This report, recently published in the Greek original by Romfea.gr, details the process by which the committees tasked by the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece with studying the issue of Ukrainian Autocephaly decided to support the decision of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. It is as notable for what it did not take into account as it is for what it did.
To
His Beatitude the Archbishop of Athens and all Greece
IERONYMOS
President of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece
Topic: Submission of a memorandum regarding recognition of the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine
Most Blessed Master,
Following Your Venerable Order no. 952/414 from March 5, by which the Synodal Committee for Dogmatic and Legal-Canonical Affairs and the Synodal Committee for Inter-Orthodox and Inter-Christian Relations were commissioned with jointly studying the issue of recognizing the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, we respectfully report the following:
I. The Synodal Committee for Dogmatic and Legal-Canonical Affairs first of all treated the subject individually at two Sessions on March 6 and May 22. At its first session, it thoroughly studied all the relevant documents submitted for its consideration, including:
i) Letter no. 01/6656/12-12-2018 of His Beatitude Patriarch Kirill of Moscow.
ii) The Letter of His Beatitude Metropolitan Epiphany of Kiev and All Ukraine from December 17, 2018.
iii) Letter no. 119/24-12-2018 of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
iv) The Letter of Reply no. 1/7019/30-12-2018 of His Beatitude Patriarch Kirill of Moscow to His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
v) Letter no. 33/16-1-2019 of His Eminence Metropolitan of Kiev and All Ukraine Onufry.
vi) Letter no. 4/6-2-2019 of Patriarch Irinej of Serbia.
vii) Letter no. 8/12-2-2019 of His Beatitude Archbisop Rastislav of Presov and all Czechia and Slovakia.
viii) Letter no. 4/14-2-2019 of His Beatitude Patriarch Irenej of Serbia.
ix) Letter no. 198/10-5-2019 of His Beatitude Metropolitan Savva of Warsaw and All Poland to His All-Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew.
x) The treatise of Metropolitan Basil of Anchialos (provided by the Ecumenical Patriarch) about the validity of the ordination of Clergy ordained by a deposed and schismatic Bishop.
xi) The treatise of Metropolitan Gregorios of Chios about the union of the Armenians with the Eastern Orthodox Church.
xii) The document from March 30, 2019 by His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agios Vlasios about the proclamation of local Orthodox Churches as autocephalous.
xiii) Document no. 47/16-4-2019 by His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agios Vlasios about the granting of autocephaly to the Church of Ukraine. And,
xiv) The memorandum of His Eminence Metropolitan Gavriel of Nea Ionia and Philadelphia entitled “The Issue of the Validity of the Ordinations of Hierarchs who Split from the Patriarchate of Moscow”.
It then decided, following an interactive discussion, that one of its members, Professor Vlasios Fidas, would prepare a Recommendatory Note on the topic from a canonical standpoint. At its second Session, the Synodal Committee elaborated and submitted this Suggestion of Professor Vlasios Fidas, ending with a Memorandum which was taken into consideration by the Synodal Committee on Inter-Orthodox and Inter-Christian Relations.
The Synodal Committee on Inter-Orthodox and Inter-Christian Relations treated the topic individually at two Sessions, on March 13 and May 22, the relative Memorandum of the Synodal Committee for Dogmatic and Legal-Canonical Affairs was submitted.
II. This past May 28, a joint Session was convened joining the two Synodal Committees under the Presidency of My Paucity and the co-presidency of His Eminence Metropolitan Ignatios of Demetrias and Almyros. After a wide-ranging debate on the topic, the synodal Committees unanimously came to conclusions in the form of a Memorandum, which is hereby submitted to the judgment of the Holy Synod, for its benefit.
III. In order to facilitate discussion on the matter before the Holy Synod, we cite, in summary, some historical facts:
988 — The Baptism of the Russians and the foundation of the Metropolis of Kiev by the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
1448 — The separation of the Metropolis of Moscow from that of Kiev.
1589 — Recognition of the Patriarchal dignity of the Metropolis of Moscow by Ecumenical Patriarch Ieremias II.
1590 — The Synod of Patriarchs in Constantinople on this topic.
1593 — Recognition of the Patriarchal dignity of the Metropolis of Moscow by the Patriarchs of the East.
