The Ukrainian Orthodox Church ( uk, Українська православна церква, Ukrainska pravoslavna tserkva; russian: Украинская православная церковь, Ukrainskaya pravoslavnaya tserkov', UOC), commonly referred to as the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, (russian: Украинская православная церковь Московского патриархата, УПЦ-МП, UOC-MP) is an
Eastern Orthodox church in
Ukraine under the disputed jurisdiction of the
Russian Orthodox Church.
It was officially formed in 1990 in place of Ukrainian Exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church, which in 1966–1990 was led by Metropolitan
Filaret, who is the longest serving primate of the Church.
The UOC-MP is one of the
two major Eastern Orthodox ecclesiastical bodies in modern
Ukraine, alongside the
Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU). The latter was established at the
Unification Council held under the auspices of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...
on 15 December 2018 and which council was not attended by the majority of the bishops of the UOC. Since then, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople disputes the claims by the Moscow Patriarchate of its ecclesiastical jurisdiction over the territory of Ukraine.
According to the Russian Orthodox Church, the
Primate of the UOC-MP is the most senior
[ЖУРНАЛЫ заседания Священного Синода от 19 марта 2014 года](_blank)
// ЖУРНАЛ № 1: «2. Включить в состав Священного Синода на правах постоянного члена митрополита Черновицкого и Буковинского Онуфрия, <…> с определением по протокольному старшинству места, занимаемого Блаженнейшим митрополитом Киевским и всея Украины — первым среди архиереев Русской Православной Церкви.» permanent member of the ROC's
Holy Synod and thus has a say in its decision-making in respect of the rest of the ROC throughout the world.
On May 27, 2022, the UOC-MP has removed all mentions of the Moscow Patriarchate from its statute due to
Patriarch Kirill
Kirill or Cyril (russian: link=Russian, Кирилл, chu, , secular name Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev, russian: link=no, Владимир Михайлович Гундяев; born 20 November 1946) is a Russian Orthodox bishop. He became ...
's support of the
invasion of Ukraine
The territory of present-day Ukraine has been Invasion, invaded or Military occupation, occupied a number of times throughout History of Ukraine, its history.
List
See also
*List of invasions
*List of wars involving Ukraine
References
...
.
Prior to this decision, more than 400 parishes had left the Moscow Patriarchate as a consequence of the invasion. Despite the removal of direct mentions of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Charter of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia
Alexy II the statute refers to declares the canonical dependence on the ROC. According to a Ukrainian
theologian , the church have done these changes in order to avoid renaming in accordance with the Ukrainian law.
Despite the ''de facto''
annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation
In February and March 2014, Russia invaded and subsequently annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. This event took place in the aftermath of the Revolution of Dignity and is part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian War.
The events in Kyiv th ...
in 2014, the
eparchies of the UOC in
Crimea continued to be administered by the UOC,
Статус епархий в Крыму остался неизменным, заявили в УПЦ Московского патриархата
NEWSru, 10 March 2015.
The Ukrainian Church of the Moscow Patriarchate demanded the return of the Crimea
RBK Group
The RBC Group, or RosBiznesConsulting (russian: Группа компаний «РБК» РБК, РосБизнесКонсалтинг), is a Russian media group headquartered in Moscow. It was established in 1993.
The company holds an infor ...
(18 August 2014) until in June 2022 the
Moscow Patriarchate
, native_name_lang = ru
, image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg
, imagewidth =
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia
, abbreviation = ROC
, type ...
decided to re-transfer Crimea from the Ukrainian Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
The UOC continues to list the Crimean eparchies and has not recognized any change to its territorial boundaries based on decisions taken by the ROC.
[Єпархії Українська Православна Церква]
(10 November 2022)
Name
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (MP) insists on its name being just the ''Ukrainian Orthodox Church'',
stating that it is the sole canonical body of Orthodox Christians in the country,
a Ukrainian "local church" ( uk, Помісна Церква).
