A scandal erupts in the United States over Archbishop Elpidophoros' opposition to attempts to protect the Ukrainian Orthodox Church

A serious scandal is erupting in the Orthodox community in the United States over the actions of the local hierarch of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, Archbishop Elpidophoros (Lambriniadis), aimed at neutralizing efforts to protect the rights of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The editorial office of the Union of Orthodox Journalists of the United States received a letter that Archbishop Elpidophoros wrote to Patriarch Bartholomew in November 2025. In it, the head of the American Archdiocese of Phanar expressed concern about the activities of the Society of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco and the Union of Orthodox Journalists of America (UOJ in the United States) in connection with the situation around the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC). In the letter, the Phanar hierarch expressed his point of view on the actions taken by these organizations in the US government to convey the real state of affairs in Ukrainian Orthodoxy.

According to the text of the letter, Archbishop Elpidophoros and Protopresbyter Alex Karloutsos visited Washington to “prevent developments and inform officials” about the “real state of affairs” in Ukraine. Nevertheless, the Day of Action was held in December, which many consider a successful pan-Orthodox initiative that contributed, among other things, to the placement of Metropolitan Arseniy under house arrest.

In the letter, Archbishop Elpidophoros criticizes the UOJ in the United States for “propaganda” and calls the Society of St. John “an allegedly pan-Orthodox organization.” He also mentions the cancellation of some meetings in November due to his personal efforts, coordinated with Protopresbyter Alex Karloutsos.

Archbishop Elpidophoros emphasizes that the situation around the UOC complicates Orthodox cooperation in the diaspora and that the Ukrainian side, in his opinion, cannot convince the international community of the validity of the measures taken against Metropolitan Onufriy and his church structure.

Finally, Archbishop Elpidophoros expresses concern about the independence of the actions of the Order of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which, in his opinion, should concern the Mother Church. The full text of the letter is available on the UOJ website.

Earlier, we reported that the Ukrainian authorities suspended the implementation of the plan to ban the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) and its unification with the OCU after the intervention of the American side. According to political analyst Mykhailo Pavliv, the plan was put on hold because of the position of US Vice President J.D. Vance, who oversees the domestic political situation in Ukraine.