The "Tomos" decree declaring the independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church was signed by Bartholomew, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople at St George's Cathedral in Istanbul |
The
Istanbul-based Orthodox patriarch on Sunday handed over a formal decree
confirming the creation of an independent Ukrainian church to its leader,
Metropolitan Yepifaniy.
The decree
was signed at a landmark ceremony on Saturday, putting the formal stamp on a
break with the Russian Orthodox church which has infuriated Moscow.
The
document was handed over by Patriarch Bartholomew during an Epiphany service at
St George's Cathedral in Istanbul, an AFP correspondent said, completing the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople's recognition of the
newly-independent Ukrainian church.
Ukraine's
President Petro Poroshenko, who attended Saturday's signing ceremony, was also
present for the mass.
Known as a
Tomos decree, the document grants autonomy to the Ukrainian Orthodox church
which until now has been overseen by Moscow for more than 330 years.
The decree
opens the way for Ukraine's Orthodox Church to be recognised by other branches
of orthodoxy and other churches.
The
Constantinople Patriarchate, based in modern-day Istanbul and considered the
first among equals in the Orthodox world, first agreed to recognise the
independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in October.
Then in
December a historic council of Orthodox bishops in Kiev created the independent
body and chose 39-year-old Metropolitan Yepifaniy as its head, whose secular
name is Sergiy Dumenko.
He has been
a long time critic of Moscow's religious influence in Ukraine.
The move
has dealt a huge blow to Moscow's spiritual authority in the Orthodox world,
prompting it to cut all ties with the Constantinople Patriarchate in protest.
Ukraine and
Russia have been at loggerheads since 2014, when Kiev street protests calling
for Ukraine's integration with Europe led to the fall of pro-Moscow president
Viktor Yanukovych.
Russia
subsequently annexed Crimea and has supported Russian-speaking separatists in
Ukraine's east in a conflict that has claimed the lives of more than 10,000
people.
Ukraine is
home to millions of believers who belong to the Orthodox Church, but their
loyalties are divided between the Kiev and Moscow patriarchates.
Analysts
said the ceremony was "the first step in a long road", indicating it
was not clear which of Ukraine's bishops would choose to join the new church.
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