Metropolitan Onufriy (Onuphrius,
secular name
A legal name is the name that identifies a person for legal, administrative and other official purposes. A person's legal birth name generally is the name of the person that was given for the purpose of Civil registry, registration of the birth ...
Orest Volodymyrovych Berezovsky; ; ; born 5 November 1944) is the
primate
Primates is an order (biology), order of mammals, which is further divided into the Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhines, which include lemurs, galagos, and Lorisidae, lorisids; and the Haplorhini, haplorhines, which include Tarsiiformes, tarsiers a ...
of the
Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC). He is styled
"His Beatitude, Onufriy, Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine".
Biography
Berezovsky was born 5 November 1944 in Chernivtsi Oblast as the son of a priest. In 1961 he graduated from high school. From 1962 to 1964 he studied at the Chernivtsi technical school, after which he worked in construction organizations in Chernivtsi. In addition to his native Ukrainian, he also speaks Russian and Romanian.
In 1966, he joined the technical faculty of the
Chernivtsi University
The Chernivtsi National University (named after Yuriy Fedkovych, full official title Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University, ) is a public university in the city of Chernivtsi in Western Ukraine. One of the leading Ukrainian institutio ...
, in late 1969, during his third year of study, he abandoned this path and entered the
Moscow Theological Seminary in the second and last class of that year; the following year, he became part of the brotherhood of the
Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius
The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius () is a lavra and the most important Russian monastery, being the spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church. The monastery is situated in the town of Sergiyev Posad, about to the northeast from Moscow ...
.
On 18 March 1971 he was tonsured a monk with the name Onufriy, in honor of St.
Onuphrius the Great. On 20 June 1971 he was ordained a
hierodeacon A hierodeacon (Greek: Ἱεροδιάκονος, ''Ierodiákonos''; Slavonic: ''Ierodiakón''), sometimes translated "deacon-monk", in Eastern Orthodox Christianity and all other Churches that follow Byzantine Rite is a monk who has been ordained a ...
and on 29 May 1972 ordained a
hieromonk
A hieromonk,; Church Slavonic, Slavonic: ''Иеромонахъ''; ; ; ; ; Albanian language, Albanian: ''Hieromurg'' also called a priestmonk, is a person who is both monk and Priest#Roman Catholic and Orthodox, priest in the Eastern Christianity ...
.
After 18 years, Archimandrite Onufriy went back to Ukraine as the superior of the
Pochayiv Lavra of the
Holy Assumption.
In 1988, he graduated from the
Moscow Theological Academy
Moscow Theological Academy () is a higher educational institution of the Russian Orthodox Church, training clergy, teachers, scholars, and officials.
The Academy traces its origin to the Slavic Greek Latin Academy, which was founded in 1685 by th ...
as a candidate in theology.

On 20 July 1988 he was appointed Father-Superior of the
Dormition Pochayiv Lavra.
[Metropolitan Onufriy of Chernivtsi and Bukovina elected head of Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)](_blank)
, Interfax-Ukraine
Interfax-Ukraine () is a Ukrainian news agency. Founded in 1992, the company publishes in Ukrainian, Russian, English and German.
The company owns a 50-seat press centre.
The staff of the agency is 105 people (as of the end of February 2022)
...
(13 August 2014)
On 9 December 1990 he was consecrated Bishop of Chernivtsi and Bukovina by Metropolitan
Philaret (Denysenko) at the
St Volodymyr's Cathedral
St Volodymyr's Cathedral ( ) is a cathedral in the centre of Kyiv, and one of the city's major landmarks. Since the unification council of the Eastern Orthodox churches of Ukraine in December 2018, it has been under the ecclesiastical jurisdictio ...
in Kyiv.
On 22 January 1992, Onufriy signed a request of the bishops of the
Ukrainian Orthodox Church to
Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia
The Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus (), also known as the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, is the title of the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC). It is often preceded by the honorific "His Holiness". As the ordinary of the diocese ...
Alexy II for the erection of an autocephalous Church in Ukraine, and on January 23 Onufriy was transferred by Metropolitan
Philaret (Denysenko) to the Ivano-Frankivsk diocese.
On 7 April 1992 he was restored by the Diocese of Chernivtsi, and served in this diocese for 23 years.
On 28 July 1994 Onufriy was elevated to the rank of
archbishop
In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
and appointed a permanent member of the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox church.
On 22 November 2000 Onufriy was elevated to the rank of
Metropolitan
Metropolitan may refer to:
Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical)
* Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop
** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see"
* Metropolitan ar ...
.
On 23 November 2013 Onufriy was awarded by
Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine Vladimir the right to wear the second
Panagia
Panagia (, fem. of , + , the ''All-Holy'', or the ''Most Holy''; pronounced ) (also transliterated Panaghia or Panayia), in Medieval and Modern Greek, is one of the titles of Mary, Mother of God, used especially in Orthodox Christianity and E ...
.
On 24 February 2014 the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church elected Onufriy by secret ballot as
locum tenens
A locum, or locum tenens, is a person who temporarily fulfills the duties of another; the term is especially used for physicians or clergy. For example, a ''locum tenens physician'' is a physician who works in the place of the regular physician. ...
of the Kyiv metropolitan see, following the issuing of a medical certificate concerning the incapacity of
Volodymyr Volodymyr (, ; ) is a Ukrainian given name of Old East Slavic origin. The related Ancient Slavic, such as Czech, Russian, Serbian, Croatian, etc. form of the name is Володимѣръ ''Volodiměr'', which in other Slavic languages became Vladimi ...
, the Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine, to perform the duties of the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Volodymyr died on 5 July 2014.
