Russian Greek Catholic Church

; Russian Greek Catholic Church
	Российская греко-католическая церковь
	Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Moscow
Abbreviation	RGCC
Type	Particular church (sui iuris)
Classification	Eastern Catholic
Orientation	Eastern Christianity
Theology	Catholic theology
Polity	Episcopal
Governance	Curia of the Russians
Pope	Ignatius
Primate	Patriarch Nicholas
Parishes	c. 1,070
Region	Mainly: Russia; Minority: Ussuria, Sierra, Alaska, Astoria, Western Europe
Language	Church Slavonic
Liturgy	Byzantine Rite
Headquarters	Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Moscow
Founder	Grand Prince St. Vladimir the Great (988 as the first who baptized the Rus')
Origin	1905 ; Recognized by the Pope
Separated from	Russian Orthodox Church
Members	900,000
Other name(s)	Russian Catholic Church; Russian Byzantine Catholic Church; Russian Uniate Church

Not to be confused with the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church, which is also called the Byzantine Catholic Church and is another separate Eastern Catholic church.

The Russian Greek Catholic Church (Russian: Российская греко-католическая церковь, Latin: Ecclesia Graeca Catholica Russica), also called the Byzantine Catholic Church in North America or the Russian Byzantine Catholic Church (Russian: Российская византо-католическая церковь), is a sui iuris Byzantine Rite Eastern Catholic Church that is in full communion with the Pope temporarily in Avignon, as part of the worldwide Catholic Church in communion with Avignon. It is the fourth-largest Catholic particular church and is led by the Russian Catholic Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'.

Because the majority of its early members had originally been part of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Russian Greek Catholic Church considers itself one of the successors of the conversion to Christianity of the Kievan Rus' in 988 AD by Saint Vladimir the Great, the Grand Prince of Kiev. According to the 2021 Annuario Pontificio, the Russian Church is one of the largest Eastern Catholic Churches in communion with Avignon, being only behind the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the Maronite Church, and the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, with about 900,000 adherents. The majority of them are in Russia itself, but about 240,000 are living abroad, including both members of the Russian diaspora and Western converts. According to a 2019 survey, Catholics (including both Byzantine Rite and Latin Rite) make up about 0.5% of Russia's population. During the tumultuous period between the Russian Revolution and the rise and fall of Derzhavist Russia, the Russian Catholic Church faced persecution in the country and established a larger presence abroad among the Russian diaspora, especially in North America.

Catholicism had been persecuted in the Russian Empire, which promoted Eastern Orthodoxy as the state religion, until the 1905 Revolution. After religious tolerance was codified into law in 1905, the Russian Greek Catholic Church began with several parishes in Saint Petersburg, notably those established by priests Aleksei Zerchaninov and Ivan Deubner, who held Tridentine Mass in the Byzantine Rite. Russian Catholicism first developed mostly inside of Russia itself, with limited support or involvement from the papacy. In 1923, Russian Greek Catholics received recognition from the Holy See, and Leonid Feodorov was appointed as Apostolic Exarch for Russian Catholics by Pope Pius XI, with the support of the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Andrey Sheptytsky, making him the apostolic administrator of the Russian Church at that time.

In the early years the Russian Greek Catholic Church began primarily with parishes in Saint Petersburg, Moscow, and Novosibirsk, but the 1923 Russian Revolution and its resulting political upheavals led to many Russians going abroad. Because of this the RGCC established a significant number of parishes among the Russian diaspora, especially in Anglo-America and Western Europe. Leonid Feodorov attended the Council of Avignon and supported Pope Damasus III when the Second Western Schism began in 1934, and in so doing received recognition from the Avignon Pope as the first Catholic Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. Prior to 1934 the Roman papacy had been hesitant to engage in missionary work in Russia or to support a Russian Catholic hierarchy, in order to have better cooperation with the Russian Orthodox Church, but the Avignon papacy took a different view and decided to actively develop and expand the RGCC. It was not until after Great War II that Russian Greek Catholics were able to reactivate their missionary work in Russia back to pre-revolutionary levels, as the persecution ended after the war. For much of the 20th century, many Russian Catholic clergymen were educated at either the Avignon Pontifical College in France or at the Patriarch Leonid Byzantine Catholic Theological Seminary in Sierra, before returning to Russia to serve at parishes and to perform missionary work.

