The Belarusian Orthodox Eparchy of Turov and Pinsk was an Orthodox ecclesiastical administrative unit based in Turov and later in Pinsk, under the jurisdiction of the Metropolis of Kyiv. It operated from the 11th century until 1596, when it transitioned to the Uniate Church by the decision of its ordinary, Bishop Jonah. Although the majority of the clergy and laity of the eparchy at that time favored remaining under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, the administrative unit never returned to the Orthodox Church. Formally, the Turov Eparchy was not abolished. In 1621, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, Theophanes III, illegally appointed Bishop Abraham of Stachona as the Bishop of Pinsk. However, in 1632, when the parallel existence of Orthodox and Uniate hierarchies was legalized in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Eparchy of Turov and Pinsk was not reactivated. Its former territory was not incorporated into the newly created Belarusian Eparchy (Mstsislaw, Mogilev, and Orsha). Instead, it was managed by the vicar of the Kyiv Metropolitan. New bishops of Turov and Pinsk were no longer appointed. The tradition of the Eparchy of Turov and Pinsk is continued by the post-Soviet administrative units of the Belarusian Orthodox Church: and the .
Initially, the eparchy was closely associated with the Principality of Turov. In the 16th century, at the time of its actual dissolution, it encompassed the , the former Duchy of Dubrovytsia, the Bobryk and Vitsk estates, and the former Duchies of Turov and Horodok. The jurisdiction of the bishop of Turov and Pinsk was also recognized by some parishes located outside the described area but historically connected with the administrative unit. Sources confirm the existence of 188 parishes under the bishop of Turov and Pinsk during this period; the figure of 255 pastoral stations reported by some church historians is considered unlikely. The eparchy also had at least a dozen monasteries, the most significant being the in the early period, and later the Lauryshava Monastery and the .
History
Origins According to many sources, auxiliary bishops of the Volodymyr eparchy resided in Turov from 1005. This is based on information contained in the tenth edition of the Kyiv Caves Patericon, compiled by Joseph, archimandrite of the Kyiv Monastery of the Caves, between 1647 and 1656. The Patericon mentions the appointment of the first Bishop of Turov, Thomas, in 6513 (i.e., 1005), and elsewhere it refers to his receipt of tithes from the entire Principality of Turov. Earlier editions of the Patericon, created between the 13th and 16th centuries, do not contain similar information.
Some Belarusian authors (Zagorulski, Łysienko) and the Orthodox Metropolitan and church historian, Macarius Bulgakov, claimed that auxiliary bishops of the Volodymyr eparchy, using the title of bishops of Turov, resided there as early as 992, or that an independent Turov eparchy was established in that year. If this date is accepted, it would mean that this bishopric was one of the oldest Christian administrative units in the Rus' lands, alongside the eparchies of Novgorod, , Rostov, Belgorod, , Polotsk, and Tmutarakan. The source for this view is a passage in the Primary Chronicle, which describes Sviatopolk I of Kiev assuming power in the Principality of Turov. Some Russian authors (Golubinsky, Yermalovich, Malyshevsky) also lean towards the belief that the first bishop arrived in Turov with Prince Sviatopolk, and the Turov eparchy was established in 991 or 992.
In Antoni Mironowicz's opinion, the view that the Turov eparchy was established as early as the 10th century, although widely spread in church tradition, is unreliable. He argues that attributing such a long history to the administrative unit is a late medieval legend. According to him, it is possible that a bishop resided in Turov to organize missionary activities around the town. Marceli Kosman also argues that the idea of the creation of the Turov eparchy lacks foundation, especially considering Turov's low status, which by the end of the 10th century was less significant than Pinsk.
According to Mironowicz, the independent Turov eparchy was established no earlier than 1088, when Sviatopolk II of Kiev became the duke of Turov, whose importance had significantly increased in the previous decade. The concept of dividing the Volodymyr eparchy and creating new administrative units was supported by the Kyiv Metropolitan . Political reasons were much more significant than purely ecclesiastical ones in the establishment of the administrative unit. This view is shared by Andrzej Poppe, Marceli Kosman, and .
Functioning in the Principality of Turov The boundaries of the eparchy aligned with those of the Principality of Turov. In later centuries, it temporarily included some regions of Black Ruthenia and southern Podlachia. Poppe indicated that the eparchy's territory encompassed Polesia, including Brest and Pinsk. This area was defined by the rivers Pripyat, Pina, Yaselda, Sluch, Lan, Bobryk, Tsna, Stokhod, Styr, , Stsviha, Uborca, and Horyn. The Turov eparchy was part of the Metropolis of Kyiv.
The eparchy's boundaries frequently changed due to conflicts between Rus' dukes and shifting borders between principalities. It is unclear when the final stable borders of the administrative unit were established, particularly concerning the Volodymyr eparchy. This may have occurred in 1135, after Duke Iziaslav Mstislavich moved from Turov to Volodymyr. By the mid-12th century, the Volodymyr eparchy included parts of Volhynia west of the Horyn and Sluch rivers, parts of Polesia (including Slonim, Grodno, Volkovysk, Kobryn), and areas along the middle Bug river (including Mielnik, Bielsk, and Drohiczyn). In 1237, the territory of the Brest Principality transferred from the Turov eparchy to the Volodymyr eparchy. In the 12th and 13th centuries, Turov bishops might have temporarily overseen Orthodox churches in southern Podlachia.
