Background Rome-oriented Christians and their Byzantium-oriented counterparts formally
severed connections from 1054. Subsequent attempts to unify Eastern Orthodox believers and the Catholic Churches were made on several occasions, including an instance in 1452 in which the deposed
Metropolitan of Kiev,
Isidore (in office from 1437 to 1441), endorsed the 1439
Union of Florence and formally promised the unity of the Ruthenian Orthodox Church with Rome. In 1588–1589, the
Patriarch of Constantinople,
Jeremias II, traveled across Eastern Europe, particularly the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the
Tsardom of Russia, where he finally recognized the
Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow (estranged from Constantinople since the 1440s) and consecrated
Patriarch Job of Moscow as the Eastern Orthodox All-Russian Patriarch (a dignity previously held by Isidore from 1437 to 1441). Patriarch Jeremias II deposed the Metropolitan of Kiev, , and with the approval of the King of Poland,
Sigismund III, consecrated
Michael Rohoza as the new
Metropolitan of Kiev, Halych, and all Rus'. The 33 articles of Union were accepted by
Pope Sixtus V. At first widely successful, the Union lost some of its initial support within the following several decades, mainly due to its enforcement on the
Orthodox parishes, which provoked several massive uprisings. ;List of bishops who did not initially accept the union • Metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus' •
Archeparch of Polotsk–Vitebsk •
Bishop of Smolensk •
Bishop of Volodymyr–Brest • Bishop of Przemyśl-Sambir-Sanok (adopted the union in 1692) ;List of bishops who in 1590 signed the declaration of intent announcing to the
Roman Catholic world for the first time that Ruthenians were in the unity of the Roman Church. The bull recites the events which led to the union, the arrival of Pociej and Terlecki at
Rome, their abjuration, and the concession to the Ruthenians that they should retain their own rite, save for such customs as were opposed to the purity of Catholic doctrine and incompatible with the communion of the Roman Church. On 7 February 1596,
Pope Clement VIII addressed to the Ruthenian episcopate the brief '
, enjoining the convocation of a synod in which the Ruthenian bishops were to recite the profession of the Catholic Faith. Various letters were also sent to the Polish king, princes, and magnates, exhorting them to receive the Ruthenians under their protection. Another bull, ', dated 23 February 1596, defined the rights of the Ruthenian episcopate and their relations in subjection to the
Holy See.
Terms It was agreed that the formulation
filioque should not be inserted in Ruthenians'
Nicene Creed. The bishops asked to be dispensed from the obligation of introducing the
Gregorian Calendar, so as to avoid popular discontent and dissensions, and insisted that the king of Poland should grant them, as of right, the dignity of senators. In 1620, the
Metropolis of Kiev, Galicia and all Ruthenia was erected under the care of the Patriarchate of Constantinople for dissenting Eastern Orthodox faithful. This resulted in parallel successions of metropolitans to the same ecclesiastical title in the territory of the Commonwealth. == See also ==