On 13 August 2014 Onufriy was elected the new
primate
Primates is an order (biology), order of mammals, which is further divided into the Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhines, which include lemurs, galagos, and Lorisidae, lorisids; and the Haplorhini, haplorhines, which include Tarsiiformes, tarsiers a ...
of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine of the Moscow Patriarchate (succeeding
Metropolitan Volodymyr).
In February 2022, during the
Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
, along with other local bishops (such as the rival
Epiphanius), Onufriy offered the churches of his diocese as shelters from the bombings. Onufriy did not publicly condemn collaborating clergymen from his church, and they were not dismissed from the church. He did ban from the church clergymen that transferred themselves to the
Orthodox Church of Ukraine
The Orthodox Church of Ukraine (; OCU), also called the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, is an Eastern Orthodox Church in Ukraine. It was granted autocephaly by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople on .
Some of the Eastern Orthodox Churche ...
.
According to an April 2023 investigation by
Ukrainska Pravda
''Ukrainska Pravda'' is a Ukrainian socio-political online media outlet founded by Heorhii Gongadze in April 2000. After Gongadze’s death in September 2000, the editorial team was led by co-founder Olena Prytula, who remained the editor-in ...
Onufriy obtained a
Russian passport
The Russian passport () is a biometric travel document issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs to Russian citizens for international travel. This external Russian passport is distinct from the internal Russian passport, which is a mandato ...
in 1998 and 2002. Onufriy did not deny he used to have
Russian citizenship, but claimed he had obtained this to make true his former dream of living out his last days in the
Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius
The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius () is a lavra and the most important Russian monastery, being the spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church. The monastery is situated in the town of Sergiyev Posad, about to the northeast from Moscow ...
but that "the bad
relations between Russia and Ukraine, the collapse of the
CIS, and especially Russia's war against Ukraine" had destroyed this hope.
Views
Metropolitan Onufriy has referred to
Ukraine's aspirations to join the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
as a "tragedy".
[Russian Orthodox Church lends weight to Putin patriotism]
, BBC News
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...
(21 August 2015)
Onufriy has voiced his support for the territorial integrity of Ukraine.
He refused to stand up when the
Ukrainian parliament
The Verkhovna Rada ( ; VR), officially the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, is the unicameral parliament of Ukraine. It consists of 450 deputies presided over by a speaker. The Verkhovna Rada meets in the Verkhovna Rada building in Ukraine's capi ...
honoured the Ukrainian fighters of the
War in Donbass
The war in Donbas, or the Donbas war, was a phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. The war began in April 2014, when Russian paramilitaries seized several towns. Ukraine's military launched an operation ...
(against pro-Russian unionists), but later explained that this was an anti-war gesture.
In August 2014 Onufriy stated that there were no priests in the Ukrainian Church who supported separatism.
[ His Church has mostly abstained from commenting on the ]2014–15 Russian military intervention in Ukraine
The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia Russian occupation of Crimea, occupied and Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then ...
.[Patriarch Filaret: Moscow church does not serve needs of people]
, Kyiv Post
The ''Kyiv Post'' is Ukraine’s first and most prominent English-language newspaper. It was founded in 1995 in Kyiv by American businessman Jed Sunden.
In 2018, the publication was acquired by prominent Ukrainian businessman Adnan Kivan, foun ...
(2 October 2014)
In February 2016 he said that "in a situation of continued military confrontation in eastern Ukraine, we emphasize that we unfailingly stand on the side of peace and support all peace initiatives of the Ukrainian authorities".
On the first day of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
, Onufriy offered his blessing to the Armed Forces of Ukraine
The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) are the Military, military forces of Ukraine. All military and security forces, including the Armed Forces, are under the command of the president of Ukraine and subject to oversight by a permanent Verkhovna Rad ...
, giving "our special love and support to our soldiers who stand guard and protect and defend our land and our people. May God bless and cherish them!" Onufriy also publicly deplored the invasion and supported Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, appealing to Vladimir Putin to stop invading Ukraine immediately. Two days before the invasion, Onufriy had stated that "The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) has consistently supported and continues to support the territorial integrity of Ukraine and calls on its faithful to pray for peace in our Ukrainian state and around the world... I urge state leaders and all those on whom it depends, to avoid engaging in a new war. War is a grave sin before God!"
On the Day of Ukrainian Statehood, July 28 2023, Metropolitan Onufriy gave a speech in which he spoke of "This public holiday, which was established two years ago, has acquired a special significance for our country today. Today, our people are fighting for the preservation of our state, for its independence and territorial integrity, which was violated as a result of the treacherous invasion of Russian troops.", Onufriy declared that "The protection of one's Motherland is the sacred duty of every citizen, and therefore every believer of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church." and spoke regarding those UOC parishes in occupied territory, saying "Some of our dioceses and believers found themselves in the occupied territory. We often have no contact with them, we can't really help them with anything except to pray for them. However, these are our dioceses, these are our people, we pray for them, we consider them our brothers and sisters, and we await their reunification with us in a united, independent Ukraine." And declared that he believed that with God's help, Ukraine would win the war "I believe that with God's help we will win this war and rebuild our Ukraine. I am convinced that in order to succeed in this matter, we must be strong and united, treat our neighbors with love and respect."
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Berezovsky, Onufriy
1944 births
Living people
People from Chernivtsi Oblast
20th-century Eastern Orthodox bishops
21st-century Eastern Orthodox bishops
History of Christianity in Ukraine
Primates of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)
Metropolitans of Kiev and all Rus' (Patriarchate of Moscow)
Moscow Theological Academy alumni