Ukrainian Orthodoxy’s 5th Year of Autocephaly
Five years ago, on 6 January, 2019, on one of the most important feasts in our church – the Holy Theophany of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ – the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople officially recognized the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).
The decision to recognize Ukraine’s desire for an autocephalous church will for centuries share the symbolic message of Theophany: the celebration of the baptism of Jesus Christ in the River Jordan, a ritual act of blessing and regeneration, paired with the spiritual regeneration of the Ukrainian nation, historically baptized in the waters of the Dnipro River over 1,000 years ago.
After centuries of struggle, the historic act of handing over the Tomos of Autocephaly manifested the goal many never thought would happen in their lifetime: a single, united Orthodox Church of Ukraine, a true blessing for Ukrainians around the world. Indeed, since this historic event, over 1000 parishes have migrated into communion with the OCU amid a rising wave of public annoyance at clerics who pledged fealty to Moscow; since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began alone, nearly 600 religious institutions have transitioned to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA), the largest representation of Americans of Ukrainian descent, expresses gratitude on behalf of the community it represents to the worldwide leader of the Orthodox community, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, for granting the Tomos of Autocephaly to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, as well as to our church leaders in the United States, both Metropolitan Antony and Archbishop Daniel, for their work in shepherding this truly historic achievement.
Source: The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America