Gregory the Bulgarian, or Gregory II ( 1458 – d. 1474) was the Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus'. His title to the metropolitan see was acknowledged both by the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

and by the

Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...

due to their joint acceptance of the

Council of Florence The Council of Florence is the seventeenth ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church, held between 1431 and 1449. It was convoked as the Council of Basel by Pope Martin V shortly before his death in February 1431 and took place in ...

which united the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

and the

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...

Churches for a short period of time. He was consecrated by the

Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople (Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of th ...

— Gregory III — in 1458. His canonical territory was the western part of the traditional

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rusʹ, also known as Kyivan Rusʹ ( orv, , Rusĭ, or , , ; Old Norse: ''Garðaríki''), was a state in Eastern and Northern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical Atlas of ...

lands — the states of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...

and the Kingdom of Poland. The

episcopal seat A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

was in the city of

Navahrudak Novogrudok ( be, Навагрудак, Navahrudak; lt, Naugardukas; pl, Nowogródek; russian: Новогрудок, Novogrudok; yi, נאַוואַראַדאָק, Novhardok, Navaradok) is a town in the Grodno Region, Belarus. In the Middle A ...

which is today located in

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

Early life

Gregory was born in

Ottoman Bulgaria The history of Ottoman Bulgaria spans nearly 500 years, from the conquest by the Ottoman Empire of the smaller kingdoms emerging from the disintegrating Second Bulgarian Empire in the late 14th century, to the Liberation of Bulgaria in 1878. A ...

. He was a nephew of the Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus' —

Isidore of Kiev Isidore of Kiev, also known as Isidore of Thessalonica or Isidore, the Apostate ( el, ; russian: Исидор; uk, Ісидор; 1385 – 27 April 1463), was a prelate of Byzantine Greek origin. From 1437 to 1441 he served as the Metropolitan ...

. He acted as Isidore's aide the

in 1439.

Career

In 1448, Russian bishops in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, who had rejected the Union with Rome, elected

Jonah Jonah or Jonas, ''Yōnā'', "dove"; gr, Ἰωνᾶς ''Iōnâs''; ar, يونس ' or '; Latin: ''Ionas'' son of Amittai, is a prophet in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran, from Gath-hepher of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th cent ...

as Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus' without the consent of Constantinople. The Polish-Lithuanian rulers rejected Jonah. After 1461, the Muscovite clergy abandoned the "Kiev" title and took on the new title of "Metropolitan of Moscow and all Rus'". In 1458, Gregory was appointed as the Metropolitan of Kiev, Halych and all Rus' by Patriarch

Gregory III of Constantinople Patriarch Gregory III, surnamed Mammis or Μammas (before ca. 1420 – 1459) was Ecumenical Patriarch within the Eastern Orthodox Church during the period 1443–1450. He was prominent in unsuccessful initiatives toward reunification with the Cat ...

with the agreement of

Pope Pius II Pope Pius II ( la, Pius PP. II, it, Pio II), born Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini ( la, Aeneas Silvius Bartholomeus, links=no; 18 October 1405 – 14 August 1464), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 August ...

.Ukrainian Catholic Church: part 1.
Farlex. The Free Library. Gregory III was an exile in Rome from Constantinople at the time. The Pope also appointed him as the

Latin Patriarch of Constantinople The Latin Patriarchate of Constantinople was an office established as a result of the Fourth Crusade and its conquest of Constantinople in 1204. It was a Roman Catholic replacement for the Eastern Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ...

although some uniates continued to regard him as the Ecumenical Patriarch. The election of Gregory the Bulgarian was also supported by most diocesan bishops of the original Old Russian Church among which were bishops of Przemysl, Chelm, Halych, Turow, Volodymyr, Lutsk, Polotsk, and Smolensk, while against were at least two metropolitan bishop in Moscow and Chernigov.Rusyn, O.
Gregory the Bulgarian (ГРИГОРІЙ БОЛГАРИН)
'. Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine. 2004Yarotskyi, P.
Division of the Church Metropolis of Kiev (Поділ Київської митрополії)
''. RISU Library ("Lyudyna i svit" magazine). 1998 At least two more diocesan bishops of Great Novgorod and Tver chose to abstain in selection either side. In 1469, Patriarch Dionysius I also gave his blessing to Gregory's appointment. In 1470, Gregory returned from the

union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

. The metropolis within the Polish kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania remained therefore in communion with the

, as well as during the rule of the following metropolitan Міsail (1476–1480). Later, during signing of the

Union of Brest The Union of Brest (; ; ; ) was the 1595–96 decision of the Ruthenian Orthodox Church eparchies (dioceses) in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth to break relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church and to enter into communion with, and place i ...

, the appointment of Gregory was mentioned by

Michael Rohoza Michael Rohoza ( be, Міхал Рагоза, uk, Михайло Рогоза, pl, Michał Rahoza, russian: Михаил Рагоза) (died 1599) was the Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus' in the Patriarchate of Constantinople of the E ...

Notelist

References

External links

Ukrainian Catholic Church: part 1.

The Ukrainian Greek Catholics: A Historical Survey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gregory the Bulgarian Bishops of Kyiv Year of birth unknown 1474 deaths 15th-century Bulgarian people Eastern Orthodoxy in Lithuania Eastern Orthodoxy in Belarus Eastern Orthodoxy in Ukraine 15th-century Catholicism