“Believers themselves built churches that were taken from them”
[ad_1]
Russian experts discussed the fate of the UOC
The beginning of Tuesday in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra was again marked by a raider assault from the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture. Together with the police, officials cordoned off the area around the 54th and 58th buildings at 8 in the morning and, breaking the locks, carried out searches. As a result, church shops were sealed on the territory of the monastery. The brethren of the monastery could only oppose the prayers, which one of the officials forcefully shouted over with the song “Chervona viburnum”.
At that time, a conference was held in Moscow at the International Multimedia Center on the problem of the violation of the rights of believers by the Ukrainian authorities. The speakers assessed the current situation with the Lavra and made predictions.
“The UOC is to blame for the fact that it simply exists,” Vakhtang Kipshidze, deputy chairman of the Synodal Department for Church Relations with Society and the Media of the Moscow Patriarchate, commented on the persecution of the church. In his speech, he called it an attempt at spiritual self-destruction through the destruction of the spiritual and cultural foundation of historical Russia. “God fighting is doomed to lose,” Kipshidze believes.
A full-scale seizure of the temples of the UOC does not take place, because undisguised pictures of violence that occur every time another raider seizure is unfavorable for Kyiv. Archpriest Igor Yakimchuk expressed this point of view.
The clergyman revealed the mechanism by which the redistribution of church property is taking place today. “The so-called referendum is being held, unknown people gather and sign fictitious documents,” said the archpriest. “It is sad that many believers themselves built churches that were taken away from them. The UOC has 13,000 parishes and is the largest church in Ukraine. At the same time, the captured temples are not used by anyone – locks are simply hanging there.
The temples of the lower lavra have a small capacity. Believers are already experiencing difficulties with this, the most capacious temples have already been taken away from them. The museum-reserve on the site of the monastery is also introducing more and more strict rules. Entrance is allowed from 10 to 18, when the liturgy begins early in the morning.
At the same time, the parishes themselves do not go anywhere. Communities gather in houses, in the field, in posters and garages. At the same time, there is no one to replace the monks expelled from the cloisters – they are not in the OCU. The monks of the Lavra were guaranteed protection if they transferred to the OCU. Only one person has crossed over.
Archpriest Yakimchuk admitted that we can expect the export of many religious values abroad. “For officials from the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, these are not shrines, so it cannot be ruled out that they can be taken out,” he said.
Gennady Askaldovich, Special Representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry for cooperation in the field of observance of the right to freedom of religion, noted that the diplomatic arsenal against the seizure of the Lavra is not rich, but this problem is under the constant control of the department.
The diplomat noted that now this issue is being raised at the UN Security Council, but other international organizations should also be involved. It’s not out yet. Diplomats are offered to organize an international investigation into religious persecution in Ukraine. “Such measures will be taken in the event of a further negative development of the situation,” Askaldovich said.
During the conference, the opinion was expressed that the official Constantinople was trying to harm the Orthodox Church in Ukraine. But there are many bishops and clergy there who do not recognize the OCU, despite the pressure, recalled Archpriest Yakimchuk. Many support the Lavra in all churches, not just Orthodox ones.
Askaldovich emphasized that various representatives of the international community also express support for the UOC, including the famous composer and director Emir Kusturica.
The participants of the conference noted that the possibility of establishing control over the Lavra by Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople after its complete capture by the Kyiv regime is not ruled out. If he accepts such an offer from Kyiv, then this will mean that he supports all the persecution of the church, and this will worsen his reputation, Archpriest Yakimchuk believes.
Newspaper headline:
Doomed godlessness
[ad_2]
Source link