It is also the name that it is registered under in the State Committee of Ukraine in Religious Affairs.
It is often referred to as the ''Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)'' or ''UOC (MP)'' in order to distinguish between the two rival churches contesting the name of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
Following the creation of the
Orthodox Church of Ukraine, on December 20, 2018, the
Ukrainian parliament voted to force the UOC-MP to rename itself in its mandatory state registration, its new name must have "the full name of the church to which it is subordinated".
[Ukraine's parliament passes bill on renaming UOC-MP](_blank)
UNIAN (20 December 2018) This was protested by UOC-MP adherents. On 11 December 2019 the
Supreme Court of Ukraine allowed the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) to retain its name.
The UOC-MP had argued that their governing center is in Ukraine's capital,
Kyiv, not in
Russia's capital,
Moscow, and therefore it should not be renamed.
History
Under the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
Moscow, Lithuania, Galich metropolia
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church considers itself the sole descendant in modern Ukraine of the
metropolis of Kyiv and all Rus' within the jurisdiction of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...
established in Kyiv in the 10th century. Due to
invasion of the Mongols in the 13th century the metropolitan seat was moved to
Vladimir and later to
Moscow, while in the Duchy of Halych and Volhynia was created a separate Metropolis of Halych with own Metropolitan. In the 14th century, the Grand Duke of Lithuania
Algirdas
Algirdas ( be, Альгерд, Alhierd, uk, Ольгерд, Ольґерд, Olherd, Olgerd, pl, Olgierd; – May 1377) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania. He ruled the Lithuanians and Ruthenians from 1345 to 1377. With the help of his bro ...
who established his control over the former territories of
Kyivan Rus attempted to move the metropolitan seat back to Kyiv.
Revival
In 1596, the Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galich and all Rus'
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 ...
accepted the
Union of Brest transforming dioceses of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople into the
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church under the
Holy See's jurisdiction. In 1620, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
Cyril Lucaris
Cyril Lucaris or Loukaris ( el, Κύριλλος Λούκαρις, 13 November 1572 – 27 June 1638), born Constantine Lucaris, was a Greek prelate and theologian, and a native of Candia, Crete (then under the Republic of Venice). He later bec ...
reestablished Orthodox dioceses for the Orthodox population of what was then the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth — under the Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galicia, and all Russia
Job Boretsky as the Patriarchal
Exarch
An exarch (;
from Ancient Greek ἔξαρχος ''exarchos'', meaning “leader”) was the holder of any of various historical offices, some of them being political or military and others being ecclesiastical.
In the late Roman Empire and ea ...
.
Merger into the Moscow Patriarchate
Following the
transfer of the
Cossack Hetmanate under the sovereignty of the
Tsardom of Russia in 1654, the Kyivan metropolis in 1686 was transferred by the Patriarch
Dionysius IV under the jurisdiction of the
Moscow Patriarchate
, native_name_lang = ru
, image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg
, imagewidth =
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia
, abbreviation = ROC
, type ...
, following the election of
Gedeon Svyatopolk-Chetvertynsky as the Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galicia, and all Russia with the help of the
Hetman of Zaporizhian Host
The Hetman of the Zaporizhian Host ( uk, Гетьман Війська Запорозького, la, Cosaccorum Zaporoviesium Supremus Belli Dux) was the head of state of the Cossack Hetmanate in what is now Ukraine. The office was disestablishe ...
Ivan Samoylovych. In late 2018, the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...
indicated that information about that it transferred jurisdiction over Ukraine to the Moscow Patriarchate was inaccurate as Constantinople temporarily provided Moscow with stewardship over the Ukrainian church. The
Russian Orthodox Church immediately rejected that statementand called for further discussion and revision of historical archives.
