On Friday, Pope Francis received Pope Epiphanius I, head of the Kyiv metropolitan area and head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, at the Vatican.
The meeting was announced by Andriy Jurash, the Ukrainian ambassador to the Vatican, who posted photos of the event on X. He also emphasized that this is the first visit of a metropolitan area of Ukraine to Italy and the Vatican.
Pope Francis welcomes Kyiv Orthodox leader for the first time
“His Holiness Epiphanius, head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, the capital of Kiev and all Ukraine, began his visit to the Vatican with a meeting with Pope Francis and an exchange of ecclesiastical views. It was a warm and very cordial meeting!” – Ukrainian diplomat wrote:
He announced that Francis and Pope Epiphanius I would take part together in two events. On Saturday there will be a prayer for Ukraine in the church of San Teodoro in Pavia, and on Monday there will be a liturgy in the Basilica of San Nicola in Bari.
The Ukrainian capital's visit was not recorded by the Holy See's press office, leading Italian media to suggest it may have been a “personal meeting.”
Russia questions the independence of the Ukrainian church
This event is particularly significant because the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which received a tomos (law of independence) from Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople in 2019, is not recognized by the Russian Orthodox Church. Autocephalism means that the head of a particular church is not responsible to the rest of the higher hierarchy.
The Moscow Patriarchate regards Ukraine as its legitimate territory, questions the existence of the Ukrainian Church, and opposes its independence.
The conflict led to a breakdown in relations between Constantinople and Moscow, which the Ukrainian Orthodox Church considers to be split. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is affiliated with the Moscow Patriarchate, and its head is Patriarch Onufry.
“Event”: Skeleton of a fin whale at Hel Marine Base/Porsat News
