| Orthodox Church of the Gauls | |
|---|---|
 Orthodox Church of the Gauls chapel of Rémicourt,Villers-lès-Nancy | |
| Classification | Non-Chalcedonian |
| Orientation | Eastern Christianity |
| Theology | Oriental Orthodox theology |
| Polity | Episcopal |
| Associations | Communion of Western Orthodox Churches |
| Liturgy | Western Rite Orthodox |
| Official website | eglise-orthodoxe.eu |
TheOrthodox Church of the Gauls (OCG;French:Église Orthodoxe des Gaules,EOG) is a self-governing,Western Rite Orthodox Christian church formed in 2006. TheOCG is part of the Communion of Western Orthodox Churches.
In 1924Louis-Charles Winnaert [fr], a formerRoman Catholic priest, along with his adherents, formed theEglise catholique évangélique (Evangelical Catholic Church), anIndependent Catholic church.
Differences between the liturgical vision of Kovalevsky, on the one hand, and Chambault and Mensbrugghe, on the other, as well as news of the plans ofPatriarch Alexy I of Moscow to have Kovalevsky consecrated as bishop of theWOC, led to conflict. False accusations of impropriety by Kovalevsky, brought by Chambault and Mensbrugghe in 1953, resulted in the decision being taken by the Patriarch to remove Kovalevsky from his role of administrator of theWOC, without further investigation. When the deception was subsequently realised after an eventual investigation in September of the same year, an envoy was sent to Kovalevsky to apologise for the hasty judgement. However, it was too late. Kovalevsky had already resigned from theROC, and the parishes and majority of the clergy of theWOC had departed with him.[1]
After a period of negotiation, a group of the Orthodox Church of the Gauls was welcomed into the fold of theFrench Coptic Orthodox Church (FCOC) in 2000.[2] The group comprised the following communities, as well as a number of other disparate clergy:
However, some years later, in 2005, Abba Marcos issued a letter insisting that the clergy must adopt the Coptic rite and, moreover, making the claim that the use of the Western liturgies had never been authorised by him. Having been afforded no opportunity to appeal against this decision, the affected clergy petitionedPope Shenouda III of Alexandria in February 2006 for an audience to discuss the matter further. When they had not received a response by June of the same year, it became clear that remaining with theFCOC would mean abandoning their Western Orthodox liturgical and spiritual heritage. Therefore, the clergy resigned from theFCOC, taking their communities with them.[4][discuss]
In 2007, the Orthodox Church of the Gauls, the French Orthodox Church, and theCeltic Orthodox Church established the Communion of Western Orthodox Churches.
In the years of stability since then, through organic expansion and the founding of new communities, theOCG has grown numerically to comprise a number of parishes, missions, and monastic houses in France, Belgium, Spain, Poland, the United States of America, Brazil, and the United Kingdom.[5]
In August 2018, the clergy of the Priestly Fraternity of Ss Cyril and Methodius, along with their congregations, were received by Bishop Gregory and established by his decree as the Polish exarchate of theOCG, with Bishop Gorazd Sawicki as its exarch.[6]
TheOCG professes the doctrinal teachings of theecumenical councils ofNicea,Constantinople, andEphesus.[7]
Since April 2009[update], theOCG is infull communion with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in America.[8][a]
We confess the primitive faith of the Ecumenical Councils of Nicaea (325), Constantinople (381), and Ephesus (431). By this confession we take as our spiritual reference point the so-called 'Oriental' Orthodox Churches, rejecting any charges of 'monophysitism' which have been wrongfully linked to this confession.
Eastern Christiancommunion ofautocephalouschurches fromArmenia,Egypt,Eritrea,Ethiopia,Sudan and parts of theMiddle East, andIndia | ||
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