© 2005-2026 BISERICI.org
© 2005-2026 BISERICI.org
Timp stanga: 0.03s...
Letter #14, 2018: Ukraine Church[2018-04-20][Engleză]Thursday, April 19, 2018The Leader of Ukraine and the Churches in Ukraine Reuters earlier today published an important story having to do with Russia and Ukraine. It was headlined "Ukraine moves to split Church from Russia as elections approach." Ukraine's president, Petro Poroshenko, reportedly, intended to speak by telephone today to Greek Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew, to ask Bartholomew though only "the first among equals," nevertheless the highest authority in world Orthodoxy to support the granting of "autocephaly," or self-rule, to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which has up until now been a branch of the Russian Orthodox Church under the Patriarchate of Moscow. The freedom of the Church The story is important, first, because of its implications for Christian faith and doctrine, because the granting of autocephaly is an internal Church matter which should not be decided by non-Church authorities (like secular governments) in order not to infringe upon the Church's freedom. It is also important for geopolitical reasons, because the granting of autocephaly would evidently distance Ukraine's Orthodox believers, and so Ukraine in general, further from Russia, a development that would likely weaken Russia. Russia's attitude In this light, the Russian government is not likely to look with favor on the proposal, and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted today by Russian state media as saying: Of course, actions aimed at splitting up the churches are unlikely to be supported and unlikely to be welcomed. Likewise, a spokesman for the Russian Orthodox Church itself, Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev, in an interview today, argued that the Orthodox Church in Moscow and Kiev "is one Church, born in the baptism in the Dnieper River in Kiev [in 988 A.D.]" and that neither "the Constantinople Patriarchate" nor "any other Church" can "unilaterally proclaim the autocephaly of this or that Church." Hilarion, head of the Moscow Patriarchate's Department for External Church Relations, added: "Therefore, we believe that this initiative, despite all current information noise, will have the same fate as the initiatives adopted in the previous years, and we are again reminding that the Ukrainian church problem can only be resolved using canonical methods." Hilarion closed his interview (full text below) by emphasizing that the present situation in Kiev, in canonical terms, is one of schism, in which one group has broken off from Moscow, while another group has remained faithful to Moscow. "That church schism has accelerated over the past more than a quarter of a century thanks to the support of the secular authorities, but it still remains a schism," Hilarion said, adding that schisms have never been legitimized in the history of the Church. He concluded: "There have been precedents when hierarchs, clergymen, laymen, groups, and associations returned from division through repentance, and that's the only way the Orthodox Church can offer." So, from Hilarion's perspective, this matter cannot be solved by Parliamentary votes, or even by a decision of the Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew, but only by canonical Church procedures, and by the overcoming of divisions. The difficulty now is that these Church matters have evidently become of considerable importance for political leaders, starting with Poroshenko, but including Putin, and then many others. So the greatest need now may very well be for calm and wisdom... and for prayers that the Church's leaders, and members, may find the way to assure the greatest freedom for the Church from political powers, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. May the Holy Spirit guide all those involved in a very difficult and delicate eccesial and political situation. ============================ Here is today's Reuters story: Ukraine moves to split Church from Russia as elections approach By Natalia Zinets, April 19, 2018 KIEV (Reuters) -- Ukraines Orthodox church could become independent of Moscow under the terms of a presidential initiative lawmakers approved on Thursday, a move that President Petro Poroshenko said would make it harder for Russia to meddle in Ukrainian affairs. Ukraines pro-Western leaders have sought step by step to move the former Soviet republic out of Russias orbit, after Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014 and a Moscow-backed insurgency broke out in eastern Ukraine. The Moscow Patriarchate is part of the Russian Orthodox Church and has a sizeable following in Ukraine. Kiev considers it a tool for the Kremlin to wield influence. Poroshenko met Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the spiritual leader of the worlds Orthodox Christians, in Istanbul last week, to seek support for giving autocephalous status -- effectively, making it independent -- to the Ukrainian church. Unity is our main weapon in the fight against the Russian aggressor, Poroshenko told parliament. This question goes far beyond the ecclesiastical. It is about our finally acquiring independence from Moscow. Poroshenko compared having an autocephalous church to Kievs aspirations to join the European Union and NATO, because the Kremlin regards the Russian church as one of the key tools of influence over Ukraine. Asked about the issue on his daily conference call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted by Russian state media as saying: