The testament of Archbishop Anastasios of Albania on Ukraine
In the activities of the late Archbishop Anastasios of Albania, Ukraine held a special place. His legacy in this regard can be seen as a testament to us, Christians. What is it about?
On 25 January 2025, His Beatitude Archbishop Anastasios of Tirana and All Albania, the Primate of the Albanian Orthodox Church, reposed at the age of 95.
To truly appreciate Archbishop Anastasios's principled stance on matters of faith and Church unity, we must note that he was an ethnic Greek, born in the Greek port city of Piraeus in 1929. Before his election as Primate of the Albanian Church in 1992, he was closely tied to the Hellenic Churches: of Constantinople, Greece and the Alexandria. Furthermore, his election (or rather, his appointment) as Archbishop of Albania was due to the decision of Patriarch Dimitrios of Constantinople, the predecessor of Patriarch Bartholomew. Despite all this, Archbishop Anastasios did not hesitate to criticise the Patriarchate of Constantinople and to oppose the views of Patriarch Bartholomew, which he considered erroneous and harmful to Orthodoxy.
However, one aspect of his youth suggests that his service to God was not seen as a mere continuation of tradition or family customs but something far deeper. Although the future Archbishop was born and raised in a devout Christian family, he initially intended to dedicate his life to mathematics, a field in which he had significant talent. However, World War II forced him to reconsider his priorities and led him to become a clergyman. This is something that resonates deeply with us, Ukrainian Christians – death, destruction, the loss of homes, property, jobs, and more, make one reflect and choose not the transient and worldly but the eternal and unchanging. It was during this time that the foundations were laid for his understanding that Hellenism and the grandeur of the “Ecumenical” Patriarchate are also transient. This, too, cannot be exchanged for the truth of God.
In 2018, the Patriarchate of Constantinople made a historic mistake. It accepted the Ukrainian schismatics without repentance, retroactively recognised their “ordinations” and created a quasi-autonomous (not fully autonomous) church structure despite the existence of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church. This was so contrary to the teachings of the Church, the canons and common sense that even the so-called Greek Local Churches – the Churches of Greece, Alexandria, and Cyprus – were hesitant to recognise it. It took 10 months of diplomatic and ecclesiastical pressure, meetings between representatives of the U.S. State Department and the Primate of the Church of Greece, Archbishop Ieronymos II, persuasion of hierarchs, and so on, before the Church of Greece became the first to recognise the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) on 12 October 2019.
“Hellenism” won but the very fact of such lengthy deliberation is already evidence that there was something amiss with the creation of the OCU. After this, it became easier for the other Greek Churches to recognise the OCU, although even these recognitions cannot be called full-fledged.
Correspondence between Archbishop Anastasios and Patriarch Bartholomew
During this period, when the Patriarchate of Constantinople was attempting to impose its will on all the Local Churches, appealing to "Hellenism" with itself at the helm, Archbishop Anastasios wrote a letter to Patriarch Bartholomew. It was not a personal message from him but one sent on behalf of the Holy Synod of the Albanian Church. This letter is very logical, containing a presentation of the facts, their evaluation from the perspective of Orthodox doctrine, and a proposal on how to resolve the current situation.
The letter outlines the following facts:
- Filaret Denysenko was deposed and excommunicated from the Church, which is universally recognised;
- While Filaret was deposed and excommunicated, he performed uncanonical liturgical actions, which do not constitute valid mysteries;
- The Church of Christ has never recognised "sacraments" performed by those excommunicated from the Church;
- Epiphany Dumenko was elected the head of the OCU by the direct order of Filaret Denysenko, who, despite this election, continues to call himself “patriarch”;
- Patriarch Bartholomew’s actions in Ukraine did not resolve the issue, did not overcome the schism and did not unite the Ukrainian denominations;
- In Ukraine, autocephaly was requested by schismatics, not the Church itself, which is fundamentally different from how autocephaly was granted to the Serbian, Bulgarian and other Local Churches.