Soon, Gedeon gradually lost control of the dioceses which had been under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan of Kyiv. In January 1688, Gedeon's title was changed by Moscow to the ″Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galich, and Little Russia″. Gedeon's successors were effectively mere diocesan bishops under the Moscow Patriarchate and later
Russia's
Most Holy Synod
The Most Holy Governing Synod (russian: Святѣйшій Правительствующій Сѵнодъ, Святейший Правительствующий Синод) was the highest governing body of the Russian Orthodox Church betwee ...
.
Before the
Battle of Poltava, when
Ivan Mazepa sided with
Carl XII
Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII ( sv, Karl XII) or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 O.S.), was King of Sweden (including current Finland) from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of ...
, the new Metropolitan Ioasaf along with bishops of Chernigov and Pereyaslav was summoned by
Peter the Great
Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...
to
Glukhov where they were ordered to declare an
anathema onto Mazepa. After the battle of Poltava, in 1709 Metropolitan Ioasaf was exiled to
Tver and in 1710 a church censorship was introduced to the Kyiv metropolia. In 1718 Metropolitan Ioasaf was arrested and dispatched to
Saint Petersburg for interrogation where he died.
From 1718 to 1722, the Metropolitan See in Kyiv was vacant and ruled by the Kyiv Spiritual Consistory (under the authority of the
Most Holy Synod
The Most Holy Governing Synod (russian: Святѣйшій Правительствующій Сѵнодъ, Святейший Правительствующий Синод) was the highest governing body of the Russian Orthodox Church betwee ...
); in 1722 it was occupied by Archbishop Varlaam.
Synodal period
In 1730, Archbishop Varlaam with all members of the Kyiv Spiritual Consistory were put on trial by the Privy Chancellery. After being convicted, Varlaam as a simple monk was exiled to the
Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery in Vologda region where he served a sentence of imprisonment of 10 years. After the death of the Russian Empress
Anna
Anna may refer to:
People Surname and given name
* Anna (name)
Mononym
* Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke
* Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773)
* Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century)
* Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221)
...
in 1740, Varlaam was allowed to return and recovered all his
Archiereus titles. He however refused to accept back those titles and, after asked to be left in peace, moved to the
Tikhvin Assumption Monastery
The Tikhvin Monastery of the Dormition of the Mother of God (russian: Тихвинский Богородичный Успенский монастырь) is a Russian Orthodox monastery founded in 1560. The monastery is located in the town of Tikh ...
. In 1750 Varlaam accepted the
Great Schema
The degrees of Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic monasticism are the stages an Eastern Orthodox monk or nun passes through in their religious vocation.
In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the process of becoming a monk or nun is intentionally slo ...
under the name of Vasili and soon died in 1751.
In 1743, the title of Metropolitan was re-instated for Archbishop
Raphael Zaborovsky Raphael Zaborovsky (russian: Рафаил Заборо́вский; (secular name: Mikhail; 1677 – 22 October 1747) was a Russian Orthodox bishop of Pskov and Narva and metropolitan of Kiev.
Zaborovsky, an Orthodox bishop, was born in Zbor ...
.
On 2 April 1767, the Empress of Russia
Catherine the Great
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...
issued an edict stripping the title of the Kyivan Metropolitan of the style "and all Little Russia".
Fall of monarchy in Russia and Exarchate
Metropolitan
Vladimir Bogoyavlensky chaired the All-Ukrainian Church Council that took a break between its sessions on 18 January 1918 and was to be resumed in May 1918. On 23–24 January 1918, the Red Guards of
Reingold Berzin occupied Kyiv (see
Ukrainian–Soviet War). In the evening of 25 January 1918, Metropolitan Vladimir was found dead between walls of the Old Pechersk Fortress beyond the Gates of All Saints, having been killed by unknown people.
