Russian Orthodox Diocese of Lithuania

The Diocese of Vilnius and Lithuania (Lithuanian: Vilniaus ir Lietuvos vyskupija; Russian: Виленская и Литовская епархия), also known as the Lithuanian Orthodox Church (Lithuanian: Lietuvos stačiatikių bažnyčia; Russian: Литовская православная церковь), is a diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church whose territory comprises the country of Lithuania, established in 1839[1] after the Synod of Polotsk when the Uniate Eparchy of Vilnius was united to the Orthodox Church.

[5] Orthodox Christianity first entered Lithuania in significant numbers in the 13th century with the conversion of some of its early nobles from paganism.

[4] In the wake of World War I, part of Lithuania was controlled by Poland, including the capital Vilnius.

The head of the diocese at the time, Archbishop Chrysostom (Martishkin), openly supported Lithuanian independence.

In 2024 a priest of the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church, Justinus Kiviloo, was appointed as the Exarch of Lithuania.

The Exarchate includes ten parishes serving in Lithuanian, Belarusian, Ukrainian and Russian languages.

Monastery of the Holy Spirit
St. Paraskevi Church in Vilnius, where the Three Martyrs of Vilnius were baptized
Dormition Cathedral, Vilnius