The assessment of these facts by Archbishop Anastasios is as follows:
Firstly, the "ordinations" performed by the schismatics are a blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and cannot be recognised as valid. "We question, nevertheless, whether the ordinations performed by Filaret, while he was excommunicated and anathematized, acquired thereafter, without canonical ordination, validity from the Holy Spirit and a genuine seal of apostolic succession. <…> It is difficult for us to understand that invalid and non-existent things are being made Spirit-bearing “by economy” and that actions constituting repeated blasphemy against the Holy Spirit <…> are being recognized retroactively ‘by oikonomia’."
Secondly, the actions of Patriarch Bartholomew have threatened the unity of the Orthodox world. Quote: "We regret that the concerns that we expressed to the three-member delegation from the Ecumenical Patriarchate (July 2018) as well as at our personal meeting on Crete (October 2018) have been confirmed: instead of making peace among and unifying the Orthodox of Ukraine, the unity of Orthodoxy throughout the world is threatened with division."
Thirdly, one should not expect that the Local Churches will eventually recognise the OCU and agree with the decisions of the Phanar. Quote: "The predictions that the current conflict and the obvious division will last a short time and that all the Autocephalous Orthodox Churches will eventually accept what has happened can only be perceived as unfounded speculation by those familiar with the history of ecclesiastical schisms and the durability of religious fanaticism."
The only way out of this situation is through a synodal decision by the whole Church of Christ. Archbishop Anastasios does not predict the decision of this potential Pan-Orthodox Council or meeting, he simply calls for such a Council to be convened: "In this regard, we unshakeably believe that a solution is found in recourse to the synodality inspired by the Holy Spirit."
This letter is dated 14 January 2019, immediately after the granting of the Tomos to Epiphany Dumenko. The response to it was published on 9 March 2019 on the official website of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. Its essence boiled down to the idea that since the Patriarchate of Constantinople is the most important, all its decisions are correct by definition. Quote: "The God-bearing Fathers, who through the holy and sacred canons have entrusted the Throne of Constantine with its universally recognized hallowed and dread responsibilities that transcend borders – not in the form of privileges but of self-sacrifice – foresaw with the guidance of the Holy Spirit the necessity for a definitive resolution to the problems emerging across the Local Churches, which are unable to settle them by themselves."
Is it worth mentioning that there are no canons that grant the Patriarchate of Constantinople any special powers?
Appeals, meetings and interviews
Patriarch Bartholomew’s arguments proved unconvincing to Archbishop Anastasios, and he continued to provide consistent support to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC). At the end of November 2019, he published a special Appeal on the Romfea website, in which he expressed his views not only on the church situation in Ukraine but also on the crisis within Orthodoxy, which had been provoked by the Phanar’s decisions. The main points of this Appeal are as follows:
- The most important thing is to preserve the unity of the Church, which has been shaken;
- The Phanar’s decisions on Ukraine and the creation of the OCU were influenced by "the obvious involvement of geopolitical interests and expediencies" and created a new ecclesiastical problem;
- Granting autocephaly to the OCU "did not bring the desired unity of the Orthodox nor peace, as had happened with all previous grants of Autocephaly";
- The main problem of the Ukrainian schism is Filaret Denysenko, who by finally denied the Tomos and broke ties with the OCU;
- Orthodoxy has become divided, and millions of believers do not have Eucharistic communion with the "the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Patriarchate of Alexandria and the Church of Greece";
- The issue of the invalidity of the "ordinations" in the OCU remains unresolved;
- The belief that, over time, everything will resolve itself and the Local Churches will recognise the OCU is mistaken;
- The Church faces an ethno-racial division;
- The unwillingness to take active steps to resolve the problem only exacerbates it;
- Ultimately the credibility of Orthodoxy in the modern world is diminished;
- The problem can only be solved at the synodal level of the entire Church, without the involvement of external political forces;
- The Pan-Orthodox must be convened as soon as possible;
- The initiative to convene such a council should belong to the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
On 29 January 2020, Archbishop Anastasios met with a delegation from the UOC led by Bishop Victor of Baryshivka.
During this meeting, the Primate of the Albanian Church said many kind words about the UOC and His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry, but the key message was his call for Ukrainian believers to patiently bear the cross of trials and to believe that after the cross, there is always Resurrection. At the same time, Archbishop Anastasios expressed serious concern about the situation in Orthodoxy caused by the Phanar’s actions. "And I already feel that three fundamental principles for the Orthodox Church have been violated: apostolic succession, the Divine Eucharist, and synodality," said the Primate of the Albanian Church.
