(RISU) - On behalf of the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate, Patriarch Filaret addressed Metropolitan Volodymyr (Sabodn), the clergy and laity of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate with a call to continue constructive dialogue in order to establish one local Orthodox Ukrainian Church. So reported www.tyzhden.ua with reference to the web site of UOC-KP.
“On behalf of the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate, I address you again with a call to continue constructive dialogue in order to overcome the church divide,” stresses the address.
“We invariably are ready to renew the dialogue and we wait for constructive actions of UOC-MP in this regard,” stated the head of the Kyivan Patriarchate.
“At the same time, we are convinced that the only correct way to renew the unity of the Church is a dialogue which is ultimately aimed at the establishment of one local Orthodox Ukrainian church centered round the Kyivan throne,” reads the address.
The document also notes that the recent events in the Ukrainian religious life “allow one to see once again that as far as the “Ukrainian question” is concerned, the Moscow Patriarchate acts not according to the canons and not for the good of Orthodoxy but from the viewpoint of the political interests of retaining of power in the “Russian world.”
“Therefore, any calls to the Kyivan Patriarchate to come under the umbrella of Moscow are hopeless: the hierarchy of ROC (Russian Orthodox Church) repeatedly showed and continues to prove with their actions in Ukraine, Estonia, Moldova, Georgia and the whole Ecumenical orthodoxy that the main thing for the Moscow Patriarchate now is not the good of the Church but establishment of the “Russian world” as a political tool of the influence of Moscow in the post-Soviet space,” reads the address of Patriarch Filaret.
“We desire the Church unity in Ukraine. But it does not equal subordination to Moscow Patriarchate. An increasing number of people in Ukraine, including your environment, understand that,” notes the document.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
UOC-KP again calls for dialogue with UOC-MP
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Although I consider myself to be an optimist, I must say that it is unrealistic to expect the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kyivan Patriarchate and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Moscow Patriarchate to unite into one Ukrainian Orthodox Church at this time.
ReplyDeleteThe fact is that one patriarchate wants to remain under the authority of Ukraine, while the other patriarchate wants to remain under the authority of Russia.
That being the case, it is very unlikely that a compromise resulting in unity of these two patriarchates can occur at this time.