Archbishop of Ohrid

The Archbishop of Ohrid is a historic title given to the primate of the Archbishopric of Ohrid. The whole original title of the primate was Archbishop of Justiniana Prima and all Bulgaria ().

The archbishopric was established in 1018 by lowering of the rank of the autocephalous Bulgarian Patriarchate to the rank of archbishopric. The autocephaly of the Ohrid Archbishopric remained respected during the periods of Byzantine, Bulgarian, Serbian and Ottoman rule and continued to exist until its abolition in 1767.

Today, the primate of the Macedonian Orthodox Church is claimant to the title of Archbishop of Ohrid.

According to the statutes of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the current Bulgarian Patriarchate is the successor of the Ohrid Archbishopric.

Archbishopric of Ohrid, 1018–1767

NameReignBirth Name TitleJohn I of Debar1018–1037Archbishop of OhridLeo1037–1056Archbishop of OhridTheodulus I1056–1065Archbishop of OhridJohn II Lampinos1065–1078Archbishop of OhridJohn III 1078–1079Archbishop of OhridTheophylact1084–1107Archbishop of OhridLeo II Mung1108–1120Archbishop of OhridMichael Maximos1120Archbishop of OhridJohn IV1139/43–1160Adrianos KomnenosArchbishop of OhridConstantine I1160Archbishop of OhridJohn V Kamateros1183–1216Archbishop of OhridDemetrios Chomatianos1216–1234Archbishop of OhridJoanniciusArchbishop of OhridSergiusArchbishop of OhridConstantine II Kabasilasbefore 1255–after 1259Archbishop of OhridJacob Proarchius1275–1285Archbishop of OhridHadrianArchbishop of OhridGennadiusArchbishop of OhridMacariusArchbishop of OhridAnthimos Metochites1341–1346Archbishop of OhridNicholas I1346Archbishop of OhridGregory II1364/65Archbishop of OhridMatthew1408Archbishop of OhridNicodemus1452Archbishop of OhridDositheos IArchbishop of OhridDorotheos1466Archbishop of OhridMark Xylokaravis1466Archbishop of OhridNicholas IIArchbishop of OhridZacharius1486Archbishop of OhridProchorus1528–1550Archbishop of OhridSimeon1550–1557Archbishop of OhridNicanor1557–1565Archbishop of OhridPaisius1565Archbishop of OhridParthenius IArchbishop of OhridSophronius1567–1572Archbishop of OhridGabriel1572–1588Archbishop of OhridTheodulus II1588–1590Archbishop of OhridGregory III1590–1593Archbishop of OhridJoachim1593–1596Archbishop of OhridAthanasius I1596–1598Archbishop of OhridVarlaam1598Archbishop of OhridNectarius I1598–1613Archbishop of OhridMetrophanes1614–1616Archbishop of OhridNectarius II1616–1624Archbishop of OhridPorphyrios Palaiologos1624–1627Archbishop of OhridGeorge1627–1628Archbishop of OhridJoasaph1628–1629Archbishop of OhridAbraham Mesaps1629–1637Archbishop of OhridMeletius I1637–1643Archbishop of OhridChariton1643–1650Archbishop of OhridDaniel1650–1652Archbishop of OhridDionysius I1652–1653Archbishop of OhridAthanasius II1653Archbishop of OhridPaphnutiusArchbishop of OhridIgnatius I1660–1663Archbishop of OhridArsenius I1663Archbishop of OhridZosimus1663–1670Archbishop of OhridPanaretus1671–1673Archbishop of OhridNectarius III1673–1676Archbishop of OhridIgnatius II1676Archbishop of OhridTeophanes1676Archbishop of OhridMeletius II1676–1677Archbishop of OhridParthenius II1677–1683Archbishop of OhridGregory IV1683–1688Archbishop of OhridGermanus1688–1691Archbishop of OhridGregory V1691–1693Archbishop of OhridIgnatius III1693–16951703–1706Archbishop of OhridZosimus II1695–16991707–1708Archbishop of OhridRaphael1699–1702Archbishop of OhridGermanus II1702Archbishop of OhridDionysius II17061709–1714Archbishop of OhridMethodius I1708Archbishop of OhridPhilotheus1714–1718Archbishop of OhridJoasaph II1719–1745Archbishop of OhridJoseph1746–1752Archbishop of OhridDionysius III1752–1756Archbishop of OhridMethodius II1757–1758Archbishop of OhridCyril1759–1762Archbishop of OhridJeremy1763Archbishop of OhridAnanias1763Archbishop of OhridArsenius II1763–1767Archbishop of Ohrid

