Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church asked the international community to protect the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’ appealed to the primates of the local Orthodox churches, the head of the Roman Catholic Church and the UN Secretary-General to prevent the forced closure of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra and the expulsion of the inhabitants from the monastery. The appeal appeared on the website of the Moscow Patriarchate.

The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church emphasized that the persecution of the Ukrainian authorities refutes their statements about the observance of human rights and freedoms in the country. The ultimatum, which the country’s leadership presented to the monastery through the media, does not have sufficient legal grounds, Patriarch Kirill believes.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church recalled that recently the pressure on the monks of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra has intensified. The authorities conducted demonstrative searches. The agreement on the procedure for using the two temples of the monastery was canceled at the end of last year. The media have been publishing slanderous materials about the priests of the UOC for many months now.

Recall that the abbot and the inhabitants of the monastery were ordered to leave the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra until March 29. Allegedly, the authorities want to break the perpetual lease agreement. In the 90s of the last century, the Lavra was divided into two parts. The upper one remained behind the historical and cultural reserve, the lower one went to the UOC. There is a monastery and the residence of the Patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. All this time, the land was in perpetual lease from the UOC.