The priest of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, theologian Volodymyr (Vakin) believes that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (in unity with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church) has fallen into a trap of its own making.
He told about this in an interview with Babel.
According to the theologian, the representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (MP) should admit that the union with Russia was a mistake and that their policy was wrong in terms of language, culture, history, and everything else.
“Actually, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (MP), – ed.) seems not to be against shifting away from Russia but it fell into a trap it created itself. UOC (MP), – ed.) for 30 years emphasized that it belongs to the Ecumenical Church through Moscow, in contrast to the Kyiv Patriarchate and the Ukrainian Autocephalous Church, which is not recognized around the world. And now, if the UOC (MP), – ed.) completely breaks with Russia, it will find itself in a worse position than the Kyiv Patriarchate was in the 1990s. At least they fought because they had light at the end of the tunnel – Tomos for the OCU. And the UOC (MP), – ed.), once it separates from Russia, where will it end up? That’s why we need a dialogue, one can’t be alone here,” said the clergyman.
He also drew attention to the appeal of UOC (MP) representatives to Patriarch Bartholomew, and noted that only part of the clergy is asking the Ecumenical Patriarch to settle the situation with the Church in Ukraine. “For now, this is just a statement on social networks,” Father Volodymyr explained.
He expressed confidence that the Moscow Patriarchate should not exist in Ukraine: “let it exist in Russia. We are against Russia’s influence on us through the church, especially in imperial, distorted Orthodoxy. The church cannot be an instrument of propaganda and manipulation.”
It should be recalled that the head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Epifaniy, met with the President of Kyiv International University.
OCU Archimandrite Avraamiy earlier blessed the event commemorating the memory of Olena Teliha.