1686 — The issuing of the Patriarchal and Synodal Praxis of Ecumenical Patriarch Dionysios IV, through which it was granted to Moscow “to have permission” as guardian to ordain and enthrone each Metropolitan of Kiev elected by a Clergy-Laity Assembly, who is obliged to commemorate first of all the name of the Ecumenical Patriarch.
1700 — Dissolution of the Patriarchate of Moscow by Peter the Great. The Church of Russia is governed by a Holy Synod.
1917 — The re-establishment of the Patriarchate of Moscow. Rule of the Bolshevik regime with a well-known persecution of the Church and the imprisonment of Patriarch Tikhon.
1918 — Independence of Poland.
1919 — Unilateral proclamation of autocephaly of the Church in Ukraine.
1921 — Rule of the Bolshevik regime in Ukraine and persecutions against the Church.
1925 — Proclamation of the autocephaly of the Church of Poland by Ecumenical Patriarch Gregorios VII (parts of present-day Ukraine {Volynia, Polesia, Lvov, Ternopol, the Monastery of Pochaev}, Belorussia {Brest, Grodno} and Lithuania {Vilna} come under the newly-established Church of Poland).
1939 — The occupation of the western part of Ukraine by German troops.
1945 — Rule of the Communist regime in Ukraine and the abolition of any ecclesiastical order (the Church is governed by Karpov).
1990 — The dissolution of the Soviet Union.
1992 — Ukraine is recognized as an independent State.
1992 — The hierarchy of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine requests its autocephaly in a Memorandum to the Ecumenical Patriarch (the request is also signed by Metropolitan Onufry), the deposal and anathematization of Filaret by the Patriarchate of Moscow.
IV) Below are the basic canonical positions for You to take into consideration.
1. The Ecumenical Patriarchate never granted the Patriarchate of Moscow jurisdiction over the Metropolis of Kiev. Moscow was granted by the Praxis of 1686 “to have permission” as guardian only the right to ordain and enthrone each Metropolitan of Kiev elected by a Clergy-Laity Assembly, who who is obliged to commemorate first of all the name of the Ecumenical Patriarch.
2. The Ecumenical Patriarchate has the privilege of “appeal” even with Hierarchs of other regions, if and so long as the Hierarch making the appeal desires to submit a request (see Filaret-Makary) (Canons 9 and 17 of the Fourth Ecumenical Council).
3. The Ecumenical Patriarchate has always had the undiminished canonical right not only as it is obliged by concern for supporting Orthodox Churches that are going through trials or difficult circumstances, but also the canonical obligation to undertake in a timely manner all necessary measures to anticipate, prevent or treat threats or trials endangering their ecclesiastical body. Furthermore, the entire history of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, both in good times and bad, in fact bears witness of her always selfless or even sacrificial offering to all the Orthodox Churches going through difficult circumstances.
4. The Ecumenical Patriarchate alone has the canonical privilege to proclaim the autocephaly of local Orthodox Churches (see Georgia 1990, Czechia 1998, Poland 1925, Albania 1937, Greece 1850, Serbia 1879, Romania 1885, Bulgaria 1945, etc.). Unfortunately, because the Patriarchate of Moscow was absent from the Council of Crete in 2016, it was not possible to discuss the question of granting autocephaly, so it lost the opportunity to decide together with the other Churches about its granting.
5. According to Article 3 of the Constitution currently in force, “The Orthodox Church of Greece, which recognizes as her Head our Lord Jesus Christ, is inextricably dogmatically united with the Great Church of Constantinople and with every other like-believing Church of Christ, unwaveringly adheres, like them, to the sacred apostolic and synodal canons and the sacred traditions. It is autocephalous, governed by the Holy Synod of active Hierarchs and by the Permanent Holy Synod which comes from it and is composed as is set forth by the Charter of the Church, in accordance with the provisions of the Patriarchal Tomos of June 29, 1850 and the Synodal Praxis of September 4, 1928.
In light of the above, considering the issue of the autocephaly of the Church of Ukraine, from the canonical and indeed legal viewpoint, we respectfully suggest that there is no obstacle to recognizing the autocephaly of the Church of Ukraine and the total harmonization and agreement of the Church of Greece with the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
The President of the the Synodal Committee for Dogmatic and Legal-Canonical Affairs
Metropolitan Damaskinos of Didymoteicho and Orestiada
The President of the Synodal Committee for Inter-Orthodox and Inter-Christian Relations
Metropolitan Ignatios of Demetrias and Almyros
Orthodox Synaxis 