An equation with several unknowns: the autonomy of the Japanese Orthodox Church in the context of American autocephaly according to church archives

The granting of autonomy to the Orthodox Church of Japan by the Moscow Patriarchate was part of the solution of the American Church question. The healing of the many years Church schism by restoring the canonical connection between the Russian Church and Church structures on the American continent and in the Land of the Rising Sun, which were the result of the missionary work of the Russian Church, was the primary goal of the efforts of church diplomats. This task required a great deal of preparatory work, which had to take into account the interests of both Church participants of the negotiation process and political forces. The canonization of St. Nicholas of Japan, the Enlightener of Japan, was an event of great spiritual significance. This strengthened bilateral church ties at the beginning of the autonomous existence of the Church of Japan. The reaction of the Local Orthodox Churches to this church autonomy demonstrated the existence of two centers in the Orthodox world by 1970: the Moscow Patriarchate and the Churches in solidarity with it, and the Phanar, followed by the Churches united by the Hellenistic tradition. The aim of this article is to describe the course of historical events connected with the acquisition of autonomous status by the Church of Japan within the Moscow Patriarchate on the base of available materials of the Archive of the Department for External Church Relations, including those previously unpublished. General historical methods of research are used to achieve this goal.