In December 2020, Archbishop Anastasios gave an interview to the Greek portal Romfea.gr, once again addressing the issue of the schism within global Orthodoxy caused by the "Ukrainian question". The main points of the interview were as follows: Patriarch Bartholomew's actions in Ukraine did not bring the desired reconciliation, the schism was not only unresolved but further deepened. Moreover, a division within global Orthodoxy was provoked.
"The enormous danger for Orthodoxy is obvious: an ethno-racial split (among Greeks, Slavs and those who desire harmonious relations with everyone), which nullifies the multicultural character of Orthodoxy and its universality. This is the greatest danger, not only for Orthodoxy, but for all of Christianity," stated Archbishop Anastasios. Once again, the archbishop repeated that such problems can only be resolved conciliarly by the entire Church and again called for the Patriarchate of Constantinople to take the initiative in convening such a council.
In January 2021, the Primate of Albania issued a statement confirming that the stance of his Church on the non-recognition of the OCU had not changed.
This statement was prompted by comments made by Serhiy Dumenko, suggesting that the Albanian Church intended to recognise the OCU in the near future. "I am surprised by this news," said a representative of the Archbishop's Office. "I don’t know where it’s coming from. The Holy Synod of the Albanian Church has not made any decision on this (recognising the OCU – Ed.)."
According to the representative of the Albanian Church, nothing had changed since then, and no new decisions had been made regarding the OCU.
In 2022, the Synod of the Church published another statement confirming that its position on Ukraine had not changed.
The Albanian Church emphasised that granting autocephaly to the OCU had neither brought peace nor unity, and the consequences of this decision were "adverse consequences for all Orthodoxy".
At the beginning of 2022, Archbishop Anastasios met with the UOC’s Chancellor, Metropolitan Anthony (Pakanych). During this meeting, he expressed his support for the UOC and assured that he hoped for the UOC's victory in its struggle against its adversaries. "I know the history a little. And I’m sure you will win," Metropolitan Anthony quoted Archbishop Anastasios.
All subsequent meetings, interviews, and statements of the Primate of the Albanian Church must be viewed in the context of Russia's aggression against Ukraine and the persecution of the UOC initiated by the Ukrainian authorities.
In November 2022, the Holy Synod of the Albanian Church adopted a document that criticised the paper by Archimandrite Gregorios Fragakis, Chief Secretary of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, “On the Healing of the Ecclesiastical Issue in Ukraine by the Mother Church of Constantinople (The Issue of Ordinations)”, in which the author draws parallels with the granting of autocephaly to the Church of Albania and justifies the legalisation of Filaret and Epiphany. The Albanian hierarchs stated that the healing of the schism in Albania in the 1930s and other historical examples could not be compared to what is happening in Ukraine. The difference is great.
Firstly, in Albania, the schismatics repented, which was not the case in Ukraine. Secondly, no one, including Constantinople, recognised the "ordinations" performed during the schism. Thirdly, the granting of the Tomos of autocephaly to the Albanian Church brought peace and unity to the Church. In Ukraine, the situation unfolded in completely different way. The Albanian hierarchs once again declared that there can be no Sacraments outside the Church, let alone episcopal ordinations.
At the same Synod, the Orthodox Church of Albania repeatedly appealed to the Patriarchate of Constantinople, asking for a Council of Primates of the Local Orthodox Churches to be convened on the OCU issue.
In spring of 2023, the Albanian Church made another appeal for a Pan-Orthodox Council to be convened on the situation in Ukraine.
"As the unprecedented distress of Orthodoxy in Ukraine intensifies and the unspeakable suffering of the Orthodox faithful reaches a climax, an Ecumenical Orthodox Council, which is known to be convened by the Ecumenical Patriarch and acts even if some Local Churches are absent, as was the case with the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church in Crete in 2016, should be convened as soon as possible," the message said.
At the same time, the Albanian Church published two letters from its Primate to Patriarch Theodoros of Alexandria, dated 7 February 2023 and 14 March 2024, in which he expressed his views on how the "Ukrainian issue" could be resolved.
