Macedonian hierarch: Autocephaly must be granted by Mother Church

Metropolitan Jovan of Kruševo and Demir Hisar. Photo: Sloboden Pecat TV

Metropolitan Jovan of Kruševo and Demir Hisar (Macedonian Orthodox Church) in an interview with Martin Bogatinoski's podcast spoke about the unresolved issue of granting autocephaly in Orthodoxy and critically assessed Constantinople's actions in the Ukrainian church issue.

The archbishop reminded that at the 2016 Crete Council, consensus could not be reached on the key issue: who has the right to grant autocephaly to local Churches. "There were two initiatives," explained the metropolitan. "The first: that only the Ecumenical Patriarchate could ultimately provide the tomos. The second: that all Orthodox Churches must agree for a Church to become autocephalous upon the proposal of the Mother Church."

Since a consensus was not reached, the issue of autocephaly was not brought to the Council. "And now there are two options left: either the Constantinople Patriarchate grants autocephaly, or the Mother Church," stated the hierarch.

The Macedonian archbishop insists on the necessity of adopting a unified principle of granting autocephaly through the Mother Church. Using the example of the tomos granted to the Macedonian Church by the Serbian Patriarchate, he emphasized: "Two tomoses are not needed. One decision is enough. But if the Orthodox world accepts the initial principle that autocephaly is granted by the Mother Church, then this principle must always be observed," emphasized Bishop Jovan. According to him, this principle should apply to all local Churches: "And if it happens that the Russian Church grants autocephaly to Ukraine tomorrow, the others should simply accept it."

When asked by a journalist whether the Macedonian Church also needs a tomos from Constantinople, the metropolitan answered negatively.

However, he warned that without a final resolution of this issue, the MOC risks remaining only partially recognized.

The bishop expressed concern about the deepening schism in Orthodoxy between the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Russian Church. "I am deeply troubled by the emergence of another kind of division. At some level, we are required to make a clear definition: either you are with one or the other," said the metropolitan. "I think we should not make such a choice because we ourselves have tragically gone through a period of disunity with other Churches."

The Macedonian hierarch emphasized that the Church should not succumb to geopolitical divisions: "Geopolitics creates its clans and tries to force us to join someone. But the essence of the Church is unity. First of all, in the unity of local Churches, and then all of us among ourselves. Because Christ is the God not only of one group of people or one nation, He is also the God of my opponent."

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that, according to Metropolitan Jovan, the OCU lacks apostolic succession, and this is a problem for Orthodoxy.

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