The Orthodox Church in Estonia

Challenges in re-establishing Orthodox traditions

Practitioners of the Orthodox Christian faith have existed for centuries in Estonia, with members drawn from the Estonian and other ethnic communities. Before the occupation by the Soviet Union approximately 30 per cent of Estonia's population were Orthodox believers.

At present there are more than 80 Orthodox parishes active in Estonia which vary from large parishes to small parishes located in rural districts. The collapse of the Soviet Union, and of Soviet control of the church, brought two issues to the fore:

1) the location of the ecclesiastical centre for Orthodox parishioners, and 2) the restoration of church property under Estonian law. At the moment more than 50 Orthodox parishes in Estonia have applied to restore the canonical subordination under the Patriarch of Constantinople.

The contemporary position of the Orthodox Church in Estonia is complicated since the various interests - canonical, traditional and commercial - cut through simplistic attempts to read recent developments with "ethnic overtones."

A Short History

Orthodox Christians have existed in Estonia from the 11th century. In the 17th century the Old Believers fled to Estonia from Russia to avoid the changes in the Russian Orthodox Church which caused a schism in the church. During the 19th century, Estonian peasants were encouraged to convert to the Orthodox faith with promises of land and socio-economic improvement. The Orthodox Church was also used as an important tool in the Russification campaigns of the late 19th century which attempted to break Baltic German dominance of local life. This increased the number of Orthodox believers in Estonia.

However, there was no ecclesiastical structure nor any detached diocese for the Orthodox Church in Estonia until 1919. All ecclesiastical administration depended on the Archbishop of Riga and Litva (Lithuania).

In the early 20th, due to the Bolshevik revolution in Russia, the position of the Orthodox Church in Russia became difficult. Calls for independence from Moscow increased with the announcement of Estonia's independence and the state of war between Estonia and the Soviet Russian Bolshevik forces. These demands became more strident after the Estonian Bishop Plato was murdered in 1919 in Tartu by Bolshevik forces during the War of Independence (1918-1920).

On March 18-22, 1919 the General Council of the Estonian Orthodox Congregations, as it was then known, and in which almost all local parishes participated, met and unanimously decided that:

a) ecclesiastical life in Estonia should be organised and develop according to the principles reflecting the new socio-political reality, i.e. the existence of an independent church within a sovereign Estonian state and

b) all efforts should be made in order to elect a new primate of the Estonian Orthodox Church after the death of Bishop Plato.

By respecting canonical law, the Estonian Orthodox Church * (EOC) placed itself under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Constantinople.

By 1935 one-third of the total Estonian population was Orthodox Christian under the Patriarch of Constantinople, including the President of Estonia, Konstantin Päts. The independent EOC was able to protect and preserve many important Orthodox institutions in Estonia from the destruction and pillaging of church property that occurred in Soviet Russia. These institutions included the ancient monastery in Petseri (Pechory) and the nunnery in Pühtitsa (Kuremäe).

The independent activities of the Estonian Orthodox Church were halted with the Soviet occupation of Estonia. The Soviet occupation authorities did not respect canonical law nor the desires of the parishioners. This resulted in the forcible subordination of Estonian Orthodox parishioners to the Patriarch of Moscow. From this time on, the church was no longer an independent church, but a bishopric of Moscow and subject to its synod.

In response to the well-documented religious repression underway in the Soviet Union and the Soviet's activities in Estonia, many Estonian Orthodox Church leaders fled Estonia in 1944 and lived in exile in Sweden, where they continued to follow the canonical law governing their religious life. With the restoration of Estonia's independence, the church applied to re-register itself as the successor of the EOC with support from parishes in Estonia.

The developments in the last fifty years under Soviet occupation and the value of the property involved have raised both canonical and legal issues.

Current Issues Concerning the Orthodox Church

Canonical Issues

In Estonia, the church is separated from the state and Estonia's government does not restrict nor favour the activities of any denomination. The registration rules for denominations is regulated by the Law on Churches and Congregations, passed on May 20, 1993.

There are two main trends amongst believers on the issue of canonical subordination. Most of the registered parishes have applied to restore the canonical subordination under the Patriarch of Constantinople; others have not registered and have not agreed on canonical subordination issues. Over 50 parishes have indicated their preference for Constantinople and there are many large parishes who have indicated their preference for Moscow. According to the World Council of Churches' Memorandum (23/2/94), "3. the division is not simply Estonians versus Russians. There are Estonians who want to stay with Moscow and Russians who favour Constantinople."