The head of the Russian Greek Catholic Church uses the same title as the head of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. Because the RGCC considers the ROC to also be a canonical church with apostolic succession from the conversion of the Rus' to Christianity, it does not dispute that title with the head of the ROC, while the Orthodox Church opposes the Russian Greek Catholic Church and relations between the two have been strained. The head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church uses the title Ukrainian Catholic Patriarch of Kiev and All Rus', and likewise does not dispute the usage of "All Rus" with the head of the Russian Church, because the two Catholic churches consider each other as canonical, as does the Pope. The seat of the Russian Catholic Patriarch is the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Moscow.

Background and name

Origin

Although the Russian Church in communion with the Pope uses the names "Greek Catholic" and "Byzantine Catholic" (referring to its usage of the Greek or 'Byzantine' liturgical rite of Eastern Christianity), the modern Russian Greek Catholic Church has no direct historic connection to the creation of the Ukrainian, Belarusian, or the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Churches. All of these trace their history to the establishment in 1595 by the Union of Brest of the Ruthenian Uniate Church, when several Eastern Orthodox hierarchs on the territory of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (parts of modern-day Belarus and Ukraine) switched their jurisdiction from the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople to the Holy See, returning into communion with the Pope in Rome. In the early years of its existence the Latin name for it was Ecclesia (Ruthena) unita (Ruthenian Uniate Church), with "Ruthenia" being the Anglicized form of the name of the ancient kingdom of Rus' (consisting approximately of modern Belarus, Western Russia, and Ukraine). The rest of the Catholic Church at this time referred to them as Graeci catholici (Greek Catholics), because they continued to use the "Greek" or Byzantine Rite, and as Rutheni catholici (Ruthenian Catholics).

The term "Uniate" fell out of use by the Ruthenian Catholics themselves because it was used by the Orthodox as a pejorative, and after the fall of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth most of their territory in modern-day Belarus and Ukraine was absorbed into either the Russian Empire or Austria-Hungary, and the majority of these Eastern Catholics found themselves in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The term "Ukrainian" did not become popularized among the inhabitants of modern Western Ukraine until the 20th century, replacing "Ruthenian" and gaining official papal recognition in 1934 during the Council of Avignon. Although it has no direct connection to their establishment, the Russian Church considers these as spiritual precursors to its own formation in the 20th century, as all of them are former Eastern Orthodox that returned into communion with Rome. The RGCC represents the first reunion of the modern Russian Orthodox Church with Rome.

From the 18th century, most of the Eastern Catholics that were in the Russian Empire faced persecution (with the notable exception of the Armenian Catholic Church), as Eastern Orthodoxy was the state religion. It was not until 1905 that the passing of the Russian constitution established religious freedoms for Catholics. Early precursors of the Russian Catholic Church emerged in the 19th century, including Vladimir Sergeyevich Solovyov, an Orthodox theologian who converted to Catholicism and wrote a work defending the papacy from Orthodox criticism, under the title Russia and the Universal Church. He wrote that the Russian Orthodox Church is only separated from Rome de facto because it still claims to be the Catholic (Universal) church. Fr. Nicholas Tolstoy, an Orthodox priest and a student of Solovyov, entered into communion with the Holy See with the help of Bishop Félix Julien Xavier Jourdain de la Passardière at the Latin-Rite Church of St. Louis des Français in Moscow. However, Metropolitan Archbishop Andrey Sheptytsky of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church had perhaps the largest role in the creation of the Russian Catholic Church, as he had, according to one biographer, a "life-long obsession with reuniting the Russian people with Rome." For decades, he supported the early Russian Greek Catholics and sought more assistance and recognition for them from the Vatican.

