On January 6 the Tomos of autocephaly was presented in Istanbul to the new Orthodox Church of Ukraine. Below are the reactions of Ukrainian diaspora organizations to this historic event. All the statements were released on January 6.
Ukrainian World Congress
On January 6, 2019, in Istanbul, Republic of Turkey, following the celebration of a joint divine liturgy, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew ceremoniously presented the Tomos to His Beatitude Epifaniy, Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine, thus concluding the historic process of granting autocephaly to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.
“The Tomos, received from the Mother Church of Constantinople, returns Ukrainian Orthodoxy to its historic roots, restores historical justice and strengthens the dignity of all faithful in Ukraine,” stated UWC President Paul Grod. “We join the appeal of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to all leaders of autocephalous Orthodox Churches to recognize the newly created Orthodox Church of Ukraine.”
The completion on December 15, 2018, of the Unification Synod, which established the single native autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine and elected its primate, and the presentation of the Tomos by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is a solid foundation for restoring the unity of Orthodoxy in Ukraine.
The Orthodox Church of Ukraine now becomes part of the global religious landscape, consolidating and expanding its authority not only in the world of Orthodoxy, but also among all Christian Churches and international religious organizations.
On January 5, 2019, members of an official delegation from Ukraine and the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) participated in a solemn ceremony of signing the Tomos by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and a joint prayer service in the Patriarchal Church of St. George. The ceremony during which the Tomos was symbolically presented was held on January 6, 2019 – the eve of the celebration in Ukraine of the Birth of Christ.
Among those attending the ceremony of the presentation of the Tomos were President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Andriy Parubiy, and hierarchs of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The UWC was represented at this solemn event by UWC President Paul Grod and Director of the UWC Mission in Ukraine Serhiy Kasyanchuk.
Ukrainian Canadian Congress
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) warmly welcomes the long-awaited Tomos of autocephaly for the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, received by His Beatitude Epiphaniy, primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine.
His Beatitude Epiphaniy received the Tomos of autocephaly from His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholemew I, archbishop of Constantinople, in Istanbul today.
His Eminence Metropolitan Yurij, primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada, stated, “The Tomos of autocephaly for the Orthodox Church of Ukraine is a declaration both of independence and unity. The Orthodox Church of Ukraine becomes the 15th administrative jurisdiction within the one Orthodox Church, equal to all the others. As a historical event, its reception is second in importance only to the Baptism of Rus’-Ukraine itself. It is a symbol of spiritual independence within an independent state.”
“This is an epochal day for all Ukrainians, no matter what their faith or confession is,” stated Alexandra Chyczij, president of the UCC. “With the granting of the Tomos of Autocephaly, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine takes its rightful place among the world’s Orthodox Churches. The recognition by the world of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine as an independent, autocephalous Church has been awaited for many decades by the Ukrainian people. Today, on the eve of Christmas in Ukraine, a new chapter in the history of Ukraine begins.”
With today’s granting of the Tomos of autocephaly to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, a historical injustice has been corrected. Centuries of foreign colonialism saw the Ukrainian nation’s language, culture, faith and identity attacked and suppressed. In 1991, exercising their inviolable right to self-determination, the Ukrainian people declared independence, and an indivisible, sovereign, democratic state – Ukraine – was formed.
But the vestiges of hundreds of years of foreign tyranny endured. One such vestige was the dubious claim by Russia of control over the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The Ukrainian people were thus denied the basic right to their own faith, traditions and identity. Today, the Russian Church’s oppressive dominance over Ukraine has once and for all been rejected by the world’s Orthodox community.
Ukrainian Congress Committee of America
On January 6, on one of the most important feasts in Eastern Orthodoxy – Theophany – the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople officially recognized the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.
The decision to recognize Ukraine’s desire for an autocephalous church on January 6 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 a Tomos manifests 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.
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, and congratulates all Ukrainians of faith with this truly historic achievement.