Check.Church

Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia

Eastern Orthodox · 1920 · Worldwide diaspora

The Russian exile church, refusing communion with a patriarchate it judged captive to the Soviet state; eight decades of parallel existence ended by the 2007 Act of Canonical Communion — the fork-and-rejoin showcase of the whole tree.

Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia was formed in 1920, the outcome of a longer process. Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia reunited with the body it separated from. Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia's institutional line runs back through Russian Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy to the post-apostolic church. No body on this tree is the assembly of Acts 2; where a body claims that, the claim appears in the claimed-lineage layer.

Between the post-apostolic church and Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia stand 2 divisions along the institutional line, counting separations and disputed forks, not mergers, renewals or national organizations.

At a glance

Formed
In 1920, the outcome of a longer process
Family
Eastern Orthodox
Region
Worldwide diaspora
Ended
It ended as a separate body in 2007, entering Russian Orthodox Church.
Key figures
Metropolitan Anthony (Khrapovitsky), Metropolitan Laurus, Patriarch Alexy II
Cause tags
Politics, Governance
Also known as
ROCOR; ROCA; Karlovtsy Synod (historic)

What it separated from

  • Separated from Russian Orthodox Church. Held itself 'an inseparable, spiritually united branch' awaiting a free Russia — a schism its own members did not call one.

On the tree

Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia and its institutional line back to the post-apostolic churchAD 33The church at Pentecost: On divine groundThe church at Pentecost: on divine groundtoday10042443145198810541920The post-apostolic church (The spine)The post-apostolicchurchDepartureChurch of the East (Church of the East)Church of the EastChurch of the EastThe conciliar church (The spine)The conciliar churchDepartureThe Chalcedonian church (The spine)The Chalcedonian churchDepartureOriental Orthodoxy (Oriental Orthodox)Oriental OrthodoxyOriental OrthodoxRussian Orthodox Church (Eastern Orthodox)Russian Orthodox ChurchEastern OrthodoxEastern Orthodoxy (Eastern Orthodox)Eastern OrthodoxyEastern OrthodoxRoman Catholicism (Catholic)Roman CatholicismNot gatheredRussian Orthodox Church Outside Russia (Eastern Orthodox)Russian Orthodox ChurchOutside RussiaEastern Orthodox

Solid lines are separations and unions; dashed lines are renewals that began inside a body; dotted gray lines are national organizations of one communion; a diamond marks a fork event where neither side is drawn as the one that left. Every line runs back to the post-apostolic church; no body descends from the assembly of Acts 2. Dashed gray boxes mark the institutional line after the apostles, shown as departure; no line of descent is drawn from Pentecost. A verdict appears on a box once its section is published.

Sources

Research compiled July 2026. Page data built 2026-10-31.