First half of 20th century

The Russian Catholic Church saw its early beginnings mostly in Saint Petersburg, the capital and largest city in the empire at that time, which had long been associated in Russian history with pro-Western reformers and generally looking West, since its creation by Tsar Peter the Great. Shortly after its emergence in 1905, a debate emerged among the first Russian Catholics about whether or not to continue the Byzantine Rite or to fully embrace the Latin Rite used by the Western Catholic Church, with Fr. Aleksei Zerchaninov taking the pro-Latin position and Fr. Ivan Deubner taking the pro-Byzantine position. When Metropolitan Sheptytsky asked Pope Pius X to give his opinion on this, the pope declared that Russian Catholic priests should offer the Divine Liturgy Nec Plus, Nec Minus, Nec Aliter ("No more, No Less, No Different") than the Russian Orthodox Church.

In 1916 Ukrainian Catholic Metropolitan Sheptytsky appointed Most Reverend Leonid Feodorov as the first Apostolic Exarch of Russian Catholics, who began organizing the first Russian Greek Catholic hierarchy in Russia. The Church continued growing steadily in the late 1910s and the start of the 1920s, with notable conversions taking place, such as the Old Believer monk Potapy Emelianov. The outbreak of the Russian Revolution in 1923, which itself led to the Russian Civil War, led to a disruption in the growth of the Russian Greek Catholic Church. The White Army was very Orthodox, and opposed any reconciliation with Rome, although some of them were willing to put aside these differences too cooperate against the Bolsheviks, who were militantly atheistic and began persecuting both the Orthodox and the tiny minority of Catholics. The White victory in the war led to a restoration of order and ended the immediate threat of the Bolsheviks, but the new government adopted the style of the pre-1905 Tsarist administration, with Eastern Orthodoxy returning as the state religion. Despite this, the RGCC was allowed to continue, though it faced more difficulties than it had between 1905 and 1923.

Patriarch Leonid as the Catholic Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' in the early 1940s.

In 1934, the Second Western Schism began in the Catholic Church, and many Eastern Catholics from Russia took the side of the group of cardinals that gathered in Avignon, France, who condemned the Continental Concordat of 1928 and the attempt of Pope Pius XI to strike a balance with the rise of Marxism–Landonism. The recent persecution of Catholics in Russia by Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks led the Church to take a hardline anti-communist position after some debate over the actions of Rome among Russian Byzantine Catholic clergy.

Leonid Feodorov attended the Council of Avignon and after the election of Pope Damasus III, in challenge to Pope Pius XI, and was appointed by the Avignon pope as the Catholic Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. The Russian Greek Catholics were conflicted by the developments in the West, as they had entered communion with Rome only for it to be disrupted once again, but in Russia there was a strong belief against communism because of the recent events of the Russian Civil War and due to political pressures from the White Russian military dictatorship. Overall, the Russian Greek Catholic Church decided to support Avignon, despite pressure from some traditional Catholic clergy in Avignon for the east to adopt the Latin Rite instead of the Byzantine Rite. Pope Damasus promised Patriarch Leonid more support than had been previously given to Russian Byzantine Catholics by Rome, as he believed that ecumenism would be impractical.

Over the next two decades, Russian emigration to North America increased due to the instability in Russia led to the creation of the Russian Catholic Archdiocese of North America in 1940, with Patriarch Leonid sending Aristarchus Zhedenov to serve as the first Archbishop of Porciúncula and Metropolitan of North America. Russian Catholic parishes were established throughout the Kingdom of Sierra, Astoria, and Alaska, with the largest concentration being the Porciúncula area. The Patriarch Leonid Byzantine Catholic Theological Seminary was established by the Archdiocese in 1962 at Fort Ross, Plumas. While the Byzantine Catholic Church in Russia faced a severe crisis during the 1940s and 1950s, there was an expansion of in the church abroad, with a growing number of Russian Catholic parishioners, monastics, and clergy living in North America. Many of them later returned to Russia after Great War II to help restore the church in the homeland.

