UPTsKP SYNOD CONFIRMS NEW FULL TITLE OF PRIMATE OF CHURCH
On 20 October 2018, in the Synod Hall of the Kiev patriarchate, under the chairmanship of Patriarch of Kiev and all-Rus-Ukraine Filaret, a session of the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate (UPTsKP) was held.
The members of the Synod discussed the question of the title of the primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate.
The issue was that the overwhelming majority of primates of local Orthodox churches have a full and an abbreviated form of their title. The full form of the title expresses the status of the primate as first among the bishops (an archbishop) of the respective nation (see Apostolic Rule 34), as a hierarch (metropolitan) of an ecclesiastical district (diocese), historic titles, and (if it exists) the title of patriarch.
Traditionally in local churches of the Greek national tradition, the title "His Holiness" is used only with respect to the archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome, the ecumenical patriarch, and all other primates are titled "His Beatitude." In other local churches, except for the Romanian, the title "His Holiness" is used for all patriarchs. The primate of the Georgian Orthodox Church bears the title "His Holiness and Beatitude."
The historic title of hierarchs of the Kiev metropolitanate of the Constantinople patriarchate includes the personal status—"Orthodox Archbishop," the status of the head of a large ecclesiastical district—"Metropolitan of Kiev, Gallitsa, and all-Rus (the variant "Russia" exists). Also, the title of the Kiev hierarch historically reflects especially significant holy places subject to him as a Holy Archimandrite--the Holy Dormition Kiev caves lavra.
The UPTsKP Synod ruled:
1. To introduce for the primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate a full and an abbreviated form of the title, because of changes that have occurred in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, taking into account the historic tradition and practice of local Orthodox churches and other significant circumstances.
2. The full title has the following form: "His Holiness and Beatitude (name), Archbishop and Metropolitan of Kiev—the Mother of Russian cities—and Gallitsa, Patriarch of all-Rus-Ukraine, and Holy Archimandrite of the Holy Dormition Kiev caves and Pochaev lavras.
The abbreviated title has the following form: "His Holiness (name), Patriarch of Kiev and all-Rus-Ukraine."
3. In relations with other local Orthodox churches the permitted form is "His Beautitude Archbishop (name), Metropolitan of Kiev and all-Rus-Ukraine" and derivatives thereof.
4. In liturgies, the title of the primate is proclaimed in accordance with the texts of the service book (sluzhebnik) and archieratikon (chinovnik) of the hierarchical service adopted in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate: "His Holiness (name), Patriarch of Kiev and all-Rus-Ukraine." (tr. by PDS, posted 22 October 2018)
EXPERT EXPLAINS SIGNIFICANCE OF NEW TITLE OF SCHISMATIC FILARET
The change of the title of the primate of the uncanonical church structure of Ukraine, Filaret, who in Kiev now intends to be called also "Holy Archimandrite of the Kiev caves and Pochaev lavras," speaks of plans to seize these holy places, the church historian Vladislav Petrushko thinks.
The Kiev caves and Pochaev lavras are under the control of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UPTs). The residence of the primate of the UPTs, Metropolitan Onufrey, and the synodal departments are located in the monastery of the caves.
"Actually the seizure of the Kiev caves and Pochaev lavras, as the chief holy places of Ukrainian Orthodoxy, which are a symbol, has been announced. It seems to the schismatics that whoever controls them may claim to be a kind of expression of all of Ukrainian Orthodoxy. Although such a formal approach is impossible for true believers. But since this structure thinks in more political and earthly categories, then control of one wall or another is fundamentally important for them," Petrushko stated at a press conference in the Russia Today news agency.
The expert suggests that if any legal actions on the part of Ukrainian authorities are taken that affect the status of the lavras, then this may serve as a signal for various right-wing radical groups. Petrushko recalls that they have often been marked by attempts to seize these holy places.
In 1992, by decision of the Bishops' Council of the RPTs, Filaret (secular name, Mikhail Denisenko) was unfrocked and deprived of all degrees of priesthood for "causing schism in the church" and also for "dictating and blackmailing," "perjury," and a number of other acts. Two years later, "because of lack of repentance on the part of the monk Filaret," the Bishops' Council of the RPTs warned him about a possible anathema. In the end, in February 1997 he was excommunicated from the church.
Other local Orthodox churches of the world, including the Constantinople church and its primate Patriarch Bartholomew personally, supported the decision of the Moscow patriarchate regarding Filaret. The schismatic "Kiev patriarchate," which he created, has until now not been recognized by a single local Orthodox church, and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate is considered to be the only canonical structure in Ukraine. This is attested by documents, including a letter by patriarch Bartholomew to Patriarch Alexis II and interviews and other articles in news medias.
However, on 11 October 2018 the patriarchate of Constantinople decided to remove the anathema from Filaret and to restore him, and also another schismatic Ukrainian leader, Makary, and their followers "to their episcopal or hierarchical rank" and "to return their believers to ecclesiastical communion. . . ." (tr. by PDS, posted 22 October 2018)
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