Polikarp Sikorskiy Primate of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. Country: Ukraine

Content:

1. Early Life and Education
2. Ministry and Career
3. Monasticism and Ordination
4. Restoration and Episcopal Consecration
5. Annexation and Return to Moscow Patriarchate
6. Ukrainian Autocephaly
7. Excommunication and Departure
8. Elevation and Later Life

Early Life and Education

Metropolitan Polycarp (Sikorsky) was born into a family of priests on June 20, 1875, in the village of Zelenky in the Kyiv Governorate. He initially completed his education at the Uman Theological School and subsequently graduated from the Kyiv Theological Seminary in 1898.

Ministry and Career

Metropolitan Polycarp served as a clerk in the Kyiv Spiritual Consistory from 1908 to 1918. During this time, he also pursued a legal education as a non-degree student at the Kyiv University.

In 1917, Polycarp became a staff member of the Ministry of Religious Affairs in the Petlyura government. Following its fall, he fled to Poland.

Monasticism and Ordination

While in Poland, Polycarp took monastic vows and was ordained a hieromonk on July 30, 1922, by Archbishop Dionysius of Volyn. However, he declined to travel to Moscow to formalize his affiliation with the Moscow Patriarchate.

Restoration and Episcopal Consecration

Polycarp dedicated himself to the restoration of monasteries ravaged by war, such as the Dermansky and Zagayevsky monasteries in Volyn, and the Zhirovitsky Monastery in Hrodna. He also served as the rector of the Mstislav Cathedral in Volodymyr-Volynsky.

On April 1, 1932, Metropolitan Dionysius (Valedinsky) consecrated Polycarp as Bishop of Lutsk, vicar of the Volyn-Rivne diocese. He was associated with the Polish Autocephaly.

Annexation and Return to Moscow Patriarchate

After the Soviet annexation of eastern Poland in 1940, Polycarp was accepted into the Moscow Patriarchate and appointed Bishop of Volodymyr-Volynsky.

Ukrainian Autocephaly

On December 24, 1941, Metropolitan Dionysius (Valedinsky) appointed Polycarp as "Temporary Administrator of the Orthodox Autocephalous Church in the Liberated Lands of Ukraine" within the German-controlled Reichskommissariat "Ukraine."

In February 1942, Archbishop Polycarp, with the blessing of Metropolitan Dionysius of Warsaw, revived the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC) in the Reichskommissariat. He declared himself its head.

Excommunication and Departure

The Patriarchal Church of Moscow excommunicated Polycarp in March 1942, citing treason charges against him. In 1944, he fled to Western Europe.

Elevation and Later Life

In 1946, a council of bishops of his jurisdiction elevated Polycarp to the rank of Metropolitan. He passed away on July 26, 1953, in Paris.

Religious figure

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