UOC KP spokesman: Chances to receive Tomos for Day of Baptism less than 50%

Spokesperson of the Kiev Patriarchate Eustratiy Zoria

At the moment, there is a preliminary process, which involves informing the Local Churches by a special delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarch. This was reported in an interview with "Radio Maria" by the spokesperson of the Kiev Patriarchate Eustratiy Zoria, writes "Slovo Today".

"It will be possible to say more clearly about the date of receiving the Tomos after the session of the Constantinople Patriarchate, which will take place in a little over a week. According to the information we have, the process has not yet reached the stage when the Synod will be ready to take a decision particularly on the Tomos," he said.

According to the representative of the UOC KP, now there is a preliminary process of informing the Local Churches by a special delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarch: "We see, I do not know for what reasons that the delegation is unlikely to finish its work for the Synod session, although it is possible that it will manage to do it. Only after this the Ecumenical Patriarchate will be able to proceed to the next stage."

" In view of all this, I estimate the probability of Ukraine’s receiving the Tomos for the holiday of the Baptism of Rus-Ukraine – less than 50%, but I’m slightly less than 100% sure that in the autumn or at the end of the New Year such a Tomos will be received," the spоkesperson believes.

In mid-April, Poroshenko turned to Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople with a request to grant Tomos on autocephaly for the Church in Ukraine and announced the creation of the Single Local Church. The Verkhovna Rada supported the appeal of the President. The Kiev Patriarchate has already said that they see their leader Filaret, excommunicated by the canonical Church, as the head of the SLC.

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