Few details have survived about the situation of the Principality of Turov and the Turov eparchy in the 13th century. It is known that despite the division of the principality (with the emergence of the Brest and Pinsk principalities), the Turov eparchy maintained its original boundaries. Little is known about the administrative situation during the Tatar invasions. The exact time of moving its capital to Pinsk is also unclear. According to Bishop Stefan of Turov, this occurred in 1241, while other authors place it in the first half of the 14th century, in 1440, or even at the beginning of the 16th century. The became the new seat of the Turov eparchy. The reason for this relocation was the increased importance of Pinsk and the city's greater security against Tatar attacks.
Around 1303, the Turov eparchy transitioned from the jurisdiction of the Metropolis of Kyiv to the newly established Metropolis of Halych, along with the , Volodymyr, Przemyśl, and Lutsk eparchies. After the Metropolis of Halych was dissolved in 1347, it became part of the Metropolis of Kyiv again. Bishops of the defunct Metropolis of Lithuania, dissolved in 1330, also claimed jurisdiction over the Turov eparchy. In 1353, after the reactivation of the Metropolis of Lithuania, the Turov bishopric was included, along with the Polotsk eparchy. Eighteen years later, it transferred back to the Metropolis of Halych when Patriarch Philotheus of Constantinople reactivated its structure. Since the Principality of Turov was within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the actual superiors of the Turov bishops were the Lithuanian Metropolitans.
From 15th to 16th century In the second half of the 15th century, the territory of the Turov eparchy consisted of the lands of the Principality of Turov, the Principality of Horodok, the Principality of Pinsk, and the former Principality of Dubrovytsia. After the division of the Metropolis of Kyiv into the Kyiv and Moscow metropolises, the Turov eparchy remained under the jurisdiction of the former.
The eparchy experienced significant development in the second half of the 15th century and the first half of the 16th century due to the donations and grants from Prince Ivan Vasilievich Yaroslavovich and later his son Fyodor, who inherited the Principality of Pinsk through his marriage to Helena Olshanska. Fyodor, while founding additional Orthodox churches, decided on their construction without consulting the bishop. He likely aimed to make the lower clergy dependent solely on him. Concerned by this situation, Bishop of Turov brought the matter to King Alexander Jagiellon, who prohibited the construction of churches without the bishop's consent and ordered existing ones to be placed under his control.
Fyodor Ivanovich died childless in 1519. King Sigismund I the Old granted Pinsk to Queen Bona, who managed the town and the former Principality of Pinsk as a starostwo (an administrative unit). In 1522, Sigismund I confirmed Alexander Jagiellon's privilege regarding the founding of churches in the eparchy. In the 16th century, the borders of the Eparchy of Turov and Pinsk were established. It included the Pinsk district, the former Principality of Dubrovytsia, and the Bobryk and Vitsk estates. In the latter half of the century, the eparchy also incorporated the former Principalities of Turov and Horodok. Some parishes outside this area but historically connected to the administrative unit also recognized the authority of the bishop of Turov and Pinsk.
Queen Bona ensured the integrity of her domain in Pinsk and took care of the clergy of all denominations. She did not allow magnates to interfere in the activities of the Turov eparchy.
In the mid-16th century, Orthodoxy was the dominant religion in the Polesia region.
Transition of the Eparchy to the Uniate Church
Bishop of Turov and Pinsk, Leontius (serving from 1588 to 1595), was a supporter of the union between the Orthodox Church in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Catholic Church. He attended the synods in Belz in spring and June 1590, and on 24 June 1594, together with bishops Cyril Terlecki, Hedeon Balaban, and Dionysius (Zbyruyskyy), he expressed his willingness to sign the union act. The faithful of the Turov eparchy were not informed about the activities of their ordinary. On 2 December 1594, Bishop Leontius participated in a meeting of Orthodox bishops with the Latin Bishop of Lutsk, Bernard Maciejowski, where they discussed the details of the upcoming union. In June 1595, the bishop once again confirmed his readiness to convert to Catholicism while retaining the Eastern rite. However, he never realized his plans as he died in an accident that same year.
Leontius' plans were realized by his successor, Bishop Jonah Gogol, who participated in the Union of Brest in 1596 and signed the union act. The council of dissenters excommunicated him for this reason. Most of the clergy of the eparchy strongly rejected the union. Participants in the anti-union council included the superior of the Leszcze Monastery near Pinsk, Yelysei Pletenetskyi, Pinsk protopopes Jan and Symeon, and the entire clergy of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Cathedral in Pinsk. In subsequent years, almost all parishes and all monasteries rejected the union's provisions. The majority of the local nobility took a similar stance.
Attempts to reactivate the eparchy