In May 1918, the Metropolitan of Kyiv and Galich
Antony Khrapovitsky was appointed to the
Kyiv eparchy, a former candidate to become the
Patriarch of Moscow
The Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' (russian: Патриарх Московский и всея Руси, translit=Patriarkh Moskovskij i vseja Rusi), also known as the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, is the official title of the Bishop of Mo ...
at the
Russian Local Council of 1917 and losing it to the
Patriarch Tikhon. In July 1918 Metropolitan Antony became the head of the All-Ukrainian Church Council. Eventually he sided with the Russian
White movement supporting the Denikin's forces of
South Russia South Russia may refer:
* Southern Russia
* South Russia (1919–1920), a territory that existed during the Russian Civil War
** South Russian Government
** Government of South Russia
See also
* South Russian Ovcharka, a breed of sheepdog
* Sou ...
, while keeping the title of Metropolitan of Kyiv and Halych. After the defeat of the Whites and the exile of Antony, in 1919-21 the metropolitan seat was temporarily held by the bishop of Cherkasy Nazariy (also the native of
Kazan). After the arrest of Nazariy by the Soviet authorities in 1921, the seat was provisionally held by the bishop of Grodno and newly elected Exarch of Ukraine Mikhail, a member of the Russian
Black Hundreds
The Black Hundred (russian: Чёрная сотня, translit=Chornaya sotnya), also known as the black-hundredists (russian: черносотенцы; chernosotentsy), was a reactionary, monarchist and ultra-nationalist movement in Russia in t ...
nationalistic movement. After his arrest in 1923, the Kyiv eparchy was provisionally headed by various bishops of neighboring eparchies until 1927. After his return in 1927 Mikhail became the Metropolitan of Kyiv and Exarch of Ukraine until his death in 1929.
In 1945, after the integration of
Zakarpattia Oblast into the
USSR, eastern parts of the
Eparchy of Mukačevo and Prešov were transferred from the supreme jurisdiction of the
Serbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches.
The majori ...
to the jurisdiction of the Exarchate of Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine, and a new Eparchy of Mukachevo and Uzhgorod was formed.
Dissolution of the Soviet Union and self rule
On 28 October 1990, the Moscow Patriarchate granted the Ukrainian Exarchate a status of a self–governing church under the jurisdiction of the ROC (but ''not'' the full
autonomy
In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ...
as is understood in the ROC legal terminology). However, the Ukrainian branch remained crucial to the Moscow Patriarchate, because of historical and traditional roots in Kyiv and Ukraine, and because nearly a third of the Moscow Patriarchate's 36,000 congregations were in Ukraine.
Metropolitan
Vladimir (Sabodan)
Metropolitan Vladimir (Volodymyr; secular name Viktor Markianovich Sabodan, russian: Виктор Маркианович Сабодан, uk, Віктор Маркіянович Сабодан, November 23, 1935 – July 5, 2014) was the hea ...
, who succeeded
Filaret (Denysenko)
Patriarch Filaret (secular name ''Mykhailo Antonovych Denysenko'', born 23 January 1929) is a Ukrainian religious leader, currently serving as the primate and Patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate. The Orthodox Church o ...
, was enthroned in 1992 as the Primate of the UOC under the title
Metropolitan of Kyiv and all Ukraine, with the official residency in the
Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, which also houses all of the Church's administration.
The UOC-MP, prior to 2019, was believed to be the largest religious body in Ukraine with the greatest number of parish churches and communities counting up to half of the total in Ukraine and totaling over 10,000. The UOC also claimed to have up to 75 percent of the Ukrainian population. Independent surveys showed significant variance. According to
Stratfor
Strategic Forecasting Inc., commonly known as Stratfor, is an American geopolitics publisher and consultancy founded in 1996. Stratfor's business model is to provide individual and enterprise subscriptions to Stratfor Worldview, its online public ...
, in 2008, more than 50 percent of Ukrainian population belonged to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarch.
Razumkov Centre survey results, however, tended to show greater adherence to the rival
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyivan Patriarchate
Ukrainian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Ukraine
* Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe
* Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine
* Som ...
.
