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The '''Church of Russia''', also referred to as the '''Moscow Patriarchate''', is one of the [[autocephalous]] Orthodox churches, ranking fifth after [[Church of Constantinople|Constantinople]], [[Church of Alexandria|Alexandria]], [[Church of Antioch|Antioch]], and [[Church of Jerusalem|Jerusalem]]. It exercises [[jurisdiction]] over Orthodox Christians in Russia and the surrounding Slavic lands as well as [[exarchate]]s and patriarchal representation churches around the world. It also exercises jurisdiction over the autonomous [[Church of Japan]] and Orthodox Christians in China. The Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia is currently His Holiness [[Alexei II (Ridiger) of Moscow|Alexei II]].
==Jurisdiction==
According to the statutes of the Russian Orthodox Church, its jurisdiction includes persons of Orthodox confession living on the [[canonical territory ]] of the Russian Orthodox Church in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldavia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, KirghiziaKyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Estonia, and also Orthodox Christians living in other countries who voluntarily join the jurisdiction.
This includes these self-governing Churches:
*The [[Church of Ukraine|Ukrainian Orthodox Church]]
The self-governing churches receive their [[chrism]] from the Patriarch of Moscow and exercise their activities on the basis of patriarchal [[tomos]]. This claim of jurisdiction is disputed by other Orthodox churches in a number of cases (particularly in Estonia, Moldova and Ukraine, as well as in the [[diaspora]]), due mainly to the changing shape of the boundaries of Russia (the canonical territory of the Church of Russia was ecumenically defined in 1589 as being the territory of the now-defunct Russian Empire).
==History==
