Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA (UOC of USA;

Ukrainian Orthodox
Greek: Οὐκρανική Ορθόδοξος Εκκλησία ἐν HΠΑ; Spanish:
Iglesia ortodoxa ucraniana EE. UU.; Ukrainian: Українська Church of the USA
православна церква США, romanized: Ukrainska pravoslavna
tserkva SSHA) is a jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in
the United States. It consists of two eparchies (dioceses), ruled by
two bishops, including about 85 active parishes and missions.[1][2]
The Church's current leader is Metropolitan Antony. The Church's
head offices and Consistory are based in South Bound Brook,
New Jersey.
St. Andrew Memorial Church in
History South Bound Brook, New Jersey —
headquarters of the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church of the USA.
Autocephalous Church Primate Anthony (Scharba)

In 1942, when persecution of the Church in Ukraine eased under Language Ukrainian
the German occupation, a number of bishops were consecrated for Headquarters South Bound
the Ukrainian Orthodox Church there. One of these bishops, Brook, New Jersey
Archbishop Mstyslav (Skrypnyk), emigrated to Canada in 1948 to
Territory United States
head the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of
Canada. In 1949, however, he moved to the U.S. and joined the Possessions United States,
group of Bishop Bohdan (Spylka). After Archbishop Mstyslav's South America,
departure from Canada (after a disagreement with the Canadian Western Europe,
Church's governance), the Canadian Church was headed by Australia
Metropolitan Hilarion Ohienko. Mstyslav desired the unity of the
Origin 1915
two jurisdictions and worked to reconcile the two churches and
convince Teodorovych to accept re-consecration as a condition for Independence October 14, 1950
union. Recognition Autonomy granted
and recognised on
In 1950, the two rival jurisdictions held synods (in the same
March 12, 1995 by
cathedral in New York) at which unification was approved by
both, and on October 13, a combined unification synod was held, the Ecumenical
with both groups signing onto union. A number of clergy and Patriarchate of
parishes under Bishop Bohdan (Spylka) were unconvinced of the Constantinople
sincerity of the "UOC of USA" group, however, and convinced
him to reject the union. Union was proclaimed, but it was not complete, lacking the support of Spylka and
those who had convinced him to remain separate. Archbishop Mstyslav joined the new united church - the
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the US, along with a number of Spylkas' parishes, and the union was
celebrated on October 14 by those who participated.

Mstyslav died three years after his election as Patriarch, His death was followed by an enormous division of
the UOC in Ukraine, and in the United States. He was buried in a crypt under St. Andrew's Memorial
church in South Bound Brook, US. After the death of Patriarch Mstyslav, on October 20, 1993 Volodymr
(Romaniuk), at that time was the Metropolitan of Chernigov was elected Patriarch of Kyiv and all Rus-
Ukraine. Archbishop Antony was also present at the local council as he was a candidate for the position of
Patriarch as well.

Renouncing Autocephaly and joining the Metropolia of the Ecumenical

Patriarchate

Following the death of Patriarch Mstyslav in 1993, Archbishop Antony (Archbishop within the UOC-
USA) was a candidate at the “Sobor” (conclave) of the Mother Church in Kyiv, Ukraine, to succeed him as
Patriarch of the UOC-Ukraine. Archbishop Antony subsequently was unsuccessful in his candidacy, and
shortly thereafter, together with his followers within the UOC-USA, despite Patriarch Mstyslav's decree to
remain independent, clandestinely entered into contracts, and understandings with the Greek Patriarchate
Church of Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey). Archbishop Antony and his followers eventually became
hierarchs of the Greek Patriarchate Church and assumed Greek Bishop Titles. The Greek Orthodox Church
in Istanbul now claims that the UOC-USA is under its jurisdiction and that the diocese is no longer
Autocephalous (independent) and all parish properties belong to the bishops. 1994 the Hierarchs of the
UOC-USA met with the Ecumenical Patriarch in Istanbul, at the Patriarch's invitation, and came to an
agreement recognizing the canonicity of the Church and accepting the UOC-USA and the entire Ukrainian
Orthodox Church in the Diaspora into Ecumenical Patriarchate. Part of the agreement also included
Protocol 937 between Patriarch Bartholomew of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and Patriarch Alexei of the
Russian Orthodox Church which detailed that the terms of the Russian Church accepting the EP's
absorption of the UOCUSA under her omophorion was that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA
must renounce their autocephaly and not aid the church in Ukraine.[3]

On October 6, 2007, the 18th Regular Sobor of the UOC-USA nominated Hieromonk Daniel as Bishop-
Elect for the UOC of the USA.[4] On January 9, 2008, Patriarch Bartholomew and the Great and Holy
Synod of Constantinople formally elected and ritually included Archimandrite Daniel in the Diptychs of
Holy Orthodoxy as titular Bishop of Pamphilon. Bishop Daniel was consecrated as bishop in May 2008, at
St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral, Parma, OH.[4]

