autocephalous
adjective
au·to·ceph·a·lous
ˌȯ-tō-ˈse-f(ə-)ləs 
: independent of external and especially patriarchal authority
—used especially of Eastern national churches
Examples of autocephalous in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Moscow and Constantinople are now dueling over the status of a new Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which Bartholomew declared autocephalous (or independent from the Russian Orthodox Church) in 2018.
—
Victor Gaetan, Foreign Affairs, 5 Sep. 2019
Every autocephalous church holds to the same faith as its sister churches.
—J. Eugene Clay, The Conversation, 7 Feb. 2022
The ongoing invasion has spurred Orthodox bishops to separate from the patriarchate of Moscow and begin operating autocephalous episcopal sees.
—Fox News, 4 June 2022
Kirill still claims jurisdiction over all of Ukraine despite the establishment, in Kyiv, of a nationwide autocephalous church in 2018.
—Nr Editors, National Review, 17 Mar. 2022
The fight for an autocephalous, or independent, church is a long and divisive history and so theologically labyrinthine that scholars disagree on major points.
—Alexander Thompson, The Christian Science Monitor, 1 Mar. 2022
Three other autocephalous churches have explicitly rejected the new church.
—J. Eugene Clay, The Conversation, 7 Feb. 2022
Each autocephalous church has its own head, or kephale in Greek.
—J. Eugene Clay, The Conversation, 7 Feb. 2022
The idea of an autocephalous, or independent, Ukrainian church has long been a dream of Ukrainian nationalists.
—Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Apr. 2019
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Victor Gaetan, Foreign Affairs, 5 Sep. 2019
Every autocephalous church holds to the same faith as its sister churches.
—J. Eugene Clay, The Conversation, 7 Feb. 2022
The ongoing invasion has spurred Orthodox bishops to separate from the patriarchate of Moscow and begin operating autocephalous episcopal sees.
—Fox News, 4 June 2022
Kirill still claims jurisdiction over all of Ukraine despite the establishment, in Kyiv, of a nationwide autocephalous church in 2018.
—Nr Editors, National Review, 17 Mar. 2022
The fight for an autocephalous, or independent, church is a long and divisive history and so theologically labyrinthine that scholars disagree on major points.
—Alexander Thompson, The Christian Science Monitor, 1 Mar. 2022
Three other autocephalous churches have explicitly rejected the new church.
—J. Eugene Clay, The Conversation, 7 Feb. 2022
Each autocephalous church has its own head, or kephale in Greek.
—J. Eugene Clay, The Conversation, 7 Feb. 2022
The idea of an autocephalous, or independent, Ukrainian church has long been a dream of Ukrainian nationalists.
—Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Apr. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Autocephalous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/autocephalous. Accessed 23 May. 2025.
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