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Succession Log

Leadership changes across the denominations followed by the Religious Leader Tracker, newest first. Only changes with a day-precision start date are listed.

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2026

  1. May 12th 2026 Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Shio (Mujiri) became leader of Georgian Orthodox Church (Christianity)
  2. April 12th 2026 Patriarch Paulos III Nona became leader of Chaldean Catholic Church (Christianity)
  3. February 5th 2026 Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally became leader of Church of England (Christianity)

2025

  1. October 22nd 2025 Salih al‑Fawzan became leader of Sunni (Islam)
  2. July 4th 2025 General Conference President Erton Köhler became leader of Seventh-day Adventists (Christianity)
  3. May 8th 2025 Pope Leo XIV became leader of Roman Catholic (Christianity)
  4. February 4th 2025 50th Imam Aga Khan V became leader of Nizari Ismailism (Islam)
  5. January 26th 2025 Patriach Abune Basilos became leader of Eritrean Orthodox Church (Christianity)

2024

  1. December 1st 2024 Archbishop of Helsinki and All Finland Elia Wallgrén became leader of Orthodox Church of Finland (Christianity)
  2. June 30th 2024 Patriarch of All Bulgaria and Metropolitan of Sofia Daniil became leader of Bulgarian Orthodox Church (Christianity)
  3. January 10th 2024 Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil became leader of Syro-Malabar Church (Christianity)

2023

  1. October 26th 2023 Metropolitan Jonáš Maxim became leader of Slovak Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)
  2. August 3rd 2023 General Lyndon Buckingham became leader of Salvation Army (Christianity)
  3. July 8th 2023 President Sofía Betancourt became leader of Unitarian Universalist Association (Other)
  4. June 29th 2023 Supreme Bishop Joel Porlares became leader of Philippine Independent Church (Christianity)
  5. March 30th 2023 Apostolic Administrator Sergius Gajek became leader of Belarusian Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)
  6. March 8th 2023 Jebtsundamba Khutuktu Altannaryn Aguidai became leader of Gelug in Mongolia (Buddhism)
  7. January 8th 2023 Archbishop of Nea Justiniana and All Cyprus George III became leader of Cypriot Orthodox Church (Christianity)

2022

  1. September 8th 2022 Supreme Governor of the Church of England Charles III became leader of Church of England (Christianity)

2021

  1. December 24th 2021 Yahya Cholil Staquf became leader of Nahdlatul Ulama (Islam)
  2. October 15th 2021 Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan Baselios Marthoma Mathews III became leader of Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church (Christianity)
  3. September 24th 2021 Patriarch Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian became leader of Armenian Catholic Church (Christianity)
  4. September 13th 2021 Patriarch Mar Awa III became leader of Assyrian Church of the East (Christianity)
  5. February 19th 2021 Porfirije / Archbishop of Peć / Metropolitan of Belgrade and Karlovci / and Serbian Patriarch became leader of Serbian Orthodox Church (Christianity)
  6. January 31st 2021 Patriarch Juan Almario Calampiano became leader of Apostolic Catholic Church (Philippines) (Christianity)

2020

  1. November 14th 2020 Marthoma Metropolitan Theodosius Mar Thoma became leader of Malankara Marthoma Syrian Church (Christianity)
  2. September 8th 2020 Bishop Milan Stipić became leader of Croatian and Serbian Byzantine Catholic Church (Christianity)
  3. July 1st 2020 Abbot Choyu Otani became leader of Jodo Shinshu (Otani-ha) (Buddhism)

2019

  1. May 1st 2019 Naruhito / Emperor of Japan / head of Shinto became leader of (Shinto)

2018

  1. September 22nd 2018 Miftachul Akhyar became leader of Nahdlatul Ulama (Islam)
  2. January 1st 2018 General Secretary and CEO Elijah M. Brown became leader of Baptist World Alliance (Christianity)

2017

  1. June 22nd 2017 Patriarch Youssef Absi became leader of Melkite Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)
  2. June 15th 2017 Apostolic Administrator Giovanni Peragine became leader of Albanian Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)
  3. February 7th 2017 Supreme Patriarch Ariyavongsagatanana IX became leader of Thai Buddhism (Buddhism)

