Poltava diocese of the UOC MP. Administration of the Poltava diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. Ancient history of Orthodoxy in the Poltava region

Due to political reasons and a number of events of the XX-XXI centuries, several Orthodox jurisdictions operate on the territory of modern Ukraine. Therefore, when describing church life in a particular diocese, it is necessary to clarify from the standpoint of which church party it is presented. In this article we will talk about one of the oldest departments of Orthodox Rus', which, undoubtedly, is the Poltava diocese. It will be represented mainly by the Moscow Patriarchate, both due to the predominant canonical position of this organization in the Orthodox world, and due to its leading position in the region.

Ancient history of Orthodoxy in the Poltava region

The well-known year 1054, in addition to marking the great schism of the Christian Church, is also interesting in that it is the starting point for the life of the Poltava diocese. It was called, however, at that time Pereyaslavskaya, and its first ruling bishop was Bishop Nicholas. A little more than two hundred years after its founding, independent church rule in the Poltava region was abolished, and church structures came directly under the omophorion. This happened in 1279.

Restoration of the department

The decision to restore the activities of the Pereyaslav diocese was made only in 1700. But even then its status was limited by the rights of the vicariate within the Kyiv Metropolis. Then its position changed repeatedly, either switching to independent governance, or being divided territorially between neighboring church centers. Finally, in 1799, by decree of Emperor Paul, the vicariate received the status of an independent government with the name “Little Russian and Pereyaslavl”. However, already in 1802, in connection with the liquidation of the Little Russian province, the system of church government in the Poltava region changed: Poltava became the main cathedral center (initially only nominally due to the lack of the necessary material base for establishing an administrative apparatus), and Pereyaslavl became the second diocesan center. The official name “Poltava and Pereyaslavl” was assigned to the diocese in 1847. It existed in this form until 1937.

During its history, the Poltava diocese included two vicariates. The first of them - Priluki - was formed in 1884 and existed until the dissolution of the diocese in the 30s of the 20th century. The second, called Lubensky, functioned only for eight years from 1920 to 1928.

When Soviet power was established in the territory, the life of the diocese began to gradually fade away. Churches were closed en masse and monasteries were liquidated. In 1937, the ruling bishop, together with the vicar subordinate to him and the entire clergy of the diocese, were subjected to repression. After this, temporary management of the department was taken over by Bishop Mitrofan (Rusinov), who, however, soon died. In fact, in 1939 the Poltava diocese was completely destroyed.

The revival of church life took place during the Great Patriotic War, when, under the conditions of the German occupation, a number of churches were opened and a certain department was established. In 1944, the department began to be called Poltava and Kremenchug. In this form it exists to this day within the framework of the Kyiv Patriarchate. As for the Moscow church structures, since 2007 the diocese was renamed Poltava and Mirgorod in connection with the allocation of the Kremenchug department to an independent center.

Poltava Diocese of the UOC MP

Within the jurisdiction of the Kyiv Metropolis of the Moscow Patriarchate, the Poltava See occupies an important strategic and political position, which is due to its historical significance, scale and geographical location within the state.

It administers a theological seminary with a missionary focus, and its primate bears the title of metropolitan. Today he is the Eminence Philip (Osadchenko). The Poltava diocese in its jurisdiction owns two cathedrals (St. Macarius and the Resurrection of Christ) in the capital city and one (Assumption of the Mother of God) in Mirgorod. There are three monasteries in the region - one for men and two for women. Seven diocesan departments and several auxiliary institutions, such as the youth club at the Cathedral of St. Macarius, are responsible for ensuring fruitful interaction between society and the church on the part of the latter.

Other Orthodox jurisdictions in the Poltava region

As already mentioned, in addition to the UOC, the Poltava diocese belongs to a number of independent church structures. There are quite a lot of such independent jurisdictions in Ukraine. The smallest of them number only a few parishes, while the largest, such as the Kiev Patriarchate, represent a serious political force that successfully competes with the UOC-MP and even challenges its rights.

The Poltava diocese of the UOC-KP today represents a vast territory, headed by Archbishop Theodore (Bubnyuk). In particular, it, as noted above, retains Kremenchug as a second cathedral city. In addition to the UOC-KP, on the territory of Poltava there are parishes and communities of various branches of the UAOC, TOC and other independent jurisdictions of Ukrainian Orthodoxy.

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC in literature is usually the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate), (UOC MP)) is the Orthodox Church in Ukraine as part of the Russian Orthodox Church. According to the charter, the Russian Orthodox Church has the status of self-governing and has the rights of broad autonomy. It is in canonical communion with all local Orthodox churches.

The largest religious association in Ukraine in terms of the number of parishes and clergy, it is recognized as the first or second in the number of believers according to the religious self-identification of the residents of Ukraine.

Like other religious associations of Ukraine, the UOC, in accordance with Article 7 of the Law “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations” dated April 23, 1991 No. 987-XII, is not registered with state authorities as a centralized organization, but has official registration of its structures and governing bodies as independent legal entities (Chapter I, clause 6 of the Charter on the management of the UOC).

Canonical territory: Poltava, Velikobagachansky, Gadyachsky, Dikansky, Zenkovsky, Karlovsky, Kobelyaksky, Kotelevsky, Mashevsky, Mirgorodsky, Novosanzharsky, Reshetilovsky, Chutovsky, Shishatsky districts, as well as the city of Komsomolsk, Poltava region.
Cathedrals: Makarievsky in Poltava, Resurrection in Poltava (under construction), Assumption in Mirgorod

Soon after the establishment of Orthodoxy in Rus', the lands of modern Poltava region became part of the Russian state and were part of the Pereyaslav diocese, which existed until the second half of the 13th century. After its abolition, this territory was probably under the direct control of the Kyiv rulers until the resumption of the Pereyaslav See at the turn of the 17th-18th centuries, where it again went.

In 1775, part of the Poltava lands also became part of the newly created Slavic diocese, which united the entire vast New Russia, which had recently been annexed to the Russian Empire. The department of the new diocese, renamed Ekaterinoslav in 1786, was located until 1797 in Poltava, in the Holy Cross Monastery.

According to the Highest decree of October 16, 1799 on the harmonization of diocesan and provincial borders, the Pereyaslavl department again gains independence under the name of the Little Russian and Pereyaslavl and occupies the territory of the Little Russian province created in 1796, which includes the entire Poltava region.

In the post-war years, the Poltava diocese suffered in the same way as the entire Church. The number of active parishes decreased from 346 in 1945 to 52 in 1970, clergy - from 376 to 65. The indicators of the 1970s remained approximately unchanged until the turning point of 1988.