MP: Poroshenko’s policy of persecution against UOC continues under Zelensky

People's deputy of Ukraine Viktor Medvedchuk. Photo: zagittya.com.ua

Viktor Medvedchuk, Chairman of the Political Council of the “Opposition Platform – For Life (Za Zhyttia)” party, said that the team of the current President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky continues Poroshenko’s policy of persecuting the only canonical Church in Ukraine, reports the official website of the "Opposition Platform – For Life" party.

According to him, "every new statement by representatives of the Ukrainian authorities is simply the utmost of unprofessionalism and cynicism regarding their voters."

In particular, the MP refers to the statement of the Minister of Culture Vladimir Borodiansky, who stated in his interview that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church “should include in its name an identification that it refers to the Russian Orthodox Church” and indicate that the governing centre of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is located in Moscow.

Viktor Medvedchuk believes that “due to his ignorance or political bias, the Minister of Culture ignores the fact that the UOC is an independent, self-governed church, the leadership of which is elected at the Council of Bishops. The UOC has its own Ecclesiastical court and the Holy Synod and is completely independent of the Russian Orthodox Church, connected with it only by common prayers.”

According to the people’s deputy, if "the Minister of Culture, says that ‘the centre of influence on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate is located in Moscow through the same Synod’, and opposes the only canonical Orthodox Church in Ukraine, led by His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry," why in this case, he "does not take the same position with respect to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church? After all, the UGCC is within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church. And when the UGCC elects bishops, this decision requires approval in Rome.”

Medvedchuk is sure that “the statements of the Minister of Culture, a member of the Zelensky team, are nothing more than a continuation of the policy of Poroshenko, who for political reasons interfered in church affairs, which led to a schism in Orthodoxy not only in Ukraine but throughout the world.”

He believes that " Zelensky’s team continues Poroshenko’s policy (expressed in receiving the Tomos and raider seizures of temples and property of the UOC – the only canonical Orthodox Church in Ukraine)."

The people's representative emphasized that “the ignorant, not knowing the situation Minister of Culture Borodiansky interferes in extremely sensitive spheres of religion and language for Ukrainians, which only reinforces the split in society.”

Earlier the UOJ wrote that in the opinion of the people's deputy of Ukraine Vadim Novinsky, Borodiansky repeats the theses of the old government regarding the UOC.

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