Public parade vs Cross procession: government’s battle for Tomos

The year of 2018 was different from the previous ones. The authorities of Ukraine are now making serious efforts to legalize the UOC KP and the UAOC under the guise of the Local Church. The official festivities of the Baptism of Rus were attended by the delegation of Constantinople, therefore the potent administrative resource was used by the power to reduce the number of believers in the Cross procession of the UOC on July 27 as much as possible, and to increase simultaneously the number of people at the event of the UOC KP on July 28th.
We will show if the authorities managed to carry out what had been conceived by them, how many people participated in the processions of the UOC and the UOC KP, and how all this was highlighted in the Ukrainian media.
Read also
Yelensky’s plan: Why is DESS demanding what the UOC has already done?
DESS is demanding that the UOC take steps it has already taken, while offering no assurance that further demands will not follow. What is behind Yelensky’s ultimatum?
Why OCU hierarchy lacks canonical ordination: what Local Churches say
The OCU head refuses to address invalidity of his ordinations. But almost all Local Churches speak of it – even those that recognized the OCU.
Why nation-first advocates do not call for peace
Ukraine’s population is declining by nearly one million people a year, and experts are warning of the nation’s demographic extinction. Yet the leaders of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) and the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) continue to call for war and mobilization.
The deception that decided the fate of the Tomos
In 2008, the "Filaret problem" derailed Yushchenko's plan. In 2018, Poroshenko solved it in just one hour – with a police escort for the Greeks and verbal promises to Filaret.
Lawyers in the crosshairs: How UOC is being stripped of its right to defense
Activists harass UOC lawyers outside courthouses, call them “traitors” on air, and promise them a “warm welcome” at hearings. The Church’s right to a legal defense is at stake.
How to respond to persecution: Lessons from St. Silouan the Athonite
The Church can and should be defended, but without malice. Why love for persecutors is not weakness but the only way to preserve the Spirit of Christ in the midst of the struggle.