2016

  1. August 13th 2016 Mahant Swami Maharaj became leader of BAPS (Hinduism)
  2. March 25th 2016 Amir Hibatullah Akhundzada became leader of Taliban 🇦🇫 (Islam)
  3. February 2nd 2016 Apostolic Exarch Manuel Nin became leader of Greek Byzantine Catholic Church (Christianity)

2015

  1. August 6th 2015 Haedar Nashir became leader of Muhammadiyah (Islam)
  2. March 20th 2015 Metropolitan Fülöp Kocsis became leader of Hungarian Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)
  3. January 19th 2015 Metropolitan Menghesteab Tesfamariam became leader of Eritrean Catholic Church (Christianity)

2014

  1. June 6th 2014 Monshu Sennyo became leader of Jodo Shinshu (Hongwanji-ha) (Buddhism)
  2. May 29th 2014 Ignatius Aphrem II Karim became leader of Syriac Orthodox Church (Christianity)

2013

  1. September 1st 2013 Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis became leader of Chief Rabbis of the United Hebrew Congregations (Judaism)
  2. February 10th 2013 Patriarch of Antioch John X (Yazigi) became leader of Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch (Christianity)
  3. January 18th 2013 Patriarch Ibrahim Isaac Sidrak became leader of Coptic Catholic Church (Christianity)

2012

  1. November 18th 2012 Pope and Patriarch (Pope Tawadros II) Theodoros II of Alexandria became leader of Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria (Christianity)
  2. November 13th 2012 Metropolitan of All America and Canada Tikhon became leader of Orthodox Church in America (Christianity)
  3. January 19th 2012 Metropolitan William C. Skurla became leader of Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church (Christianity)

2011

  1. March 25th 2011 Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk became leader of Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)
  2. March 24th 2011 Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rahi became leader of Maronite Church (Christianity)

2010

  1. September 11th 2010 President Matthew C. Harrison became leader of Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (Christianity)

2009

  1. February 1st 2009 Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill I became leader of Russian Orthodox Church (Christianity)
  2. January 22nd 2009 Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Yonan became leader of Syriac Catholic Church (Christianity)

2008

  1. February 7th 2008 Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Ieronymos II became leader of Church of Greece (Christianity)

2007

  1. September 30th 2007 Patriarch of All Romania Daniel Ciobotea became leader of Romanian Orthodox Church (Christianity)
  2. February 10th 2007 Major Archbishop Baselios Cleemis became leader of Syro-Malankara Catholic Church (Christianity)

2006

  1. November 9th 2006 President Minoru Harada became leader of Soka Gakkai (Buddhism)

2005

  1. December 16th 2005 Major Archbishop Lucian Mureșan became leader of Romanian Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)
  2. November 22nd 2005 Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III became leader of Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem (Christianity)
  3. July 20th 2005 Bishop Kiro Stojanov became leader of Macedonian Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)

2004

  1. December 20th 2004 Ordinary Joseph Werth became leader of Russian Byzantine Catholic Church (Christianity)
  2. October 24th 2004 Patriarch of Alexandria Theodore II became leader of Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria (Christianity)

2003

  1. April 22nd 2003 Khalifatul Masih V Mirza Masroor Ahmad became leader of Ahmadiyya (Islam)

2000

  1. June 13th 2000 Chief Rabbi of Russia 🇷🇺 Berel Lazar became leader of Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia 🇷🇺 (Judaism)

1999

  1. July 7th 1999 Metropolitan Berhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel became leader of Ethiopian Catholic Church (Christianity)

1998

  1. October 25th 1998 Shinbashira Nakayama Zenji became leader of Tenrikyo (New religious movements)

1996

  1. July 1st 1996 Grand Mufti and Chairman Rawil Ğaynetdin became leader of Spiritual Administration of the Muslims of Russian Federation and Russian Council of Muftis (Islam)

1995

  1. October 11th 1995 Apostolic Exarch Christo Proykov became leader of Bulgarian Greek Catholic Church (Christianity)

1992

  1. December 21st 1992 Metropolitan of Chișinău and all Moldova Vladimir became leader of Moldovan Orthodox Church (Christianity)

1991

  1. November 2nd 1991 Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I became leader of Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (Christianity)

1940

  1. February 22nd 1940 Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso became leader of Tibetan (Buddhism)

Generated from leaders.csv — the tracker's source of truth.