Many Orthodox Ukrainians do not clearly identify with a particular Orthodox jurisdiction and, sometimes, are even unaware of the affiliation of the parish they attend as well as of the controversy itself, which indicates the difficulty of using survey numbers as an indicator of a relative strength of the church. Additionally, the geographical factor plays a major role in the number of adherents, as the Ukrainian population tends to be more churchgoing in the western part of the country rather than in the UOC-MP's heartland in southern and eastern Ukraine. Politically, many in Ukraine see the UOC-MP as merely a puppet of the ROC and consequently a geopolitical tool of
Russia, which have stridently opposed the consolidation and recognition of the independent OCU.
Russo-Ukrainian War and eventual cutting ties with the ROC
Since 2014 the church has come under attack for perceived
anti-Ukrainian and
pro-Russian actions by its clergymen. On 14 September 2015 it urged the
pro-Russian separatists to lay down their arms and take advantage of the amnesty promised to them in the
Minsk II agreement. Ukraine passed laws which the Moscow Patriarchate interpreted as discriminatory in 2017.
From 2014 until 2018 around 60 Moscow Patriarchate parishes switched to the Kyivan Patriarchate in transfers the leadership of the Moscow patriarchate says were illegal.
According to the
Razumkov Center, among the 27.8 million Ukrainian members of Orthodox churches, allegiance to the Kyiv Patriarchate grew from 12 percent in 2000, to 25 percent in 2016—and much of the growth came from believers who previously did not associate with either patriarchate.
In April 2018 Moscow patriarchate had 12,300 parishes and the Kyivan Patriarchate 5,100 parishes.
By decision of the Russian Orthodox Church Bishops’ Council (November 29-December 2, 2017), a separate chapter of the ROC Statute was singled out to confirm the status of UOC with the following provisions:
#The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is granted independence and self-governance according to the Resolution of the Bishops’ Council of the Russian Orthodox Church which took place on October 25–27, 1990.
#The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is an independent and self-governed Church with broad autonomy rights.
#In her life and work the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is guided by the Resolution of the 1990 Bishops’ Council of the Russian Orthodox Church on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the 1990 Deed of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia and the Statute on the governance of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
In December 2017, the
Security Service of Ukraine published classified documents revealing that the
NKGB of the USSR and its units in the Union and autonomous republics, territories and regions were engaged in the selection of candidates for participation in the 1945 council that elected
Patriarch Alexy I of Moscow from the representatives of the clergy and the laity. This included "persons who have religious authority among the clergy and believers, and at the same time checked for civic or patriotic work". A letter sent in September 1944 and signed by the head of the 2nd Directorate of the NKGB of the USSR Fedotov and the head of the Fifth Division 2nd Directorate of Karpov stated that "it is important to ensure that the number of nominated candidates is dominated by the agents of the NKGB, capable of holding the line that we need at the Council."
On 13 December 2018 a priest of the church,
Volodymyr Maretsky Volodymyr ( uk, Володи́мир, Volodýmyr, , orv, Володимѣръ) is a Ukrainian given name of Old East Slavic origin. The related Ancient Slavic, such as Czech, Russian, Serbian, Croatian, etc. form of the name is Володимѣръ ...
, was sentenced in absentia to 6 years of imprisonment for hindering the
Armed Forces of Ukraine
, imports =
, exports =
, history =
, ranks = Military ranks of Ukraine
, country=Ukraine
The Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Збро́йні си́ли Украї́ни), most commonly known ...
in 2014 during the
Russo-Ukrainian War. In November–December 2018,
Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) carries out raids across the country targeting the UOC (MP) churches and priests.
In the week following the creation of the
Orthodox Church of Ukraine on 15 December 2018, several parishes announced they would leave the UOC (MP) and join the new church.
On 20 December 2018, the
Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's national parliament) passed a legislation to change the UOC-MP's registered name. Ukrainian
deputy
Deputy or depute may refer to:
* Steward (office)
* Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy"
* Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including:
** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spai ...
described the law as stipulating if "the state is recognized as the aggressor state, the church whose administration is based in the aggressor state must have in its title the full name of the church to which it is subordinate". The Russian Orthodox Church, which the UOC-MP is part of, is based in Russia, which is considered by Ukraine as an aggressor state following the
2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine
The Russo-Ukrainian War; uk, російсько-українська війна, rosiisko-ukrainska viina. has been ongoing between Russia (alongside Russian separatists in Ukraine) and Ukraine since February 2014. Following Ukraine's Revo ...
