| Church ofCyprus | |
|---|---|
| Εκκλησία της Κύπρου | |
 Coat of arms of the Church of Cyprus. | |
| Type | Autocephaly |
| Classification | Christian |
| Orientation | Greek Orthodox |
| Theology | Eastern Orthodox theology |
| Polity | Episcopal |
| Primate | George III |
| Monasteries | 67 |
| Language | Koine Greek |
| Headquarters | Nicosia,Cyprus |
| Territory | Cyprus |
| Founder | Barnabas theApostle |
| Origin | Roman Cyprus |
| Independence | AD 431 or earlier |
| Recognition | AD 431 (Council of Ephesus), AD 478 (Roman Empire) |
| Members | 838,897[1] |
| Official website | www |
TheChurch of Cyprus (Greek:Ἐκκλησία τῆς Κύπρου,romanized: Ekklisia tis Kyprou) is one of theautocephalousGreek Orthodox churches that form part of the communion of theEastern Orthodox Church. Based inCyprus, it is one of the oldest Eastern Orthodox autocephalous churches; it claims to have always been independent, although it may have been subject to theChurch of Antioch before its autocephaly was recognized in 431 at theCouncil of Ephesus. The bishop of the ancient capital,Salamis (renamedConstantia by EmperorConstantius II) was constitutedmetropolitan by EmperorZeno, with the titlearchbishop.
According to theActs of the Apostles,Paul of Tarsus converted the Romanproconsul Sergius Paulus, (Acts 13:6–12), making him the first Christian ruler, and thusCyprus became the first country ruled by a Christian leader.[2][3][4]
A few of the bishops who helped spread Christianity on the island wereLazarus, the Bishop ofKition, Herakleidios the Bishop of Tamasos, Avxivios the Bishop of Soloi, and Theodotos the Bishop ofKyrenia.
Towards the end of thefourth century, Christianity had spread throughout the island. During this timeSt. Epiphanius was Archbishop. His seat was in Salamis, which was renamed Constantia.
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This independent (autocephalous) position by ancient custom was recognized against the claims of thePatriarch of Antioch, at theCouncil of Ephesus (431); it is unclear if the Church of Cyprus has always been independent or if it was once part of theChurch of Antioch. When the Patriarch of Antioch claimed the Church of Cyprus was under its jurisdiction, the Cypriot clergy denounced this before the Council of Ephesus. The Council ratified the autocephaly of the Church of Cyprus by a resolution which conditionally states: "If, as it is asserted in memorials and orally by the religious men who have come before the Council - it has not been a continuous ancient custom for the bishop of Antioch to hold ordinations in Cyprus, - the prelates of Cyprus shall enjoy, free from molestation and violence, their right to perform by themselves the ordination of bishops [for their island]". After the Council of Ephesus, the Church of Antioch never claimed that Cyprus was under its jurisdiction.[5] This independence was also recognized by an edict ofEmperor Zeno.
In 478, ArchbishopAnthemios of Cyprus claimed that following a vision he had found the grave of Barnabas and hisrelics. On the saint's chest rested a copy of theGospel of Matthew. The church was thus able to send a cogent argument on its own behalf to the Emperor: the discovery of the relics of its reputed founder, Barnabas. Zeno confirmed the status of the Church of Cyprus and granted its Archbishop the "three privileges": namely to sign his name in an ink madevermilion by the addition ofcinnabar; to weartyrian purple instead of blackrobes under hisvestments; and to hold an imperialsceptre (i.e. agilt staff ofsilver, topped by agoldglobus cruciger) instead of the regular episcopalcrosier.
Cyprus suffered greatly from Arab invasions in the following centuries, and during the reign ofJustinian II the cities of Constantia, Kourion andPaphos were sacked. At the advice of the Emperor, the Archbishop fled to theDardanelles along with the survivors, and established the city of Nova Justiniana (Greek:Νέα Ιουστινιανή,Néa Iustinianē), named after the Emperor, atErdek near the city ofCyzicus. In 692 theQuinisext Council reconfirmed the status and privileges of the exiled Archbishop and in 698, when the Arabs were driven out of Cyprus, the Archbishop returned but retained the title of "Archbishop of Nova Justiniana and All Cyprus": a custom that, along with the "three privileges", continues to this day.
