Patriarch Mstyslav, secular name Stepan Ivanovych Skrypnyk (10 April 1898 – 11 June 1993), was a

Ukrainian Orthodox The history of Christianity in Ukraine dates back to the earliest centuries of the history of Christianity, to the Apostolic Age, with mission trips along the Black Sea and a legend of Saint Andrew even ascending the hills of Kyiv. The first C ...

Church hierarch. He was a nephew of

Symon Petlyura Symon Vasylyovych Petliura ( uk, Си́мон Васи́льович Петлю́ра; – May 25, 1926) was a Ukrainian politician and journalist. He became the Supreme Commander of the Ukrainian Army and the President of the Ukrainian People' ...

Biography

Born in Poltava (

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

, now

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

), Skrypnyk attended the Poltava First Classical Gymnasium and dreamt of a military career through his youth. During the

Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

years he studied at the Officers' school in Orenburg located in the Russian

Ural Mountains The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western ...

. During the

Ukrainian–Soviet War The Ukrainian–Soviet War ( uk, радянсько-українська війна, translit=radiansko-ukrainska viina) was an armed conflict from 1917 to 1921 between the Ukrainian People's Republic and the Bolsheviks (Soviet Ukraine and S ...

Skrypnyk became a diplomatic courier for the army of the

Ukrainian People's Republic The Ukrainian People's Republic (UPR), or Ukrainian National Republic (UNR), was a country in Eastern Europe that existed between 1917 and 1920. It was declared following the February Revolution in Russia by the First Universal. In March 1 ...

. He then served a second lieutenant (ensign) for special missions for Petlura. In the early 1920s he was

interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

to an

internment camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

Kalisz (The oldest city of Poland) , image_skyline = , image_caption = ''Top:'' Town Hall, Former "Calisia" Piano Factory''Middle:'' Courthouse, "Gołębnik" tenement''Bottom:'' Aerial view of the Kalisz Old Town , image_flag = POL Kalisz flag.svg ...

. Later, he briefly settled in

Volhynia Volhynia (also spelled Volynia) ( ; uk, Воли́нь, Volyn' pl, Wołyń, russian: Волы́нь, Volýnʹ, ), is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between south-eastern Poland, south-western Belarus, and western Ukraine. The ...

but had to leave under the pressure of the Polish authorities. He then moved to Galicia and became an activist for the Ukrainian movement in

which controlled the ethnically Ukrainian territories of Galicia and

between the world wars. Following his attendance of the Warsaw School of Political Sciences, he was elected in 1930 to the

Polish Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland ( Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of t ...

from the Ukrainian population of Volhynia. He also served as vice-mayor of

Rivne Rivne (; uk, Рівне ),) also known as Rovno (Russian: Ровно; Polish: Równe; Yiddish: ראָוונע), is a city in western Ukraine. The city is the administrative center of Rivne Oblast (province), as well as the surrounding Rivne Raio ...

in the 1930s. In this period Skrypnyk collaborated with the Polish

voivode Voivode (, also spelled ''voievod'', ''voevod'', ''voivoda'', ''vojvoda'' or ''wojewoda'') is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe since the Early Middle Ages. It primarily referred to the ...

, Henryk Józewski in his Prometheist policies supporting moderate Ukrainians as a counterweight to Soviet communism. Serving in Sejm until 1939 Skrypnyk attained the reputation of the defender of the Ukrainian minority rights in Poland, especially of the Orthodox Faith in the predominantly Orthodox Volhynia against the assimilationist policies of Polish authorities. At the beginning of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, the Ukrainian life in some Nazi-occupied territories of Poland initially experienced a significant degree of revivalХолм ( Cholm) article in ''"Енциклопедія українознавства (Encyclopedia of Ukrainian studies)"'', by Volodymyr Kubiiovych; Zenon Kuzelia, 3-volumes, Kyiv, 1994, as the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

policies played with pitting the ethnic groups with a historically complicated relationship against each other, giving an upper hand to Poles or Ukrainians in different regions as the Nazis saw fit. When the Ukrainian Committee and the Temporary Church Council was formed in Cholm ''(Chełm)'', Skrypnyk was elected a council deputy head (1940). In April 1942 Skrypnyk, by then a widower, entered the priesthood. He took monastic vows in the following month and soon after was

ordain Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform var ...

ed (May 14) as the ''

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

Mstyslav'' of

Pereiaslav Pereiaslav ( uk, Перея́слав, translit=Pereiaslav, yi, פּרעיאַסלעוו, Periyoslov) is a historical city in the Boryspil Raion, Kyiv Oblast (province) of central Ukraine, located near the confluence of Alta and Trubizh riv ...

by the

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church The Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC; uk, Українська автокефальна православна церква (УАПЦ), Ukrayinska avtokefalna pravoslavna tserkva (UAPC)) was one of the three major Eastern Orthod ...

(UAOC). The consecration took place in the Church of St Andrew in Kyiv. In August 1942, the German occupational authorities banned Mstyslav from Kyiv General-Governorate. As Mstyslav disobeyed the order, he was arrested in

. On

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one orga ...

accusations he spent half a year imprisoned in

Chernihiv Chernihiv ( uk, Черні́гів, , russian: Черни́гов, ; pl, Czernihów, ; la, Czernihovia), is a city and municipality in northern Ukraine, which serves as the administrative center of Chernihiv Oblast and Chernihiv Raion within ...

and

Pryluky Pryluky ( uk, Прилу́ки ) is a city and municipality located on the Udai River in Chernihiv Oblast, north-central Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Pryluky Raion (district). Located nearby is the Pryluky air base, a ma ...

