Canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church Synod Members Appeal To Zelenskyy Over Forced Eviction

Muhammad Irfan Published March 20, 2023 | 09:24 PM

Synod members of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) on Monday arrived at the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to convey their position regarding the authorities' attempts to evict the monks of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, the UOC said

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th March, 2023) Synod members of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) on Monday arrived at the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to convey their position regarding the authorities' attempts to evict the monks of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, the UOC said.

"Members of the Holy Synod of the UOC, led by Metropolitan Onufriy arrived at the office of the Ukrainian president in order to convey the UOC's position to the state leadership," the church said in a statement.

Major Ukrainian daily Strana.ua reported later in the day, citing Archbishop Clement, an official UOC representative, that UOC Synod members wrote an official letter to Zelenskyy and requested for a personal meeting with him to explain the real situation. Meanwhile, a representative of Zelenskyy's office expressed readiness to receive the UOC Synod members' appeal.

On March 10, the National Kiev-Pechersk Historical and Cultural Preserve in Ukraine ordered the monks based in the monastery to leave it by March 29 after an interdepartmental Ukrainian commission accused the UOC of violating the terms of an agreement on the use of state property.

Ukrainian Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko said the monks could stay in the Lavra if they joined the schismatic Orthodox Church of Ukraine, a decision that might be "stimulated through the joint work of specialists and law enforcement officers."

The Russian Orthodox Church said the UOC is a "self-governing church with the rights of broad autonomy" within the Moscow Patriarchate. However, in the wake of the military operation that Russia launched in Ukraine a year ago, the UOC said that it was independent from the Moscow Patriarchate and did not support the conflict. In January, the Ukrainian government submitted a bill to parliament that seeks to ban the UOC in Ukraine if its connection with Russia is proven.