Background
His father only joined the church at an old age.
His father only joined the church at an old age.
After this he studied in Stockholm University, his subjects being the Swedish and Czechoslovakian languages and phonetics. He also studied pedagogy and became a teacher for comprehensive school in Stockholm. In 1996, he started his studies in theology in University of Joensuu, where he studied for five years.
He completed the degree of Master of Divinity there.
He was consecrated on 11 January 2015. He follows in this position Metropolitan Panteleimon, who retired in June 2013. His home church is the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Oulu.
Matti Wallgrén’s mother was Orthodox.
Wallgrén matriculated in the town of Kajaani. He lived in Sweden for eight years.
He also lived in the Czechoslovakian Republic for two years, working as a guide. Wallgrén joined the Orthodox church in Helsinki in 1994.
He also sang in the church choir and acted as reader in services.
In 2001 he transferred to the Saint Vladimir"s Orthodox Theological Seminary in Crestwood, New New York He was not able to participate in the graduation seremonies there, as his mother had just died. Metropolitan Ambrosius ordained Wallgrén a deacon in the Saint Herman of Alaska Church in Espoo on 29 May 2003.
Archbishop Leo ordained Wallgrén a priest in Jyväskylä on 1 September 2003, after which he was assigned to that church.
During 2003–2006 Wallgrén served as a priest in the Jyväskylä Orthodox Parish, and during 2006–2014 he worked as the vicar of the Vaasa Orthodox Parish. Wallgrén was the only priest of his vast parish, and he has said that he drove 45,000 km every year.
Wallgrén was elected the new metropolitan of Oulu in New Valamo in a church council in November 2014. He was a surprise candidate and was not present himself in the election.
The church council selected three persons as candidates, and the council of bishops chose two of them for the final election.
In the final election, Wallgrén received 17 votes and Vicar Bishop Arseni (Heikkinen) received 16 votes. One delegate left an empty ballot. The election caused some polemics afterwards.
The church council had no information on Wallgrén prior to the election, not even a curriculum vitae, even though it was said that Wallgrén had given his consent to his candidacy two weeks prior to the election.
lieutenant was also said that in practice the delegates from the Helsinki Diocese elected the new bishop, since the other two dioceses have so few delegates that they would not form a majority. Archbishop Leo complained that the new bishop came as if from “behind a tree”.
The igumen of the New Valamo monastery, Archimandrite Sergei tonsured Wallgrén a monk, with the name of Elia, in honour of Prophet Elia of Tisbe. The following day in Valamo, he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite by Metropolitan Panteleimon.
Elia was consecrated a bishop in Oulu on 11 January 2015.
The consecration was done by Archbishop Leo, and he was assisted by the other four Finnish bishops. In January 2015, Metropolitan Elia travelled to Constantinople, where Archbishop Leo introduced him to Patriarch Bartholomew. Metropolitan Elia speaks many languages.
Among them are Swedish, Czechoslovakian, Polish, English, German, and some Russian.