The Universalist Orthodox Church (Οικουμενική Ορθόδοξη Εκκλησία) was established in 2016, and received autocephaly (self-headed status) in 2018 with the consecration of its first Archbishop, Her Beatitude Metropolitan +Olga. The name was chosen to reflect the "universal" nature of our ministry, that we seek to reclaim the timeless truth that the Church is for everyone, and that God's love in Christ extends to the entire world. In the ancient church, this idea was reflected in the use of terms such as "catholic" ("of the whole") and "ecumenical" ("of the inhabited world"), terms that we still embrace in their widest and most inclusive senses. Additionally, the name was chosen to reflect the faith of our clergy and hierarchs in the universal reconciliation of Christ, the belief that God will one day restore all people, living and dead, to God's Self. For more on Christian Universalism and its widespread acceptance throughout Orthodox history, see our page on the subject (under the "About Us" tab).
Since its establishment by Christ himself, the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church throughout the world has sought to emulate the messianic ministry of Christ to "bring down the mighty from their thrones and exalt the humble," (Lk. 1:52) to "bring good news to the poor, to liberate the captives, to set free the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." (Lk. 4:18). From the beginning, Christians have been a people called to overturn human boundaries of in-group and out-group, and to proclaim the love of God for all people. As Christ liberated us from death in the resurrection, we seek to liberate the world around us from the deaths of oppression, bigotry and marginalization. Because of this, we as the UOC are proud to affirm the ordination of women to all roles of ministry. We are also proud to affirm the full dignity and inclusion of LGBTQIA+ persons in the life of the Church, including marriage, reception of the Eucharist and the ordaining of LGBTQIA+ ministry candidates. Finally, we practice open communion, offering the Eucharist to all who approach the chalice with some sense of "the awe of God, with faith and love" (whether they be baptized Christians or seekers who in their desire for truth and love are, like St. Joseph of Arimathea "earnestly expecting the Kingdom of God").
As a result of these practices, we are not able to be in communion with the other major Eastern Orthodox churches globally, despite our faithful adherence to Christ and the holy tradition of Orthodoxy. Our clergy are ordained into lines of apostolic succession which rest in the same sacred lineages as the larger Eastern Orthodox churches, and as such we have an apostolically valid ministry by Orthodox tradition. Perhaps more importantly, we practice the apostolic faith and proclaim the gospel kerygma unashamedly. We confess the Orthodox and ecumenical Christian Creeds, live by the faith of the Seven Ecumenical Councils, and live a life of worship and prayer governed by the holy tradition of Eastern Orthodoxy. We invite any and all curious persons to come and pray with us, and to let our faith speak for itself.