“Since the beginning of the crisis, we have pleaded and continue to plead for the convening of a Pan-Orthodox Synod to address all the issues that have arisen in Ukraine, in Africa, and indeed in the entire Orthodox Church worldwide," he wrote.
In August of 2024, the Albanian Church voiced its protest against the persecution of the UOC by the authorities.
In an official statement, it emphasised solidarity The Albanian Church also expresses solidarity with the "persecuted brothers" in Ukraine and assures that prayers are being offered for the repeal of this "absurd" law and the restoration of peace and unity within Orthodoxy.
"Persecutions, imprisonments, desecration of holy sites, and confiscation of church and monastic property are cruel acts. These actions become even more egregious when they are enacted by the legislative bodies of democratic countries," the statement reads.
It was noted that the recent adoption of Law 8371 on 24 August 2024 by the Ukrainian Parliament is clearly aimed at the liquidation of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
In December of 2024, the Albanian Church once again stood in defence of the UOC.
The statement noted that "under the leadership of Metropolitan Onuphry, millions of Ukrainian Orthodox believers, numerous bishops, priests, monks, and nuns – all members of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church – are being persecuted".
Letters of support
After the Vinnytsia City Court convicted Metropolitan Jonathan (Yeletskikh) of Tulchyn and Bratslav on 7 August 2023, Archbishop Anastasios sent a letter of support to him through His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry. "With the deepest sorrow we follow the painful trials of Your beloved Eminence and Your chosen flock. We participate in Your sufferings and, to extend of our capabilities, we share where appropriate our testimony about the atrocities against the pious Orthodox holy clergy, the devout people, as well as the renowned sacred places in Ukraine," the letter reads. Here, the Primate of the Albanian Church confirms that the UOC is facing true persecution, and that real crimes are being committed against its believers and clergy.
A similar letter of support was also sent by Archbishop Anastasios to the abbot of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, Metropolitan Pavel of Chernobyl. “With deep sorrow we follow the painful trials of your beloved Eminence and your God-chosen flock. We empathize with your sufferings and, to the best of our ability, share, where appropriate, our testimony of atrocities against the pious Orthodox holy clergy, the pious people, as well as the glorified shrine – the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. We pray that the Lord will strengthen you, so that you 'you commend yourselves as servants of God in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger' (2 Cor. 6: 4-5)," noted Archbishop Anastasios.
Conclusion
The situation in Ukraine – the schism, the Phanar’s actions, the persecution of the UOC, etc. – was perceived by the Primate of the Albanian Church as his own. He grieved deeply for the Ukrainian believers, prayed, and offered unwavering support.
Archbishop Anastasios painfully viewed the division in world Orthodoxy that followed the actions of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in Ukraine. He considered it very dangerous not only for Orthodoxy but for the entire Christianity. He believed that postponing a solution to this issue was destructive, as it only prolonged the wound without healing it. In his words, there was often frustration with the Local Churches for adopting a wait-and-see attitude, actually distancing themselves from actively resolving the problem, hoping that it would somehow resolve on its own. He considered this position deeply mistaken. A separate topic is the constant calls to the Patriarch of Constantinople to convene a Pan-Orthodox Council or meeting to address both the Ukrainian issue and the crisis in Orthodoxy as a whole. However, Patriarch Bartholomew consistently refused to do so.
Archbishop Anastasios regarded the actions of the Patriarchate of Constantinople as uncanonical and harmful to Orthodoxy and refused to agree with them. He supported all his statements with solid theological arguments. The unity of the Church was his primary concern. At the same time, he rejected achieving this unity through violating the canons and the Church doctrine. For the Patriarchate of Constantinople, unity in the Church means submission to its decisions, recognition of the OCU, and everything will be unified again. For the UOC, self-dissolution and joining the OCU would be an easy solution to all its earthly problems and a way to end the persecution. But it would be a betrayal of the Orthodox doctrine, the sacred canons of the Church, and would ultimately cause great harm to all of Christianity.
Therefore, Archbishop Anastasios urged Ukrainian Christians to patiently bear the cross of persecution but not to compromise or bend to the powers that be. In essence, he stated that the fate of the entire Orthodoxy depends on the UOC's steadfastness in the purity of faith. This is the testament he left us. May the Lord grant eternal rest to his righteous soul among the saints.
