On 19 May 1914, he was appointed to the Kharkov and Akhtyrka cathedra. After the February 1917 Revolution, he was forced to ask for retirement because of poor relations with the new authorities in his area and the discontent of certain members of his clergy. On 1 May 1917, he was retired and assigned to the Valaam Monastery, where he wrote his book "The Doctrine of Redemption," which later caused controversy among Orthodox theologians. In August 1917 he was again elected Archbishop of Kharkov by the Diocesan council of Kharkov.