After the establishment of theKingdom of Cyprus, the Catholic kings gradually reduced the number of Orthodox bishops from 14 to 4 and forced those away from their towns. The archbishop was moved from Nicosia to the region of Solia, nearMorphou, the bishop ofLarnaca was moved to the village of Lefkara etc. Each Orthodox bishop was under the Catholic bishop of the area. The Catholic Church tried on occasion to coax the Orthodox bishops to make concessions on the differences in doctrine and practices between the two churches, sometimes with threats and sometimes using violence and torture, as in the case of the 13 monks atKantara monastery.[citation needed] Moreover, the properties of many monasteries were confiscated. The persecutions, especially during the Frankish period, did not succeed in uprooting the faith of theGreek Cypriots.
Despite initial frictions, the two churches gradually managed to coexist side by side peacefully. The local Orthodox Christians shared some of the benefits of the economic development of Cyprus and especiallyFamagusta at the time. The Orthodox cathedral of St George (known asSaint George of the Greeks – today in ruins) is almost as high and monumental as the nearby Catholic cathedral ofSt Nicholas (a mosque since 1571), and is also an example of an interesting fusion of gothic and Byzantine architecture.
The Franks were succeeded by the Venetians in 1489 without any significant change to the status of the Eastern Orthodox Church.
In 1950,Makarios III was elected Archbishop. While still Bishop of Kition he had demonstrated strong intellectual and national activity. In 1949 he founded the Apostle Varnavas Seminary, and in 1950 he organised thereferendum on the Union (Enosis) between Cyprus andGreece. While archbishop he was the political leader of theEOKA liberation struggle in the years 1955–1959. The British exiled him to theSeychelles because of his activities.
In 1960, Archbishop Makarios III was elected President of the newly established republic ofCyprus. Disagreements of the other three bishops with Makarios led to the1972–73 Cypriot ecclesiastical coup attempt. Following the dethronement of the Bishops of Paphos, Kitium andKyrenia for conspiring against Makarios, two new Bishoprics were created: the Bishopric ofLimassol which was detached from the Bishopric of Kition, and the Bishopric of Morfou which was detached from the Bishopric of Kyrenia. Thecoup d'état of 15 July 1974 forced Archbishop Makarios III to leave the island. He returned in December 1974.
The coup d'état was followed by theTurkish invasion of 20 July 1974 which significantly affected the church and its flock: as 35% of Cyprus' territory came under Turkish occupation, hundreds of thousands of Orthodox Christians were displaced and those that could not or did not want to leave (20,000 initially) faced oppression. As of May 2001 figures only 421 Greek Orthodox Cypriots and 155Maronites remain in North Cyprus.
The destruction of Christian monuments was another important consequence.[6] Churches containing Byzantine icons, frescoes and mosaics have been pillaged by antiquities dealers and sold on the black market. One of the most prominent cases of pillage was of the mosaics ofPanagia of Kanakaria of the 6th century AD, which were finally returned to the Church of Cyprus, following rulings by federal courts inIndianapolis andChicago.[7] In Northern Cyprus, there are 514 churches, chapels and monasteries, many of which were converted to mosques, museums or abandoned.[8]
On 3 August 1977,Makarios III died and was succeeded byArchbishop Chrysostomos I. In 1979, the new Statutory Charter of the Church of Cyprus was drawn up and approved replacing the old one of 1914.
In old age, Archbishop Chrysostomos suffered from Alzheimer's disease and was unable to carry out his duties for a number of years. In May 2006,Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I chaired a broader meeting of church elders which called for Chrysostomos' "honorary removal".
Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Paphos, 65, was elected the new archbishop on 5 November 2006, after a long-running election campaign, becomingArchbishop Chrysostomos II, Archbishop of Nea Justiniana and All Cyprus.
After the death ofChrysostomos II, the2022 Cypriot archiepiscopal election was called to choose his successor.[9][10]
TheHoly Synod of the Church of Cyprus is the highest church authority in Cyprus. Its task is to examine and provide solutions on all issues concerning the Church of Cyprus. The head of the Holy Synod and of the Church of Cyprus isGeorgios Papachrysostomou, archbishop of New Justiniana and All Cyprus. The Holy Synod regularly convenes on thefirst week afterEaster and in the first fortnight of every February and September. It holdsad hoc sessions whenever deemed necessary, or when two of its members put forward a request.
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