The Montenegrin Orthodox Church (MOC; in Montenegrin / Serbian: Crnogorska Pravoslavna Crkva) is a jurisdiction in Montenegro which declares itself to be autocephalous. It separated from the Church of Serbia. Its self-proclaimed autocephaly is not officially recognized by other Orthodox churches. Metropolitan Mihailo, MOC's leader, was a priest of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople in Italy. In 1997 he was excommunicated by the Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople from the Eastern Orthodox Church. MOC's leader is anathemized by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and banished from Orthodoxy