There are those who believe in continuation of canonical law, since the decision to belong under the Patriarch of Constantinople was democratically decided before the Soviet occupation, and therefore this situation should be restored. The EOC respects the decision of the parishes in Estonia that wish to be subject to the Moscow Patriarchate. However, the Patriarch of Moscow demands the sole right to oversee the Orthodox Church in Estonia and does not agree to recognise the wish of EOC parishes to restore their canonical subordination to the Patriarch of Constantinople.

Legal Background

The Estonian state requires all religious organisations operating in Estonia to register with the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Following the passage of the Law on Churches and Congregations, all churches and congregations were required to register or re-register their statutes. The Estonian Orthodox Church (EOC) submitted an application to re-register its statutes on August 11, 1993.

The EOC re-registered itself with the support of 21 parishes in Estonia as the Estonian Orthodox Church. The Estonian government, following the law, was required to accept the re-registration of the church. Now the Russian Orthodox Church demands that its diocese in Estonia be registered as the Estonian Orthodox Church and its legal successor. This is impossible, as the church, which has been active since 1919, is already registered under its historic name. The unregistered Russian Orthodox Church has forbidden the activity of church members in Estonia who are in canonical subordination to the Patriarch of Constantinople and has ex-communicated many Estonian and Russian clergymen for this reason.

The re-registration process is very important for the return of property that was illegally confiscated by Soviet authorities to its rightful owners. Much of the church's property was illegally confiscated, with holdings extending beyond the basic properties that are currently in use. Delays in the restoration of church property means that the church is forced to pay rent for rooms that are yet to be returned.

The concerns over registration appear to be mostly over property. Importantly, registration does not mean that all property belongs to the EOC. The Board of Religious Affairs has said that if those who wish to remain under the Patriarch of Moscow register under a different name from the existing EOC, then those parishes will have the right to retain all properties that they are currently using (essentially church buildings and housing for priests). The return of church properties in Estonia is regulated by the Law on Property Reform and possible disputes arising from the return of property will be settled in court.

New Developments

On November 5, 1993, the Moscow-based church submitted an application to register under the same name as the EOC and included a copy of the registered EOC statutes. This application was refused since it violated the Law on Churches and Congregations as the name proposed was already registered.

The Moscow-based church challenged the decision of the Ministry of Internal Affairs which refused its application. The Tallinn Administrative Court ruled against the petition on July 4, 1994. This decision was appealed and the administrative panel of the Tallinn District Court confirmed the lower court's decision on October 3, 1994.

Following the court ruling supporting the actions of the ministry, the Ministry of Internal Affairs extended the deadline for the registration of active religious organisations until February 15, 1995 as a special consideration for the position of the Moscow-based church.

On February 6, 1995 a delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople, which included the Metropolitan of Philadelphia Meliton, Metropolitan of Pergamon Johannes and a priest of the Finnish Orthodox Church Heikki Huttunen, visited Estonia to help resolve the question of registration.

The delegation discussed the canonical subordination of the Orthodox Church in Estonia. Metropolitan Johannes said in a press conference that the problems could be solved in such a manner that ecumenical co-operation between the patriarchies of Constantinople and Moscow can continue. He suggested that Orthodox believers are required to obey the laws of the country in which they live.

On January 2-4, 1996, a meeting took place in Istanbul between the delegations of the patriarchs of Moscow and Constantinople, in which the Constantinople Patriarchate decided to restore the canonical subordination of the Estonian Orthodox Church under Constantinople. The Metropolitan Cyril of the Moscow Patriarchate reacted to this move and threatened: "... the statement of the Patriarch of Constantinople brings serious threats to the Orthodox world and canonical unity."

On January 15, 1996 a delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople, which included the Metropolitan Ambrosius and a priest Heikki Huttunen of the Finnish Orthodox Church visited Estonia in order to present the issues of the Orthodox Church in Estonia to the Estonian government.

The Position of the Estonian State

The Estonian state is interested in a speedy settlement to the dispute between the two churches. However, it has reiterated that it will not intervene in the internal affairs of the churches functioning in Estonia and in the debate between Moscow and Constantinople. The standpoint of the Estonian government is that if the Russian Orthodox Church wants to function in Estonia it must to recognise Estonian laws and register itself with the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This process has been completed by all other churches functioning in Estonia and the Russian Orthodox Church cannot be an exception. By not registering itself, the Moscow based church has decided to remain without its legal rights in Estonia, and has instead chosen to propagate unfounded allegations against Estonia and the EOC in international forums.

* The Estonian Orthodox Church (EOC) is the registered English name for the Church. Its registered name in Estonian is Eesti Apostlik-Õigeusu Kirik, which is unofficially translated into English as The Estonian Apostlistic Orthodox Church (EAOC).