Metropolitan is a spiritual order of high rank in the Christian Church. The first official mention of the title is recorded in the documents of the First Ecumenical Council, held in Nicaea in 325. His place in the hierarchical ladder was also ordered there.
Church hierarchy
In the Roman Empire, the main cities of the provinces were called metropolises. A bishop who has a cathedra, that is, his residence, was called a metropolitan in the metropolis.
Metropolitan is the highest title of a bishop. And the bishop (supervising, supervising), in turn, has the highest third degree of priesthood, after the deacon and presbyter (he is also a priest, he is also a priest). Therefore, a bishop is often called a bishop. "Archi" is a particle that came from the Greek language and serves to designate a high church rank. The bishops ruled the dioceses and were subordinate to the metropolitan. If the diocese was large, then the bishops or bishops managing it were called archbishops. In the Russian Orthodox Church, this honorary title immediately follows the metropolitan.
Externaldifferences
These highest church ranks outwardly differ in a headdress - a klobuk. Bishops wear black, archbishops wear black with a cross made of precious metals and stones, and metropolitans wear white hoods with the same cross. They also differ in robes. So, for bishops and archbishops they are purple or dark red, for the metropolitan - blue, the Patriarch wears a green mantle. During Great Lent, all episcopal robes are black. Metropolitan is an honorary title. The assignment of such a title is a kind of award, a badge of distinction given for merit. In the Russian Orthodox Church, the ranks of archbishops and metropolitans are awarded to bishops for personal services to the church. They are also given for long service.
One of the most ancient
It should be noted that metropolitan is the most ancient title in the Christian church. Some church scholars believe that the metropolitans were the apostles, others attribute the emergence of this jurisdiction to the 2nd century, when it became necessary to centralize church power.
And in 325 and 341 at the Council of Bishops this dignity was simply finally established. Powers were prescribed, which increased significantly in volume. Everything was legalized and regulated, it should no longer cause any disputes. The Council of Toledo, held in 589, further expanded the rights of the metropolitan - now he could punish the bishops under his jurisdiction. In general, the Christian doctrine was formed at the Councils of the 4th - 8th centuries. The following years did not bring anysignificant changes.
The Very First
Rus was baptized at the end of the 10th century under Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavovich. In most cases, it is stated that in 988, but some historians also name 991. There is also no exact data on the first Metropolitan of Kiev. But since the 16th century, it has been assumed that he was Michael. He also had the name Syrian, because by nationality he was either Greek or Syrian.
It is believed that Metropolitan Michael and the monks who arrived with him built the Zlatoverkho-Mikhailovsky and Kiev-Mezhegorsky monasteries. Metropolitan Leonty disputes the primacy, some sources call him the first metropolitan with the same dates of reign - 992-1008. Then came Theophylact, John I, Theopempt, Cyril I the Greek. The dates of each of these are disputed. It should be noted that they were all foreigners.
First Russian
And only Metropolitan Hilarion (Rusyn) who took this rank in 1051 and ruled the church until 1054 was a compatriot. He died around 1088. He headed the church during the time of Yaroslav the Wise. Glorified as a saint - in the Orthodox Church, these are saints from the episcopal rank. He is the author of the book "Words on Law and Grace", written by him in 1030-1050. In addition, he wrote "Prayer", "Confession of Faith".
Metropolitan Hilarion also wrote Praise to Yaroslav the Wise. There is very little information about the life of Hilarion, but the Tale of Bygone Years indicates that the construction of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra began in 1051, that is, during the reign of Hilarion. ATThe Novgorod II Chronicle indicates that in 1054 Ephraim became the Metropolitan of Kyiv. This makes it possible to assume that immediately after the death of Yaroslav the Wise in 1054, Hilarion was removed.
Saint and Wonderworker
Metropolitan Alexy was a very significant figure in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church. It is he who is the heavenly patron of two famous Patriarchs of Moscow and All Russia - Alexy I (Sergey Vladimirovich Simansky, Patriarch from 1945 to 1970) and Alexy II (Alexey Mikhailovich Ridiger, Patriarch from 1990 to 2008).
Native of a boyar family, the son of Fyodor Byakont, the ancestor of several noble families, such as the Pleshcheevs and the Ignatievs. Wonderworker of all Russia and Saint of Moscow (canonized 50 years after his death), Metropolitan Alexy achieved significant success during his lifetime as a major statesman and subtle diplomat. He was reckoned with in the Principality of Lithuania and the Horde, with which he had contacts of a different kind - Alexy healed Khansha Taidula from an eye disease. Since 1354, Elevfery Fedorovich Byakont (in the world), appointed by the Patriarch of Constantinople to the post of Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Russia, was in this field until his death in 1378. He founded several monasteries, including the Chudov Monastery in the Kremlin. The Kremlin itself began to be rebuilt in stone under him. In addition to this monastery, he founded Spaso-Andronikov, Simonov, Vvedensky Vladychny and Serpukhov monasteries. Several church writings belong to his pen. The holy relics of the miracle worker in 1947 weremoved to the Elokhov Epiphany Cathedral in Moscow, where they rest to this day.
Compatriot metropolitans
From the moment of the baptism of Russia and until the XIV century, the country was a single metropolis, the head of which was appointed in Constantinople. Naturally, most of the sent metropolitans were not Russian. The princes wanted to see compatriots in this post, because before the patriarchate was introduced in Russia in 1589, the metropolitans were at the head of the church hierarchy, and much depended on them. The first Russian Kyiv head of the church was Clement (Smolyatich, reigned 1147-1156). Then there were also Greeks and Bulgarians in this post. But from the moment of the reign of Theodosius (1461-1464), during which the period of complete autocephaly of the domestic church began, it was mainly headed by Russian metropolitans, who from that time began to be called "Moscow and All Russia".
A prominent church figure and publicist who left behind a significant literary legacy, Theodosius (Byv altsev) is famous for being the first Moscow Metropolitan appointed by a Russian prince, and not by the Patriarch of Constantinople. This highest church rank of the Russian Orthodox Church is the Metropolitan of Moscow, before the establishment of the patriarchate from the moment of the reign of Theodosius, Philip I and Gerontius, Zosima and Simon still wore. And also alternately it was awarded to Barlaam and Daniel, Joseph and Macarius, Athanasius and Philip II, Cyril, Anthony and Dionysius. Metropolitan Job of Moscow was already the first Patriarch.
