Metropolitan Stefan of Tallinn and All Estonia recently stated that the Church in Estonia under the Moscow Patriarchate cannot be called the ‘Orthodox Church of Estonia’ as this title rightfully belongs to the Church under the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
Metropolitan Stefan explained that the Orthodox Church of Estonia received its autonomy from the Ecumenical Patriarchate in 1923. However, in 1945, the Moscow Patriarchate dissolved the Church illegally. After years of exile during the Soviet occupation, the Orthodox Church of Estonia resumed its operations in Estonia in 1993. The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew restored the 1923 Tomos in 1996, confirming the Church’s rightful name.
Historically, in 1590, Ecumenical Patriarch Jeremiah II did not include the Baltic countries under Moscow’s jurisdiction when granting autocephaly to the Church of Moscow. In 1710, Tsar Peter I unsuccessfully petitioned Constantinople to extend Russian Orthodox jurisdiction over Estonia and Livonia.
Metropolitan Stefan has proposed establishing a Russian vicarate within the Estonian Autonomous Orthodox Church to restore canonical order, but has not received a response from the Moscow Patriarchate. The Synod of the Estonian Church approved a new version of its statute on August 20, 2024, affirming its independence in various affairs.