Bishop Hilarion (Shukalo) of Donetsk and Mariupol with the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine (UOC-MP) has referred to the Ukrainian-Russian war as “fratricidal unrest” in his address to the clergy and laity of Donbas.
“The wounds of bloody military clashes, which hit the average civilian population hard, are still open. The destroyed households of our compatriots have not been rebuilt yet, the destroyed shrines of our diocese have not been restored. The graves of those whose lives were tragically taken by this fratricidal unrest are still fresh,” the ROC Metropolitan said in a statement.
He appealed to the clergy, monks, and laity to intensify prayers for peace in the Donbas, without saying a word about the rest of the Ukrainians being threatened by a new Russian invasion.
“Our region, known all over the world for its labor glory, in these years of hardship and unrest, has shown that it’s for a reason that we are called the Orthodox Donbas. As it was once said: ‘Donbas knows how to work and Donbas knows how to pray!’ Throughout the military conflict in our region, people have been selflessly helping each other, while monasteries have been offering shelter to the internally displaced persons and victims,” Metropolitan Hilarion said, failing to mention that the UOC-MP churches also sheltered militants.
Moscow Patriarch Kirill (Gundyaev) recently had a phone call with Metropolitan Hilarion (Shukalo) of Donetsk and Mariupol with the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine. The conversation was initiated by the Moscow Patriarch, as he needs to “get first-hand information” from the ground.