Schism

The act of renouncing autocephaly and entering the omophorion of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which left
the UOC-USA with no direct tie to any of the Orthodox churches in Ukraine, led to several parishes
leaving the UOC-USA to enter under the omophorion of the Kyiv Patriarchate in Ukraine, although some
supporters of these parishes argue that it is they who remain in the same church and that it is the hierarchy
of the UOC-USA which is now in a different church.[5]

A lengthy lawsuit which in 1999 the UOC-USA began against one such parish, the Church of the Holy
Ascension in Clifton, NJ, discouraged some other parishes from taking similar action. Although New
Jersey's Appellate Division eventually sided with the parishioners of Holy Ascension against the UOC-
USA and the New Jersey Supreme Court denied certification of the issue, in 2007, the Consistory of the
UOC-USA filed a fresh suit against the Church of the Holy Ascension. After this suit was dismissed with
prejudice by the Superior Court of New Jersey in June 2008, the UOC-USA filed an appeal, but on August
19, 2009, the Appellate Division affirmed the dismissal, holding "that Holy Ascension, and not the UOC-
USA, has title to the property".[6] The UOC-USA again appealed to the New Jersey Supreme Court,
which, on December 9, 2009, again denied certification.[7]
Despite the court ruling, the UOC-USA website until 2014 continued to list the Church of the Holy
Ascension and several other parishes which were legally part of the UOC-KP as parishes of the UOC-
USA.[8][9]

Structure
As of 2018 the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the USA was divided into two eparchies (dioceses):

Eastern Eparchy (North Carolina, Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, New

Jersey, New York City, Eastern Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia), headed by
Metropolitan Antony (New York City, New York-Washington D.C.)
Western Eparchy (Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska,
New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin, Florida, Georgia, Ohio, Upstate
New York, Western Pennsylvania), headed by Archbishop Daniel (Chicago, Illinois)

In total, there are about 80 parishes and one seminary - St. Sophia Ukrainian Orthodox Theological
Seminary in South Bound Brook, New Jersey. Many parishes have been closing despite moves over the
past few years to conduct the liturgy in English and appoint convert priests to appeal to the masses. Besides
the two hierarchs, the clergy consist of 106 priests and 15 deacons. 15 of the parishes currently have either
no pastor or are served by clergy in their deanery.

See also
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada
History of Christianity in Ukraine
St. Andrew Cathedral, Silver Spring
Ukrainian History and Education Center

Notes
1. "Parishes" (https://www.assemblyofbishops.org/directories/parishes?searchType=jurisdictio
n&jur=ukr). Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America.
Retrieved 2021-10-23.
2. "Directory of Parishes" (https://www.uocofusa.org/directories_parishes.html).
www.uocofusa.org. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
3. admin. "BRUOC Educational Videos" (http://www.bruoc.ca/documents/EasternChurchesJou
rnal-v2-n3+Protocol+937.pdf) (PDF). www.bruoc.ca.
4. "Ecumenical Patriarchate" (http://www.ec-patr.org/hierarchs/show.php?lang=en&id=175).
Retrieved 21 June 2016.
5. "Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral" (http://cliftonorthodoxcathedral.org/saveouruoc.html).
Retrieved 21 June 2016.
6. "UKRAINIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. JOHN
LUCHEJKO" (http://law.justia.com/cases/new-jersey/appellate-division-unpublished/2009/a
5893-07-opn.html). Retrieved 21 June 2016.
7. http://cliftonorthodoxcathedral.org/images/SupremeCourtDENIED.pdf
8. "Directory of Parishes" (http://www.uocofusa.org/directories_parishes.html). Retrieved
21 June 2016.
9. Трофимлюк, протоієрей Олександр. "Сайти УПЦ Київського Патріархату - Ukrainian
Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP)" (http://www.cerkva.info/en/websites/site-uo
 c-kp.html). Retrieved 21 June 2016.

References
Text originally taken from Orthodoxwiki:Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the USA
Hewlett, Dn. Edward. The Formation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada
Surrency, Archim. Serafim. The Quest for Orthodox Church Unity in America: A History of the
Orthodox Church in North America in the Twentieth Century. New York: Saints Boris and
Gleb Press, 1973.
Eastern Christian Churches: The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the US and Diaspora, by
Ronald Roberson, a Roman Catholic priest and scholar
An Outline of the History of the Metropolia Center of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the
USA (official website)

External links
official website (http://www.uocofusa.org)
old website (http://www.uaocamerica.org)
Profile of the UOC-USA on the Association of Religion Data Archives website (http://www.th
earda.com/Denoms/D_1293.asp)
Article on the UOC-USA by Ronald Roberson on the CNEWA website (https://cnewa.org/eas
tern-christian-churches/toc/orthodox-church/churches-under-constantinople/ukrainian-of-usa
-diaspora-churches-under-constantinople/)

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