Abkhazian Orthodox Church

Abkhazian Orthodox Church Абхазская Православная церковь Аԥсны Аиашахаҵаратә ауахәама
Pitsunda Cathedral, or St. Andrew the Apostle Cathedral, main seat of the Abkhazian Orthodox Church
Abbreviation	AOC
Type	Eastern Orthodox
Classification	Independent Eastern Orthodox
Orientation	Phyletism
Primate	Vissarion Aplaa
Bishops	2
Parishes	144
Monasteries	2[1]
Language	Abkhaz, Russian
Headquarters	Sukhumi
Territory	Abkhazia
Independence	15 September 2009
Recognition	None
Separated from	Georgian Orthodox Church
Official website	aiasha.ru

The Abkhazian Orthodox Church (Abkhaz: Аԥсны Аиашахаҵаратә ауахәама, romanized: Apsnə Ajašaxac̣araṭ° awax°ama, Russian: Абхазская Православная церковь, romanized: Abkhazskaya Pravoslavnaya tserkov') is an Eastern Orthodox church outside the official Eastern Orthodox ecclesiastical hierarchy. It came into existence when the Sukhumi-Abkhazian Eparchy declared on 15 September 2009 that it no longer considered itself part of the Georgian Orthodox Church (but is considered as part of Georgian Orthodox Church by every Orthodox patriarchate including Russian) and that it was "re-establishing the Catholicate of Abkhazia disbanded in 1795".^[2] Vissarion Aplaa is the Primate of the Abkhazian Orthodox Church since 2009 and is the self-proclaimed catholicos of the Church. It has two eparchies (dioceses) in Pitsunda and Sukhumi.