The Holy Synod of the Church of Cyprus has imposed an indefinite ban on the priestly ministry of Metropolitan Tychikos of Paphos, ruling that his submitted confession of faith was unsatisfactory, according to the Greek newspaper Kathimerini. The decision marks a new escalation in a prolonged conflict between the hierarch and the island’s church leadership.

The latest stage of the dispute was triggered by a letter sent by Metropolitan Tychikos to the Synod and published on January 7. In the document, he affirmed his loyalty to Orthodox doctrine, the Ecumenical Councils and the canons of the Church, condemned heresies, and insisted that he had never ceased commemorating Archbishop George of Cyprus or called for a schism. He also stressed that matters of faith and alleged doctrinal errors should be resolved only through conciliar processes, not by administrative measures.

However, the Synod concluded that the letter failed to address key points it had previously demanded. Church leaders had expected the metropolitan to sign a specific document that was presented as a condition for allowing him to continue serving—albeit not on the Paphos see. After he refused to meet these requirements, the Synod imposed an open-ended suspension from ministry.

The controversy surrounding Metropolitan Tychikos has been ongoing for several months. In the spring of 2025, he was removed from the administration of the Paphos Metropolis on accusations of “apokrisis,” effectively a rupture in communion with the church hierarchy. The charges stemmed from his sharp disagreements with Archbishop George, his criticism of the Church of Cyprus’s participation in ecumenical initiatives, and his refusal to take part in certain services and church events that he argued violated Orthodox tradition.

The Synod’s decision was upheld in autumn 2025 by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, which serves as the highest court of appeal for the Church of Cyprus. While the Patriarchate noted certain procedural shortcomings, it found no grounds to overturn the substance of the accusations.

In early January 2026, Metropolitan Tychikos announced his intention to appeal to Cyprus’s civil courts in an effort to regain the Paphos see. Archbishop George described the move as unprecedented, warning that church canons prohibit clergy from taking ecclesiastical disputes to secular courts—an action that could itself lead to further disciplinary measures.

The Church of Cyprus, one of the world’s oldest autocephalous Orthodox churches, governs itself independently but recognizes the arbitration role of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in disputed cases. The conflict over Metropolitan Tychikos has become one of the most high-profile internal church crises on the island in recent years, prompting strong reactions among both clergy and laity. Faithful of the Paphos diocese have repeatedly spoken out in his defense. Against this backdrop, Archbishop George has given interviews proposing changes to the system for electing bishops, including ending the participation of laypeople in such elections.