The Belgrade edition of Politics published an article by Archbishop of Ohrid and Metropolitan John of Skopia “The Borders of the Church”.
The head of the Ohrid Archdiocese, which cares for North Macedonia, writes that the Church is above state and national divisions, united and indivisible in nature. Despite the presence of different jurisdictions (local Churches), the Church is “one organism of the body of Christ.”
Archbishop John writes: “The Church does not abolish other identities, such as national, but also does not allow this identity to dominate the Church.” Therefore, “the boundaries of the Church do not always coincide with the boundaries of states. The jurisdiction of the Church can be extended to more than one state.” The boundaries of the local Church do not have to coincide with the political boundaries.
According to the head of the Ohrid Archdiocese, “The Church has a longer history than many states that exist in our time. States rise and fall, and only the Church, according to the promise of Christ, in which Christians constantly believe, will remain to the ends of the earth and to the end of the age.” …
Archbishop John noted that the state cannot triumph over the Church: “This has been proven many times in the history of the Church, but it has been proven in our time, through the events in Montenegro and the Republic of North Macedonia.”
According to the bishop, “in North Macedonia, the state brutally attacked the church, it could have won the battle, but lost the war. In particular, the state imprisoned me many times (six), and in such a way as if it won the battle, but they lost war, because the Orthodox Archdiocese of Ohrid not only survived, but also became a respected Church and an example of how the Church should be organized in our time. and today, from Ukraine to North Macedonia and Montenegro. ”
The Orthodox Archdiocese of Ohrid is an independent (autonomous) part of the Serbian Orthodox Church and operates on the territory of the Republic of North Macedonia. The Ohrid Archdiocese still does not have official registration, despite the decision of the European Court of Human Rights. At the same time, the non-canonical (schismatic) so-called “Macedonian Orthodox Church – Archdiocese of Ohrid” is officially operating in the country, which in 1967 fell away from pan-Orthodox unity.
The photo shows the ministry of the Church under conditions of persecution.
