Metropolitan Luke: Autocephaly, asserted in contradiction to sobornost, becomes a source of division

Metropolitan Luka of Zaporizhzhya and Melitopol expressed the opinion that forcing the issue of the autocephalous status of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church at present is untimely and may lead to division instead of strengthening unity. According to him, administrative ecclesiastical forms should not be placed above the dogmatic purity of faith and living unity in Christ. This is reported in a publication on one of the Orthodox Telegram channels.

The hierarch believes that the active promotion of the topics of acquiring autocephaly and legitimizing the decisions of the Council in Theophany in 2022 carries the risk of distracting the Church from more pressing challenges. He emphasized that the basis of the Orthodox confession always remains the truth about the unity of the Body of Christ. “Church forms of governance, including autocephaly, have only auxiliary significance and do not determine the holiness or spiritual health of the Church, ” the Metropolitan noted, suggesting that discussion of these issues be postponed until more suitable conditions arise.

Metropolitan Luke paid special attention to potential distortions of the very essence of autocephaly. He warned that where it is “asserted in contradiction to the principle of sobornost, it ceases to be an instrument of unity and turns into a source of division.” In his opinion, some supporters of autonomy, whether intentionally or not, bring into this concept ideas of national exclusivity or use it as an instrument of political influence, which deprives autocephaly of its spiritual benefit.

From the hierarch’s point of view, for the Orthodox believer, it is not the degree of administrative dependence of the Church that is of paramount importance, but its fidelity to the Gospel, purity of faith and the opportunity to participate in the Sacraments. “The Orthodox consciousness of a Christian lives where a person sees himself as a member of the united Body of Christ, not a separate, even if religious, national organization,” he said.

Metropolitan Luke concluded by referring to the Holy Fathers’ ecclesiology, recalling that “he who has a bishop but has no unity with the whole Church is deceived.” This thought emphasizes his main thesis about the priority of the all-Church unity over any administrative models of structure.

We would like to remind you that Metropolitan Anthony (Pakanich), Metropolitan of Boryspil and Brovary, who is in charge of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, analyzed the history of autocephalous movements in Ukraine in the twentieth century, concluding that they were invariably connected with political shifts rather than with the needs of the Church. According to the hierarch, the desire for autocephaly was seen primarily as an attribute of statehood rather than a means for salvation, which led to schisms and historical instability.