. The law also gave it "no right to be represented in
military units on the front line".
On 11 December 2019 the
Supreme Court of Ukraine allowed the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) to retain its name.
[Supreme Court of Ukraine rules in favor of Moscow Patriarchate](_blank)
UNIAN (16 December 2019)
The January, 2019 establishment of the autocephalous
Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), by final decree of the Eastern Church's
Ecumenical Patriarch
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 ...
, Bartholomew I, of
Constantinople, joined the major existing Ukrainian Orthodox jurisdictions: the
Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP; uk, Украї́нська Правосла́вна Це́рква – Ки́ївський Патріарха́т (УПЦ-КП), Ukrainska Pravoslavna Tserkva — Kyivskyi Patr ...
(UOC-KP), and the
Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC), and a part of the UOC-MP.
[Liik, Kadri; Metodiev, Momchil; and Popescu, Nicu]
"Defender of the faith? How Ukraine’s Orthodox split threatens Russia,"
May 30, 2019, policy brief, European Council on Foreign Relations, retrieved January 26, 2022
The remaining UOC-MP hierarchy continued to dismiss the independence decree, and remained loyal to Moscow, and initially retained many of its parishes. A May 2019 report by the
European Council on Foreign Relations noted that the Moscow Patriarchate claimed 11,000 churches in Ukraine, while the new OCU claimed 7,000.
On 24 February 2022, Metropolitan
Onufriy said the
Russian invasion of Ukraine "is a repetition of the sin of
Cain
Cain ''Káïn''; ar, قابيل/قايين, Qābīl/Qāyīn is a Biblical figure in the Book of Genesis within Abrahamic religions. He is the elder brother of Abel, and the firstborn son of Adam and Eve, the first couple within the Bible. He wa ...
, who killed his own brother out of envy. Such a war has no justification either from God or from people." In April 2022, after the Russian invasion, many UOC-MP parishes signaled their intention to switch allegiance to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The attitude and stance of
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow
Kirill or Cyril (russian: link=Russian, Кирилл, chu, , secular name Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev, russian: link=no, Владимир Михайлович Гундяев; born 20 November 1946) is a Russian Orthodox bishop. He became ...
to the war is one of the oft quoted reasons. On May 12, the synod of the UOC-MP met for the first time since the start of the war and issued a statement of support for Ukraine's armed forces, while condemning the Russian invasion.
On 27 May 2022, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church formally cut ties and declared independence from the Russian Orthodox Church.
In an announcement on
Telegram, Archpriest Nikolai Danilevich (head of the UOC's Department of External Church Relations) stated:
The UOC disassociated itself from the Moscow Patriarchate and confirmed its independent status, and made appropriate changes to its statutes.
All references to the connection of the UOC with the Russian Orthodox Church have been removed from the statutes. In fact, in its content, the UOC statutes are now those of an autocephalous Church.
On 29 May 2022, Metropolitan Onufriy did not mention Patriarch Kirill during the liturgy as someone who had authority over him (like before), instead he commemorated all heads of churches, similar to primatial divine liturgies. Onufriy also did not commemorate the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople,
Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria, Archbishop
Ieronymos II
Ieronymos II ( el, Ιερώνυμος B’, ''Ierōnymos II'', ; born 10 March 1938) is the Archbishop of Athens and All Greece and as such the primate of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Greece. He was elected on 7 February 2008.
Ieronymos ...
of Athens (Greece), and Archbishop
Chrysostomos II of Cyprus
Chrysostomos II ( el, Χρυσόστομος Β΄), born Irodotos Dimitriou (Greek: Ηρόδοτος Δημητρίου; 10 April 1941 – 7 November 2022), was the Archbishop of Cyprus from 2006 to 2022.
