1,348
edits
Changes
→Russian patriarch: Russia = Land of the Rus'
In 1588 the Grand Duke Theodor applied to the Patriarch of Constantinople for permission to form a new Patriarchate for the Russian people. The question was referred to the other Patriarchs of Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem, and they all decided that, although the Councils had established five Patriarchates, the exact number was not a matter of divine right, but of ecclesiastical convenience, and consequently, the request could be granted.
In 1589, Metropolitan [[Job of Moscow]] became the first Patriarch of Moscow; the autocephaly of the Church of Moscow (North-Eastern part of Rus) Russia being officially acknowledged by the Mother-Church of Constantinople. The patriarchs of the ancient churches recognized the Russian patriarch as the fifth in honor, defining the [[canonical territory|canonical boundaries]] of the Church of Moscow as being that of Moscow and the "Northern lands".
===Reforms===