Council of the UOC-MP adopted a decision on the complete independence of the church

The Council of the UOC-MP expressed disagreement with the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Kirill, who supported the war in Ukraine, and decided on the complete independence of the church.

The Council of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate on May 27 decided on complete independence and independence from the Russian Church. The resolution adopted by the council says that its participants condemn Russia’s war against Ukraine and the position of Russian “colleagues”, they express condolences to all the victims and call for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.

The UOC-MP announced the possibility of dialogue with the OCU, but under certain conditions. At the same time, the chairman of the Synodal Information and Education Department of the UOC, Metropolitan Kliment, said that the UOC-MP opposed Patriarch Kirill, but did not break all ties with the ROC. Also, the UOC-MP appealed to the OCU with the aim of resuming the dialogue and overcoming the schism in Ukrainian Orthodoxy.

According to the metropolitan, the status of an independent and self-governing UOC has been for almost 30 years:

“It’s just that the cathedral once again emphasized this status. And we continue to maintain spiritual unity not only with the Russian Orthodox Church, but also with other Orthodox churches.”

In the message says:

“The Council adopted the appropriate additions and amendments to the Charter on the Administration of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, testifying to the complete independence and independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The Council condemns the war as a violation of God’s commandment “Thou shalt not kill!” and expresses condolences to all who suffered in the war. The Council addresses authorities of Ukraine and the authorities of the Russian Federation with a request to continue the negotiation process and the search for a strong and reasonable word that could stop the bloodshed. We express our disagreement with the position of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia regarding the war in Ukraine.”

Noting the possibility of a dialogue with the OCU, the UOC-MP put forward a number of conditions. In particular, “stop the forcible seizure of churches and forced transfers of parishes of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.” Also declaredthat the canonical status of the OCU “is in fact non-autocephalous” and “significantly inferior to the freedoms and opportunities for the implementation of church activities, which are provided for by the Charter on the governance of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.”

Another condition, the statement says, concerns “resolving the issue of the canonicity of the OCU hierarchy, for its recognition it is necessary to restore the apostolic heredity of its bishops.” It concludes:

“The Council expresses its deep conviction that the key to the success of the dialogue should be not only the desire to restore church unity, but also a sincere desire to build one’s life on the basis of Christian conscience and moral purity.”

The ROC does not know about the decision of the UOC-MP on “independence”: no one contacted them, they learned from the Internet. Legoyda says:

“Since the Russian Orthodox Church has not received any appeals from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, we cannot respond to the information we receive from the press and from the Internet. We pray for the preservation of the unity of the Russian Orthodox Church. We pray for a speedy peace and an end to bloodshed.”

He also noted that some “external forces” are trying to destroy the unity of the ROC.

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