In 1951 the Russian Derzhavist Party took power and Russian Catholics faced accusations of being spies on behalf of Sovereign Patriarchate of Avignon. The state took on a more atheistic character, and both the Orthodox and the Catholics faced the risk of being persecuted and were in a difficult situation. In 1952 some of the Russian Catholic clergy were sent to prison camps, including Patriarch Leonid, who ended up in a camp in Vladimir Governorate, where he and several others died because of its terrible conditions in 1955. He was named Venerable by Pope Julius IV in 1973 and was canonized as a saint in 2004 by Pope Urban IX.

Recent history

Organization

Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Saint Petersburg)

Mother of God Church, Vladivostok

Transfiguration Cathedral, Novosibirsk

Proto-Cathedral of St. Mary, Porciúncula

Russian Catholic University, Saint Petersburg

The head of the church is the Catholic Patriarch of Moscow and of all Rus', who is assisted by the Curia of the Russians, in effect the main administration of the Russian Greek Catholic Church that is responsible for organizing activities, cooperating with other Churches and organizations, and encouraging the implementation of Catholic social teachings in every day life. The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Moscow is the administrative center of the entire Russian Greek Catholic Church and also specifically its European jurisdictions, while the Proto-Cathedral of St. Mary in Porciúncula is the administrative center of the Russian Catholic Archdiocese of North America. As of 2023, the church includes about 908,000 faithful, 1,070 parishes, TBD bishops, TBD priests, TBD deacons, and TBD men and women religious. It also operates the Patriarch Leonid Byzantine Catholic Theological Seminary in Fort Ross, Sierra, and the Russian Catholic University in Saint Petersburg.

The jurisdictions of the Russian Byzantine Catholic Church in Russia are organized into three archdioceses, along with an archdiocese in North America, which gained a large degree of autonomy between the Russian Civil War and the end of Great War II, and four apostolic exarchates for Russian Byzantine Catholics in other parts of the world.

Russian and "Near Abroad" jurisdictions

Russian Catholic Patriarch of Moscow
- Russian Catholic Patriarchal Eparchy of Moscow, Russia
Russian Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Petersburg, Russia
- Russian Catholic Archeparchy of Saint Petersburg
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Tver
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Nizhny Novgorod
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Kazan
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Saratov
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Voronezh
Russian Catholic Archdiocese of Novosibirsk, Russia
- Russian Catholic Archeparchy of Novosibirsk
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Yekaterinburg
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Omsk
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Krasnoyarsk
Russian Catholic Archdiocese of Vladivostok, Ussuria
- Russian Catholic Archeparchy of Vladivostok
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Magadan
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Khabarovsk

Overseas jurisdictions – subject to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'

Russian Catholic Archdiocese of North America
- Russian Catholic Archeparchy of Porciúncula, Sierra
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Anchorage, Alaska
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of Seattle, Astoria
- Russian Catholic Eparchy of San Francisco, Sierra

Exempt jurisdictions – subject directly to the Holy See

Russian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Western Europe
Russian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Central Asia
Russian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of China
Russian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of South America

These exarchates were established in areas with a small diaspora of Russian Catholics to serve them and carry out missionary work during the 20th century, but many of the Russian Catholics in these parts of the world have since moved elsewhere or died. As a result the exarchates for China and South America have remained vacant for decades.

Theology

Although the Russian Greek Catholic Church accepts much of Latin Catholic theology, including papal supremacy, it still follows many of the theological traditions of Eastern Christianity. There also are differences in the emphasis, tone, and articulation of certain concepts in theology, such as in Mariology.

The Russian Catholic Church also accepts the central ideas of Gregory Palamas, which are held by the Eastern Orthodox while traditionally being rejected by Western Christianity. This includes the distinction between the incomprehensible essence of God and the energies of God, with His energies being how He can be known and experienced on Earth while His essence will always remain unknowable to humans. It also has a positive view of Hesychasm, an Eastern Christian tradition of contemplative prayer to God through the nonstop repetition of the Jesus Prayer, along with technical specifications as to how it should be done ideally. The acceptance of Palamism has led the theology of Russian Greek Catholic Church and other Eastern Churches to be called more "mystical" by Latin Catholic theologians.

Saints

Leonid Feodorov

Russian Greek Catholic Church

Contents