Clerical career
Chrysostomos was born i ...
- indicating that communion is still interrupted between them.
In June 2022 the
Moscow Patriarchate
, native_name_lang = ru
, image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg
, imagewidth =
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia
, abbreviation = ROC
, type ...
decided to re-transfer Crimea from the Ukrainian Church of the Moscow Patriarchate by creating the
Metropolitanate of Crimea
A metropolis religious jurisdiction, or a metropolitan archdiocese, is an episcopal see whose bishop is the metropolitan bishop or archbishop of an ecclesiastical province. Metropolises, historically, have been important cities in their provinces.
...
.
Since the
2014 Russian annexation of Crimea
In February and March 2014, Russia invaded and subsequently annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. This event took place in the aftermath of the Revolution of Dignity and is part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian War.
The events in Kyiv th ...
the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) had kept control of its eparchies in
Crimea.
The UOC continues to list the Crimean eparchies and has not recognized any change to its territorial boundaries based on decisions taken by the ROC.
By early November 2022 the Security Service of Ukraine had exposed 33 alleged "agents" and alleged unofficial
artillery observers among the UOC priests and
clergy.
It had opened 23 criminal proceedings.
On 2 December 2022 Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelenskyy entered a bill to the Verkhovna Rada that would officially ban all activities of the UOC in Ukraine. On the same day, the
Kyiv Pechersk Lavra monastery was claimed to be extrajudicially transferred from the UOC to the
Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), but the UOC refuted this.
On 14 December 2022 Ukraine handed over a UOC priest to Russia in a prisoner exchange.
The priest had been sentenced for treason in Ukraine.
Administrative divisions
In October 2014 the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine was subdivided into 53
eparchies (
dioceses) led by bishops. Also there were 25
vicars (
suffragan bishop
A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations.
In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdiction ...
s).
In 2008 the Church had 42 eparchies, with 58 bishops (eparchial - 42; vicar - 12; retired - 4; with them being classified as:
metropolitan
Metropolitan may refer to:
* Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories
* Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England
* Metropolitan county, a typ ...
s - 10;
archbishop
In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
s - 21; or
bishops
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
- 26). There were also 8,516
priests, and 443
deacons.
Notwithstanding the
2014 Russian annexation of Crimea
In February and March 2014, Russia invaded and subsequently annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. This event took place in the aftermath of the Revolution of Dignity and is part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian War.
The events in Kyiv th ...
the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) kept control of its eparchies in
Crimea until June 2022.
In January 2019 the head of the Information and Educational Department of the UOC-MP, Archbishop Clement, stated that "from the point of view of the
church canon and the church system, Crimea is Ukrainian territory."
[According to the church canons, the Crimea is the territory of Ukraine - the UOC-MP]
Ukrayinska Pravda (16 January 2019)
In June 2022 the
Moscow Patriarchate
, native_name_lang = ru
, image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg
, imagewidth =
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia
, abbreviation = ROC
, type ...
decided to re-transfer Crimea from the Ukrainian Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
They did this by creating the
Metropolitanate of Crimea
A metropolis religious jurisdiction, or a metropolitan archdiocese, is an episcopal see whose bishop is the metropolitan bishop or archbishop of an ecclesiastical province. Metropolises, historically, have been important cities in their provinces.
...
.
The UOC continues to list the Crimean eparchies and has not recognized any change to its territorial boundaries based on decisions taken by the ROC.