Of course, actions aimed at splitting up the churches are unlikely to be supported and unlikely to be welcomed. A spokesman at Patriarch Bartholomews office declined comment. Poroshenko has previously suggested he has the Patriarchs support for an independent church but could not divulge many details about their meeting. The Moscow Patriarchate sees itself as the only legitimate Orthodox church in Ukraine. It vies for influence with the Kiev Patriarchate, a branch of the Orthodox Church that broke away from Moscow in 1992 after the fall of the Soviet Union, and other Orthodox and Catholic denominations. The Kiev Patriarchates leader has been sharply critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin and in 2014 called him possessed by Satan. Putin in turn has cultivated strong ties with the Russian Orthodox Church, adopting more conservative policies and prompting critics to suggest the line separating state and church has become blurred. Thursdays parliamentary motion was opposed by the Opposition Bloc, the heir to the party once headed by the pro-Russian former president Viktor Yanukovich. The party called the move a gambit by Poroshenko ahead of elections next year. We believe that the presidential campaign began today, its leader, Yuriy Boyko, said. The bad news is that the presidential campaign begins with the most sensitive topic for society - the issue of religion. The state has no right to interfere in religious matters. Additional reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen in Istanbul; Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Big ==================== Here is a Russian Interfax report on the story. 19 April 2018, 14:20 Ukrainian Orthodox Church's autocephaly is geopolitical issue Poroshenko (link) Kiev, April 19, Interfax -- The autocephaly of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine is a geopolitical issue, considering that Russia uses the Church as leverage, Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko said in his address to the Verkhovnaya Rada [Ukraine's Parliament] on Thursday. "This is far from being a mere church affair! This is about our final independence from Moscow. It is not just religion, it is geopolitics. It is national security and our defense in the hybrid war, because the Kremlin sees the Russian Orthodox Church as a key instrument of influence on Ukraine," Poroshenko said. "To me, the establishment of an independent local Church is as important as the visa-free travel system and the Agreement of Association with the European Union we have already achieved, as well as our struggle for a place in the European Union and NATO, which has yet to be won," Poroshenko said. "We will not be detached observers of another country's interference in our church affairs and attempts at using the feelings of certain Ukrainian Orthodox believers to its ends," he said. Poroshenko called for applying the ancient canonical principle and "supplementing the civil and territorial division with a division in church affairs. The debate on autocephaly started after the country became independent. Similar processes took place in Greece, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Georgia, and even Russia over various periods of time. As an independent country, Ukraine has the right established by the traditions of the Orthodox world and simply must constitutionalize this church and ensure its recognition by the international Orthodox community," he said. The president cited opinion polls indicating that an increasing number of Orthodox believers in Ukraine wanted to have a single autocephalous Church, which is customary in the Orthodox world and a majority of Orthodox countries, "to have a Eucharistic and devout connection to other local Churches, but to be administratively independent from foreign church jurisdictions." "We have found a formula in which all Orthodox jurisdictions of Ukraine could participate in the local Church's constitutionalization. This is a priority of all genuine advocates of strengthening Ukrainian unity. This unity is our major weapon against the Russian aggressor. I will be firm. And I will oppose everyone who tries to hinder the national interests of Ukraine and our cooperation with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople," he said. Poroshenko said he had had several meetings with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I. "Through all these years [of my presidency], I have been in an invisible dialogue with the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Members of my team have been frequenting Phanar. Fighting for the Ukrainian Church is important, honorable, responsible work," Poroshenko said. The Easter meeting he had with the Ecumenical Patriarch on April 9 "was far from being the first, but turned out to be among the most inspiring and productive." "We spoke for several hours, and I realized that it was time to break the long period of diplomatic silence with fast, concrete steps," he said. ================= Here is the interview with Metropolitan Hilarion, published today by Interfax, the Russian news agency. 19 April 2018, 14:41 Metropolitan Hilarion on situation in Ukraine: secular administration cannot initiate creation of autocephalous Church (updated) Moscow, April 19, Interfax -- The Russian Orthodox Church believes that the new initiative of the Ukrainian authorities to create an autocephalous Orthodox Church in Ukraine is destined to fail, like the previous attempts. Sursa: www.InsideTheVatican.com Contor Accesări: 861, Ultimul acces: 2026-08-08 08:32:27
|
Timp total: 0.03s...
[1]:1
