Is a schism possible in the Church of Cyprus over the OCU?

On June 12, 2023, the bishop of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus, Metropolitan Tychikos of Paphos refused to concelebrate with his Primate, Archbishop Georgios. The reason for the refusal was that Metropolitan Tychikos does not want to take part in services where the head of the OCU, Epifaniy Dumenko, is commemorated. Archbishop Georgios called the bishop’s decision "childish". However, he admitted that the stance of the Metropolitan of Paphos is a problem for the Church of Cyprus and said that he "will not allow an internal schism".

According to Archbishop Georgios, the majority of the Holy Synod of the Church of Cyprus will side with him and " Metropolitan Tychikos of Paphos must receive messages from the laymen as well as from all of us". He added that he is "determined to make sure that there is no schism in the Cypriot Church".

Cyprus and the OCU: A Historical Overview

After the OCU received the Tomos from the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Church of Cyprus declared its neutrality on the matter. Moreover, the then head of the Church of Cyprus, the late Archbishop Chrysostomos, even attempted to mediate between the Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Russian Orthodox Church. However, after the angry reprimands of Patriarch Bartholomew, Abp. Chrysostomos changed his viewpoint. Disregarding the opinion of the Holy Synod members, he commemorated Epifaniy Dumenko during one of the liturgies.

Immediately after this, several influential hierarchs of the Church of Cyprus wrote an open letter to their Primate, stating that they refused to concelebrate with him due to the commemoration of Dumenko. According to them, the Phanar’s decision on the OCU contradicts the canons of the Church, and the "hierarchy" of Epifaniy has no canonical ordination. The hierarchs demanded that Archbishop Chrysostom adhere to the previously adopted decisions of the neutrality of the Church of Cyprus. The names of these bishops are Metropolitan Nicephoros of Kykkos, Metropolitan Athanasios of Limassol, Metropolitan Isaiah of Tamassos, and Metropolitan Nicholas of Amathus. Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou has also repeatedly expressed his disapproval of the Ukrainian schismatics.

In response, the Primate of the Church of Cyprus, Archbishop Chrysostomos, convened a meeting of the Holy Synod, where with one vote he pushed the "synodal decision" that granted him the right to commemorate Epifaniy (to secure the majority, Chrysostom had ordained a new bishop the day before).

For many months, the situation within the Church of Cyprus remained tense.

After the death of Archbishop Chrysostomos, Metropolitan Isaiah of Tamassos changed his opinion, stating that the recognition of the OCU is allegedly justified by Russian aggression against Ukraine. Metropolitans Neophytos, Athanasios, and Nicephoros did not change their views. Now, Metropolitan Tychikos of Paphos has joined their ranks.

Who is Metropolitan Tychikos?

Metropolitan Tychikos (Vryonis) of Paphos was born in 1981. In 2008, he was ordained as a deacon by Metropolitan Georgios of Paphos (the current Primate of the Church of Cyprus). Two years later, he was ordained as a priest by the same Metropolitan Georgios and elevated to the rank of Archimandrite of the Paphos Metropolis. He served as the protosingelos (similar to the secretary of the diocese) of the Paphos Metropolis. Additionally, Tychikos became a tenured preacher for the entire Paphos Metropolitan District.

In 2016, he defended his dissertation on the topic of "The Apostles and Their Successors in the Paphos Metropolis" and received a Master's degree in Theology.

On February 23, 2023, by the decision of the Synod of the Church of Cyprus, he was elected as the Bishop of Paphos, receiving 15 out of 16 votes. On March 12, 2023, he was consecrated as the Bishop of Paphos at the St Barnabas Church in Nicosia.

As we can see, Metropolitan Tychikos has been under the direct influence of Archbishop Georgios for a long time. All the more significant is his refusal to concelebrate with his Primate because of his stance on the OCU.

Bishop Tychikos is known as a passionate preacher of the Truth and a defender of the Orthodox faith. Despite his relatively young age, he enjoys immense authority and respect from both the clergy and the ordinary believers of the diocese. Therefore, Archbishop Georgios cannot simply ignore his opinion, "turn a blind eye" and pretend that nothing is happening. Especially considering that Metropolitan Tychikos is not alone in his determination not to recognize the OCU.

The current situation between the Church of Cyprus and the OCU

In an interview with UOJ, another bishop of the Church of Cyprus, Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou, stated that he does not consider the OCU to be a canonical Church and Dumenko as a bishop. Furthermore, according to the bishop, the majority of Cypriot hierarchs do not wish to concelebrate with OCU members. It is for this reason that the former Metropolitan of the UOC, Simeon (Shostatsky), who has canonical ordination, was invited from the OCU to participate in the enthronement of Archbishop Georgios. Metropolitan Neophytos also mentioned that he refused to participate in the enthronement of the new primate of the Church of Cyprus precisely due to his strong rejection of the OCU. And to this day, the bishop has remained faithful to his position.

Of course, Archbishop Georgios is well aware of what is happening now. Many priests and bishops, even if they remain silent about the OCU's Tomos, do not necessarily agree with it. Their silence is solely dictated by their respect for the Patriarchal Throne of Constantinople.

Moreover, there are those who are not silent. These bishops have very high authority among the believers of Cyprus. Among them, we can include the aforementioned bishops: Nicephoros, Neophytos, Tychikos and Athanasios. Ignoring their opinion is impossible. That is why Archbishop Georgios, while commenting on the action of Metropolitan Tychikos, speaks of a serious problem within the Church of Cyprus and even the danger of schism. What can we expect then?

Will there be a schism in the Church of Cyprus over the OCU?

Archbishop Chrysostomos failed to "break" the bishop who does not recognize the OCU, and it is unlikely that Georgios will succeed either. Archbishop Georgios needs the "Synod argument" to put pressure on the disobedient hierarch. But will it work?

The very fact of punishing Metropolitan Tychikos for not recognizing the OCU may not only cause a storm of indignation among the believers of the Paphos Metropolis (and others as well) but also lead Archbishop Georgios to big problems, the extent of which is now difficult to foresee. Therefore, it is unlikely that the Synod will take any canonical sanctions against both the Metropolitan of Paphos and any of the "anti-OCU" hierarchs. Most likely, the Church of Cyprus will maintain its status of external "cosmetic" unity with a de facto internal division.

In any case, the fact remains that the OCU’s Tomos not only failed to resolve the schism problem in Ukraine but also created very serious problems for other Churches and for Orthodoxy as a whole.

Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou said it very clearly:

"Instead of solving the Ukrainian church problem for the Ukrainian people and for all of us, the OCU has only made this problem extremely complicated. This means it is a schism of pan-Orthodox significance. It hides underground but it spreads its roots from Ukraine to Africa, from Ukraine to America, and from Ukraine to Japan. You understand that this is a spiritual problem of global significance that can only be resolved by an Ecumenical Council."

Yes, Patriarch Bartholomew is trying to blame those who do not recognize the OCU for this problem. But both he and his entourage are well aware that with the Tomos they got involved in a scandal that has caused immense and possibly irreparable harm to Orthodoxy. And may God grant them not only understanding but also acknowledgement. Perhaps then something will change?