List of Primates
Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galich, and all Little Russia
* Metropolitan
Gedeon Svyatopolk-Chetvertynsky 1685–1690, the first Metropolitan of Kyiv of the
Russian Orthodox Church, until 1688 was titled as the Metropolitan of Kyiv, Galicia, and all Ruthenia
* Metropolitan Varlaam 1690–1707
* Metropolitan Ioasaph 1707–1718
*''none'' 1718–1722
* Archbishop Varlaam 1722–1730
* Metropolitan
Raphael 1731–1747, until 1743 as Archbishop
* Metropolitan Timothy 1748–1757
* Metropolitan Arseniy 1757–1770, in 1767 Metropolitan Arseniy became Metropolitan of Kyiv and Halych
Note: in 1770 the office's jurisdiction was reduced to a diocese's administration as Metropolitan of Kyiv and Galicia. The autonomy was liquidated and the church was merged to the
Russian Orthodox Church.
Exarch of Ukraine
Due to emigration of Metropolitan
Antony Antony may refer to:
* Antony (name), a masculine given name and a surname
* Antony, Belarus, a village in the Hrodna Voblast of Belarus
* Antony, Cornwall, a village in Cornwall, United Kingdom
** Antony House, Cornwall, United Kingdom
* Antony, ...
in 1919, until
World War II Kyiv eparchy was often administered by provisional bishops. Also because of political situation in Ukraine, the Russian Orthodox Church introduced a new title in its history as the Exarch of Ukraine that until 1941 was not necessary associated with the title of Metropolitan of Kyiv and Halych.
* Metropolitan Mikhail (Yermakov) 1921–1929 (Bishop of Grodno and Brest, 1905–1921; Archbishop of Tobolsk, 1925; and Metropolitan of Kyiv, 1927–1929)
* Metropolitan Konstantin (Dyakov) 1929–1937 (Metropolitan of Kharkiv and Okhtyrka, 1927–1934 and Metropolitan of Kyiv 1934–1937)
*''none'' 1937–1941, exarch was not appointed
Metropolitan of Volyn and Lutsk, Exarch of West Ukraine and Belarus
* Metropolitan
Nicholas (Yarushevich) 1940–1941
Metropolitan of Kyiv and Halych, Exarch of Ukraine
* Metropolitan
Nicholas (Yarushevich) 1941–1944
** During
World War II, on the territories of Ukraine occupied by Nazi Germany, Metropolitan Aleksiy organized the
Ukrainian Autonomous Orthodox Church
The Ukrainian Autonomous Orthodox Church ( uk, Українська Автономна Православна Церква) was a short-lived confession that existed on territory of the Reichskommissariat Ukraine at the time when Ukraine was occupi ...
that considered itself part of the Russian Orthodox Church.
* Metropolitan John (Sokolov) 1944–1964
* Metropolitan
Joasaph (Leliukhin) 1964–1966
* Metropolitan
Filaret (Denysenko)
Patriarch Filaret (secular name ''Mykhailo Antonovych Denysenko'', born 23 January 1929) is a Ukrainian religious leader, currently serving as the primate and Patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate. The Orthodox Church o ...
1966–1990
Metropolitan of Kyiv and all Ukraine
*
Metropolitan Filaret (Denysenko) 1990–1992
*
Metropolitan Volodymyr (Sabodan) 1992–2014
*
Metropolitan Onuphrius (Berezovsky) 2014
[Metropolitan Onufriy of Chernivtsi and Bukovyna elected head of Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)](_blank)
Interfax-Ukraine
The Interfax-Ukraine ( uk, Інтерфакс-Україна) is a Kyiv-based Ukraine, Ukrainian independent news agency founded in 1992. The company does not belong to the Russian news corporation Interfax Information Services. The company pub ...
(13 August 2014)–Present
See also
*
Autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine
*
2018 Moscow–Constantinople schism
A schism between the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC, also known as the Moscow Patriarchate) and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople began on 15 October 2018 when the former unilaterally severed full communion with the latter.
The re ...
*
List of monasteries of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)
References
Sources
Tomos for Ukraine: rocking the Moscow foundation
External links
*
*
*
*
{{Authority control
Ukrainian Orthodox church bodies
Eastern Orthodox Church bodies in Europe
Self-governed churches of the Russian Orthodox Church
1990 establishments in Ukraine
Christian organizations established in 1990