. He was freed in spring the following year but was ordered not to leave Kyiv and banned from conducting religious services. In 1944 he moved to

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

and later to Germany, where he was the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox eparchies in Hessen and Württemberg. In 1947 he left for Canada where he was elected the first resident hierarch of the

Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada (UOCC; french: Église orthodoxe ukrainienne du Canada) is an Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox church in Canada, primarily consisting of Orthodox Ukrainian Canadians. Its former name (before 1990) ...

(UGOC) as an archbishop of

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749, ...

. He left the UGOC due to conflict about the balance of power between the bishop and church administrators. The focal point of this conflict was between Mstyslav and Fr. Semen Sawchuk, who was the administrator of the UGOC consistory. In 1949 he moved to the USA and joined the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in America (UOC in America), then headed by Bishop Bohdan (Shpyl'ka). At the 1950 Council (Sobor) in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

he succeeded in bringing about unification of the UOC in America with the much larger Archdiocese

eparchy Eparchy ( gr, ἐπαρχία, la, eparchía / ''overlordship'') is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity, that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. Eparchy is governed by an ''eparch'', who is a bishop. Depending on the ...

of Archbishop John (Theodorovich), the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA (UOC of USA). Archbishop John was elected as Metropolitan of the newly united UOC of USA. Archbishop Mstyslav became his deputy and the head of the

Consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church * Consistor ...

. In the US, Bishop Mstyslav began extensive church activity with the Ukrainian Orthodox Center, a publishing house, library and seminary being built in South Bound Brook, New Jersey. After the death of Metropolitan Nikanor (Abramovych) in 1969, his authority was extended over the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Churches of Europe and Australia. During his meetings with the then Ecumenical Patriarch,

Athenagoras I Athenagoras I ( el, Αθηναγόρας Αʹ), born Aristocles Matthaiou ("son of Matthew", a patronymic) Spyrou ( el, Αριστοκλής Ματθαίου Σπύρου, links=no; – July 7, 1972), initially the Greek archbishop in North Amer ...

both separately in 1963 and 1971, he brought up the issue of the canonical recognition of the Ukrainian Diaspora churches (UAOC was banned in the USSR, and hence in Soviet Ukraine at that time). In 1991, at the age of 93, he was elected ''in absentia'' as the first Patriarch of Kyiv and all Ukraine of the UAOC. He was enthroned as Patriarch Mstyslav I, on November 6, 1991 in St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. In June 1992, a unification Sobor was held which united the UAOC with one part of the

Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) The Ukrainian Orthodox Church ( uk, Українська православна церква, Ukrainska pravoslavna tserkva; russian: Украинская православная церковь, Ukrainskaya pravoslavnaya tserkov', UOC), common ...

, then led by Metropolitan

Filaret (Denysenko) Patriarch Filaret (secular name ''Mykhailo Antonovych Denysenko'', born 23 January 1929) is a Ukrainian religious leader, currently serving as the primate and Patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate. The Orthodox Church ...

. Patriarch Mstyslav personally signed and affixed his seal to the merger documents, which formed the

Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyivan Patriarchate Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * Som ...

under his leadership, but the status of the new church as well as the overall situation with the Orthodox faith in Ukraine became a subject of the wide controversy (see

History of Christianity in Ukraine The history of Christianity in Ukraine dates back to the earliest centuries of the history of Christianity, to the Apostolic Age, with mission trips along the Black Sea and a legend of Saint Andrew even ascending the hills of Kyiv. The first Chr ...

), which the patriarch was unable to resolve within his lifetime. Patriarch Mstyslav returned to North America, where on June 11, 1993 he died at his daughter's home in Canada at the age of 95. He was entombed at the

Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA (UOC of USA; uk, Українська православна церква у США) is a jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the United States. It consists of two eparchies (dioceses), ruled ...

center in South Bound Brook, New Jersey. The issue of repatriating Mstyslav's relics to Ukraine is occasionally raised but no firm plans for this exist. After his death, the UOC-KP elected

Volodomyr (Romaniuk) Volodymyr (secular name Vasyl Omelianovych Romaniuk, uk, Василь Омелянович Романюк; December 10, 1925, Kosiv Raion, Khymchyn – July 14, 1995, Kyiv) was the Patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate ...

as Patriarch, while a portion of the UAOC which had broken from the UAOC after the 1992 union elected Patriarch Dymytriy (Yarema) as a head of a newly formed UAOC.

References

;Inline ;General * *

Ukrainian Weekly ''The Ukrainian Weekly'' is the oldest English-language newspaper of the Ukrainian diaspora in the United States, and North America. Founded by the Ukrainian National Association, and published continuously since October 6, 1933, archived copies ...

, May 10, 1998
Ukraine commemorates centennial of Patriarch Mstyslav's birth
* Людина і світ. – 1990. – №12. – С. 10-14
Святійший Патріарх Київський і всієї України Мстислав
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External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Skrypnyk, Mstyslav 1898 births 1993 deaths People from Poltava People from Poltava Governorate First Hierarchs of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church Members of the Sejm of the Second Polish Republic (1930–1935) Members of the Sejm of the Second Polish Republic (1935–1938) Members of the Sejm of the Second Polish Republic (1938–1939) Ukrainian politicians before 1991 Military officers of the Ukrainian People's Republic Ukrainian emigrants to Canada Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada bishops First Hierarchs of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyivan Patriarchate Primates of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA Ukrainian cooperative organizers Ukrainian emigrants to Poland Burials at Ukrainian Orthodox Church Cemetery, South Bound Brook