot of the Platina Monastery. He and the brethren of the monastery were then accepted into communion by the Serbian Orthodox Church in the USA. The ruling bishop, John (Mladenovic), recognized the defrocking of the former abbot Herman Podmoshensky as lawful. Podmoshensky lived out the remainder of his life in retirement at the St. Seraphim Skete near Minneapolis as a simple monk. For at least the last ten years, he suffered from Parkinson's disease and diabetes. He died on the morning of June 30, 2014, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the age of eighty.
No Justice or Accountability. ROCOR’s Coverup and Whitewashing of History.
At no time during the Podmoshensky saga, did the ROCOR hierarchy bring any of the sexual abuse allegations to the attention of the police or child protection agencies. At this time, the culture of covering up clerical sexual abuse of children was at its height, not only in the Orthodox Church, but in all the other churches as well. Once the Western American Diocese had completed it’s investigation and suspended Podmoshensky, no further action was taken and it appears that ROCOR simply washed its hands of him.
Another matter of concern is that to the present day, there are some within the Orthodox community who do not even want to acknowledge Podmoshenky’s evil past as a pedophile and child sexual abuser and to some extent even want to rehabilitate his memory. A good example of this is the ROCOR Studies website run by Protodeacon Fr Andrei Psarev. ROCOR Studies still carries an interview conducted by Fr Andrei with Podmoshensky in 2014 https://www.rocorstudies.org/2015/03/14/monk-herman-podmoshenskii-children-of-an-age-of-martyrs/ .
In the interview, Fr Andrei makes no mention of Podmoshensky’s criminal past as a child predator and only states that:
Having become a “conscientious” [сознательный] member of the Russian Church Abroad, I judged Fr. Herman for the turmoil he caused, as a result of which he was defrocked by ROCOR in 1986.
And:
Suffice it to say that I know of the problems and accusations tied to his person.
And:
I wanted to highlight the loyalty (albeit obscured) he carried throughout his life to the ideal of beauty, about which he speaks in his interview.
How is it possible for an academic of Fr Andrei Psarev’s standing to simply write off Podmoshensky’s crimes as “turmoil” and “problems”? He even admits he knows of Podmoshensky’s past but insists on ignoring it because he wants to focus on his loyalty to beauty. It seems the main beauty that Podmoshensky had loyalty to was his perceived beauty of young boys! How can ROCOR ever confront its child abuse response problem when even senior ROCOR historians refuse to disclose the full and documented truth about the pedophiles and abusers within its ranks and omit mention of their evil crimes?
On top of the ROCOR Studies whitewashing of Podmoshenky’s legacy, just as bad is the in-memoriam article by the Pravoslavie.ru website. Their article written after Podmoshenky’s passing in 2014, conveniently makes no mention of his crimes either and only states that after 1982:
Fr. Herman took a turn for the worse.
See the full article here: https://pravoslavie.ru/71886.html
Let that sink in and weep. He “took a turn for the worse”. You don’t say. It’s no wonder that ROCOR has a problem with its ability to respond appropriately to child sexual abuse when its historians and associated publications, go out of their way to hide the truth about pedophiles in the church and publish such laughable apologetics.
Podmoshensky and Rosentool
The convicted Alexis Rosentool studied at Holy Trinity Seminary at Jordanville in 1969 while Podmoshensky finished there in 1962. It is unknown if they ever met or shared their common predilection of young boys with each other. What is certain however is there are many common factors including:
A magnetic and charismatic personality they used to groom and brainwash their followers.
Placing themselves as abbot (head) of a monastery in a remote location where they could carry out their abuse unhindered.
A devoted following of supporters who are brainwashed and unable to see their guru’s crimes.
In Podmoshenky’s case the drift into an actual cult, while in Rosentool’s the creation of his own cult.
Their stubborn denial of their crimes, in Podmoshenky’s case, right up to the bitter end.
The Inquisition Cometh. Truth & Justice Will Be Restored.
Yes, this is a clearly written and coherent history of abuses that integrates elements of missionary work and monastic life. These two things, missionary work and monasticism, and the publication of saints' lives to use as a cover-up mechanism. Then, how they are used in formative processes to enable sexual abuse, need circulation and responsive actions to this playbook that is often repeated. Accountability before God by all those who, in one way or another, have suffered as the abused or have been complicit as an enabler requires dissemination of these facts as well as demands for responsive actions...I hope through Pokrov Truth and other websites as Prosphon Healing, you will collect additional private data to demand change and secure justice. ..Truly, then we can process clarity for what is needed for a clean, "cheetsi" Orthodox Christian life that can bring forth the flowers of Grace, peace, and love, and not have these environmental poisons as fertilizers for fronts of a falsified sanctity, which the Bible defines as actions of the "Anti-Christ". . . As a former missionary bookstore worker in Miami in the 1970's, with the Orthodox Book Center, I was uneasy with what came across to us from Platina and St. Herman's, even in print, as it all did not balance. Your clearly written timeline of the abuse should shake the poisonous fruit down from the branches that have come down through this network of calculated and formative actions that have used good things of mission and monastic life to cover the evils being perpetrated historically and now today.
Thanks for the great article. Seraphim Rose and "Fr. Herman" were inseparable for decades. I imagine Seraphim knew a lot more about what was going on than he let on. Podmoshensky related that Seraphim's last words to him on his deathbed were "I curse you!" Pretty angry and emotionally bitter for a supposed saint. No blessed "равнодушие," forgiveness, or attempt to offer spiritual direction to his long-time monastic partner.
As for Psarev praising Podmoshensky for his "devotion to beauty..." What in the world does that have to do with anything, and what does it even mean? As you suggest it sounds more like a homosexual code word than anything Christian. These people seem to be incapable of distinguishing Orthodox Christianity from Greek paganism and worship of Aphrodite. ROCOR never seriously cleaned house of these people, probably afraid that if they did, not many would be left.