Macedonian Orthodox Church

Autonomous, 1958–1967 On 4 October 1958, the Macedonian Orthodox Church was declared as the restoration of the Archbishopric of Ohrid. Archbishop Dositej II was enthroned as Archbishop of Ohrid and Macedonia, continuing in the lineage of the Archbishops of Ohrid. The declaration was retroactively accepted by the Bishops' Council of the Serbian Orthodox Church on 19 June 1959, and was celebrated in a common liturgy by Archbishop Dositej II and Serbian Patriarch German in Skopje.

In 1962, Serbian Patriarch German and Russian Patriarch Alexy I visited the Macedonian Orthodox Church on the feast of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Ohrid. The two patriarchs and the Macedonian archbishop celebrated Holy Liturgy, marking the first occasion where the leader of the Macedonian church met with heads of other Eastern Orthodox Churches.

NamePortraitReignBirth Name TitleDositej II1958–1967Dimitrije StojkovićArchbishop of Ohrid and Macedonia

Autocephalous, since 1967

On 19 July 1967, in Ohrid, the Macedonian Orthodox Church declared autocephaly from the Serbian Orthodox Church, a move which was not acknowledged by the Serbian church and other Eastern Orthodox Churches.

NamePortraitReignBirth Name TitleDositej II1967–1981Dimitrije StojkovićArchbishop of Ohrid and Macedonia1981–1986Cvetko KrsteskiArchbishop of Ohrid and Macedonia1986–1993Ǵorǵi MiloševArchbishop of Ohrid and MacedoniaMihail1993–1999Metodi GogovArchbishop of Ohrid and MacedoniaStefan1999–presentStojan VeljanovskiArchbishop of Ohrid and Macedonia

In 2022, the disagreement between the Macedonian Orthodox Church and the Serbian Orthodox Church over the self-proclaimed autocephaly of the former ended. The Macedonian Orthodox Church was recognized as autocephalous by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and some other Eastern Orthodox Churches.

Serbian Orthodox Church Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric (autonomous), 2005–2023

The Serbian Orthodox Church had a disagreement with the Macedonian Orthodox Church after its separation and declaration of autocephaly in 1967 and did not recognize it, along with all of the other Eastern Orthodox churches. After the negotiations between the two churches were suspended, the Macedonian church had withdrawn from the 2002 agreement where the Macedonian church would enjoy recognition as autonomous under the control of the Serbian church, the Serbian church officially recognized the group led by Jovan Vraniškovski, a former bishop of the Macedonian church, as leaders of the Archbishopric of Ohrid under the tutelage of the Serbian Patriarchate in 2005. The Serbian church recognized his group as the restoration of the Archbishopric of Ohrid and gave him the title of Jovan VI, Archbishop of Ohrid.

In 2023, after the reconciliation of the Serbian church and the Macedonian church, the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric was integrated into the Macedonian church.OOA: News (June 2023) On 28 June 2023, the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric made an official announcement, stating that it has fulfilled its mission, and noting that its hierarchs have collectively joined the Macedonian church.OOA (2023): Communique of the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric (mk)

NamePortraitReignBirth Name TitleJovan VI2005–2023Zoran VraniškovskiArchbishop of Ohrid

References