UOC hierarch: Orthodox people won’t accept the pro-Uniate ideology of OCU

Metropolitan Jonathan (Yeletskikh) of Tulchin and Bratslav. Photo: spzh.news

On December 16, 2019, Metropolitan Jonathan (Yeletskikh) of Tulchin and Bratslav published a comment “On the anniversary of the founding of the OCU. Wrong choice! What's next?".

The bishop emphasizes that, recognizing the OCU, the Alexandrian and Hellas Orthodox Churches "fell before the temptation of the centuries-old arrogant power of Constantinople and, raising their hands up, admitted to the God’s thrones the laity in bishop clothing – Ukrainian self-consecrated schismatics."

The bishop writes that the representatives of the OCU themselves are rapidly “hellenizing”: “…. to please the Greek new calendarists, they are also going to reform the Church Julian calendar and celebrate Christmas with the Latins by the Gregorian calendar – on December 25.” The OCU leaders “literally encourage” the Orthodox Ukrainians to switch to the “obviously false New Gregorian calendar”.

According to the hierarch, "tending to a union with the Greek Catholics, the self-consecrated OCU" can expect "stagnation and collapse" in Ukraine.

“The Orthodox people will not accept the pro-Uniate ideology of the OCU as already happened in the history of Ukraine during the time of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth! It will not fall into the “paternal” embrace of the Phanar, which unilaterally accepted the schismatics without repentance and without proper ordination,” writes Metropolitan Jonathan.

“The ancient Ecumenical Patriarchs approved for centuries the Kiev Metropolis under the omophorion of the Patriarchs of All Rus. Some of them paid for this deed from the Ottomans with their lives. Ukraine was then saved from denationalization (Polonization) and from the Jesuit Union. And after 300 years, contrary to the canons, it’s worthless to turn the history clock back and drive the Orthodox of Ukraine like serfs into a self-consecrated yoke!”

He recalled: “At one time, when the Patriarch of Constantinople and many Eastern bishops signed the Union of Florence (a religious union) with the Pope of Rome, recognizing all the dogmas of the Latins, the Holy Russian Church lawfully ceased the prayer and Eucharistic communion with apostates for 141 years, believing that New Rome lost grace. "

According to him, now Ukrainians, if necessary, “will stand firmly in the truth of Orthodoxy for not even 141 years but even 200 and 300 years in order to preserve the right priesthood and faith in Holy Rus, taking upon themselves those trials that God will give them on the righteous path to the Kingdom of Heaven. ”

As reported, earlier Metropolitan Jonathan called not to pray with OCU members and those who came into contact with them.

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