site.btaArchimandrite Gabriel Enthroned as Hegumen of Zograf Monastery in Mt Athos

Archimandrite Gabriel was enthroned as Hegumen of the Zograf (Zographou) Monastery in Mt Athos on Sunday.

The ceremony was attended by a Bulgarian delegation led by Justice Minister Georgi Georgiev and including Ministers Georgi Tahov of Agriculture and Food, Petar Dilov of Economy and Industry and Ivan Peshev of Youth and Sports, as well as Bulgarian Consul General in Thessaloniki Anton Markov. The Greek government was represented by Deputy Interior Minister Konstantinos Gioulekas. The Protos of Mt Athos and representatives of the monasteries in the region were at the event as well.

Gabriel was elected Hegumen of the Zograf Monastery on April 12.

Gabriel (secular name Georgi Karatotev) was born on December 11, 1973, in Sofia, Bulgaria. He arrived at the Zograf Monastery on December 20, 1997, and was tonsured as a monk there exactly a year later, on December 20, 1998.

On October 24, 2003, he was ordained as a hieromonk. Since early 2003, he has served almost invariably as first epitropos (trustee) of the Zograf Monastery.