Russian Orthodox Diocese of Lithuania
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The Diocese of Vilnius and Lithuania (
The diocese includes five deaneries, based in municipal Vilnius, regional Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, and Visaginas, with 52 parishes and two monasteries.[4] The majority of parishioners come from the resident Slavic minorities.[5]
History
Orthodox Christianity first entered Lithuania in significant numbers in the 13th century with the conversion of some of its early nobles from paganism. Among these were the Three Martyrs of Vilnius, Anthony, John, and Eustathius, martyred in 1347 under the Grand Duke Algirdas.[6]
Formally established Orthodox parishes in Lithuania and in the surrounding region ultimately derive from the short-lived fourteenth-century
In the late 18th century, with the
The diocese functioned within the Russian empire until Lithuania became independent in 1918. At that time, a number of the churches that had been taken from the Catholic Church were returned, and certain Orthodox churches, such as Archangel Michael Church in Kaunas, were also given to the Catholic Church.[5][8] Most of the Orthodox parishes that exist today in Lithuania were built during the imperial period (1795–1918).[4]
In the wake of World War I, part of Lithuania was controlled by Poland, including the capital Vilnius. During that time, with the autocephaly of the Polish Orthodox Church in 1924, the parishes in that region were part of the Polish church.
As a result of World War II, Lithuania again became subjugated to Russia, this time as part of the
In 1990, Lithuania again regained independence. The head of the diocese at the time, Archbishop Chrysostom (Martishkin), openly supported Lithuanian independence.[9] He was succeeded in 2010 by Metropolitan Innocent (Vasilyev).
See also
- Christianity in Lithuania
References
- ^ "Виленская епархия". patriarchia.ru.
- ^ "ВИЛЕНСКО-ЛИТОВСКАЯ ЕПАРХИЯ". orthodoxy.lt.
- ^ "Митрополит Виленский и Литовский Хризостом почислен на покой по состоянию здоровья / Новости / Патриархия.ru". Патриархия.ru.
- ^ a b "Благочиния". orthodoxy.lt.
- ^ a b "Orthodoxy in Lithuania". truelithuania.com.
- ^ "Martyrs Anthony, John, and Eustathius of Vilnius". oca.org.
- ^ "The Union of Brest-Litovsk". oca.org.
- ^ "ST. MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL'S CHURCH (A.K.A. THE GARRISON CHURCH)". kaunas.lt.
- ^ "METROPOLITAN OF LITHUANIA ON UKRAINE: THE VOICE OF THE CHRISTIAN CONSCIENCE CRIES OUT TO HEAVEN". orthochristian.com.