The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople has agreed to recognize the independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. A synod meeting in Istanbul chaired by Patriarch Bartholomew I, who is considered the leader of the 300 million-strong worldwide Orthodox community, or "first among equals" of Eastern Orthodox clerics, decided on October 11 to "proceed to the granting of Autocephaly to the Church of Ukraine." President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko emphasizes that the issue of the Tomos and autocephaly of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church goes far beyond the bounds of church life - it is a matter of Ukrainian national security and statehood.
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