The Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, held on August 16-28,
reviewed the recommendations of the Synodal committees for the dogmatic
and canonical issues, as well as Orthodox and inter-Christian relations
and recognized the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s right to grant
autocephalies to various Churches including the Orthodox Church of
Ukraine (OCU).
Unfortunately, both the committees’ conclusions and the bases which
they were made on remain concealed from the public. On the one hand, the
faithful cannot have in-depth knowledge of Canons and Church history,
and their business is to take care of personal salvation, not of the
developments between the Local Churches.
At the same time, within years of Religious studies at education
institutions, which was opposed by Tsipras’ government, there appeared
many generations of faithful who take interest in the history of
Ecumenical Councils and Church as these issues matter for personal
salvation (which is impossible without the Church and participating in
its life and Sacraments). Moreover, those who believe not only because
of a national tradition believe the Church is a consolidated universal
organism and cannot be indifferent to the challenges that Local Churches
are facing.
So, what do we know
about granting autocephalies? What the committees’ conclusion could
be based on? This question can be answered by Metropolitan Hierothos
of Nafpaktos and St. Vlasios.
Common rules of receiving an autocephalous status
The Church Pentarchy
was introduced by Ecumenical Councils (II, IV and Trullo), and the
primacy in the dyptychs of Old Rome, New Rome, Alexandria, Antioch,
Jerusalem.
The autocephaly of
the Church of Cyprus was granted by the III Ecumenical Council.
As it’s known, all
the contemporary Patriarchates received autocephalies and patriarchal
statuses from the Protothronos Church of New Rome – Constantinople
(the Ecumenical Patriarchate) through oikonomia: “using the good
principle of oikonomia”, after their political authorities pleaded
for it (it was always inherent to the process of granting the
autocephalous status but not that common when the patriarchal status
was bestowed).
This is relevant to
the Patriarchates of Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Georgia and
Autocephalous Churches of Greece, Poland, Albania, the Czech Lands
and Slovakia. The same can be said about the Autocephalous Churches
of Finland and Estonia.
The tomes through
which autocephalies and patriarchal statuses were bestowed to various
Churches read that an Ecumenical Council must be convened so that all
Autocephalous Churches completely recognize their autocephalies.
Hence, there exists a Canonical rule, as mentioned in the Canons of
Ecumenical Councils, which recognize the Pentarchy of Thrones, and the
Church of New Rome – Constantinople has equal privileges with the See of
Old Rome. After it fell, New Rome became the Protothronos Church with
special preferences and competence.
There is also the law of custom (it is mentioned by canonist
Anastasios Vavouskos) which was established in the 16th century and
which pertains to the newer Patriarchates and autocephalies that were
granted by the decision (ἀπεφηνά – μεθα – “decide” – “determine”) of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate and its Synod since new states appeared, i.e.
for nationalistic reasons.
The procedure of granting autocephaly and signing the tomos
The autocephaly of
the Church of Greece was granted by the Protothronos Church of New
Rome and was signed by the Ecumenical Patriarch (“decided”) and
by five former Patriarchs of Constantinople (“jointly decided”),
Patriarch of Jerusalem (“jointly decided”) and other archbishops
of the Holy See (without the “jointly decided” wording).
In the 20th century,
in an attempt to resolve the issue of granting autocephaly on the eve
of the Holy and Great Council, a Pan-Orthodox discussion on granting
an autocephaly to this or that Church. At the First Pre-Conciliar
Conference held in Geneva in November, 1976, there were presented
papers on “Autocephaly and Ways of Declaring It” that stress that
a Church wishing to become autocephalous addresses its Mother Church,
which then, if it agrees, hands this plea to the Ecumenical
Patriarchate.
If the other Local
Churches agree, the Ecumenical Patriarchate declares the
autocephalous status of a Church by issuing the patriarchal tomos
signed by the Ecumenical Patriarch, who is preferably joined by the
Primates of all Autocephalous Churches, while the signature of the
Primate of the Mother Church is necessary.
Thus, there is a
request from a Church, the consent of the Mother Church and all other
Churches, and the declaration of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the
patriarchal tomos.
Unfortunately,
however, because of the Church of Russia and some other Churches
supporting it, no agreement was reached regarding this text as,
according to them, the tomos should be signed (with the “decided”
wording) not only by the Ecumenical Patriarch, but also by Church
Primates (without the “jointly decided” wording). That is why the
text wasn’t reviewed at the Holy and Great Council convened in 2016
at Kolymbari in Crete.
As a result, the issue of granting autocephaly according to Canonical
exactness wasn’t resolved but per oikonomia, as it happened before, the
autocephaly is granted by the Ecumenical Patriarchate with its
customary right. That is the autocephalies bestowed to other Churches
only by the Ecumenical Patriarchate weren’t recognized according to
Canonical exactness, though they desired it.
Doubts concerning the “episcopacy” of hierarchs
As for the issue of how the Ecumenical Patriarchate recognized the
“episcopacy” of bishops “ordained” by defrocked , schismatic or
“self-ordained” bishops, a Church must ask the Ecumenical Patriarchate
how it reinstated those “bishops” before making any decision. This is
envisaged in the Synodical and Patriarchal Tomos of 1850, through which
the Church of Greece received its autocephaly.
It reads: “In the Ecclesiastical issues which arise and require
consultation and cooperation for better oikonomia and support of the
Orthodox Church, it is pleasing that the Holy Synod in Greece refer to
the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Holy Synod about them. The Ecumenical
Patriarch, along with his Holy and Sacred Synod, will gladly grant its
cooperation, announcing the things that must be to the Holy Synod of the
Church of Greece.”
Therefore, for example, the Ukrainian issue requires collaboration
and cooperation with the Ecumenical Patriarchate especially since the
Autocephalous Church of Greece “temporarily” administers the Ecumenical
Patriarchate’s dioceses in Greece. If this doesn’t happen, the Synodical
and Patriarchal Tomos of the Church of Greece will be undermined.
Aegis of the Church of Greece and its Council of Hierarchy
It is a basic Canonical principle that a church should not intervene
in the decisions that are under the aegis of other churches, and much
more in the decisions of the Protothronos Church of the Ecumenical
Patriarchate. Since it has additional responsibilities in the leadership
and the proper functioning of all the Orthodox Churches. A church
should not judge another church’s decisions prior to an Ecumenical
Council, to which the decisions are referred for completion.
Therefore, the
Church of Greece cannot refuse to accept the decision of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate regarding the patriarchal tomos of
autocephaly granted to the Church in Ukraine. Rather, for the time
being, it must accept this decision, and wait to express its opinion
and judgment when the Ecumenical Council is convened. There, the way
in which autocephaly was granted, not only for Ukraine, but also for
the other churches, will be judged. Not accepting the way in which
the patriarchal tomos for the autocephaly of Ukraine was granted
would call into question the autocephalies of the eight other
autocephalous churches, including the autocephaly of the Church of
Greece, as these autocephalies were granted only by the Ecumenical
Patriarchate per oikonomia.
Moreover, this issue, which concerns the granting of autocephaly to
Ukraine, cannot be put to a vote by the hierarchy because in such a case
we will interfere in the affairs of another Church, and in this case,
the Ecumenical Patriarchate itself, which retains “the highest canonical
right” in the dioceses of the “Most Holy, Apostolic, and Patriarchal
Throne” in Greece, and in the so-called New Lands.
*Tamar Lomidze is a journalist covers some events of the Orthodox life and Church-State relations.eurasiareview