True Orthodox Church of Greece (Matthew Synod)

The True Orthodox Church of Greece (Matthaios Synod) (also Church of the True Orthodox Christians of Greece (Matthaios Synod) , English also Matthewites ) is an old calendar Orthodox Church in Greece . It is not recognized by most of the Orthodox churches .

Structures

The Church is organized in nine metropolises in Greece and has parishes in France, Belgium, Bulgaria, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Canada, the USA, Congo and Cameroon. It is directed by the Archbishop of Athens and all of Greece.

It is in communion with the Church of the True Orthodox Christians of the paternal tradition of Cyprus ,

Teaching

The Church follows the Byzantine rite in liturgy and spiritual life. It has the Julian calendar in contrast to the Orthodox Church of Greece .

It rejects the introduction of the New Julian calendar in 1924 as not conforming to canon law and therefore does not recognize the sacraments of the Orthodox Church.

history

In 1935 Archimandrite Matthaios Karpathakis was ordained Bishop of Vresthenia of the Old Calendar Church of the True Christians of Greece . In 1937 he founded his own church after the other bishops had tried to re-join the Orthodox Church of Greece . In 1948 he consecrated four bishops for the new church. This ordination is not recognized by other Orthodox churches because it was carried out by only one, rather than three, canonical bishops as required. The True Orthodox Church of Greece , on the other hand, asserts an exception to canon law for special situations.

In 1971 the church tried to get closer to the Russian Orthodox Church abroad . In 1990 some congregations of the Catacomb Church in Russia and the Ukraine submitted to the True Orthodox Church of Greece and formed the Russian Exarchate .

In 2005, the True Orthodox Church of Greece split under Bishop Kirykos . Since 2015 there have been talks about a reunification with the Church of the True Christians of Greece (Chrysostom Synod) .

Web links

St. Matthew, Archbishop of Athens True Orthodox Church of Greece (German)
Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians in the United States congregations in the United States

Remarks

↑ Vladimir Moss: A Short History of the True Orthodox Church of Greece (1970-2000) . Originally published in The Guildfordian , 2001.
^ The Genuine Orthodox Church of Greece under the Omophorion of Metropolitan Kirykos Homepage

[1] Vladimir Moss: A Short History of the True Orthodox Church of Greece (1970-2000) . Originally published in The Guildfordian , 2001.

[2] The Genuine Orthodox Church of Greece under the Omophorion of Metropolitan Kirykos Homepage