US media: Zelensky acts against the UOC using Bolshevik methods

Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. Photo: wikipedia.org

Former US State Department official Larry Johnson believes that the Ukrainian authorities are persecuting the Ukrainian Orthodox Church using "Stalinist" methods.

Johnson wrote about this on his blog, and his article was subsequently reposted by other American media.

Larry told his readers that “most Christians in Ukraine are Orthodox; especially those who live in the east of Ukraine”, and they celebrate Christmas on January 7th.

He also believes that although Catholics and Orthodox believe in Jesus Christ, they cannot currently "view each other as brothers and sisters in Christ." “It’s sad,” Johnson writes, and goes on to say that “it gets worse — Zelensky’s Ukrainian government is targeting the Eastern Orthodox Church.”

Johnson said that he was contacted by his “Ukrainian friend”, who shared that next week, Poroshenko’s “radical church” (in the text “the radical church UPC Poroshenko Tomos church” – Ed.) might take over the Kiev Lavra, “as the government of Ukraine Zelensky and his Ministers are ignoring the calls of the head of Lavra Metropolitan Pavel to continue the contract for the Church service in the Holy Dormition and Refectory churches of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.”

Radicals from Azov and Right Sector will come to Lavra and try to seize control of it “while the regime decides what to do with the Lavra next,” Johnson wrote.

He is sure that “this is the kind of religious persecution commonly associated with Stalin’s Soviet Union”, and the possible involvement of the Azov movement in this action “disturbing because the Azov adherents are not Christian. They embrace pagan imagery and practices.”

“The spiritual leaders of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, if they genuinely believe in the gospel of Jesus, should be coming together to call for peace and an end to the killing. But history tells us that when it comes to killing, religion takes a back seat to nationalism. Or, even worse, religion becomes an excuse for killing,” summed up his article a former employee of the CIA and the US State Department.

Larry Johnson is a veteran of the CIA and the State Department's Office of Terrorism. He is the founder and managing partner of BERG Associates, which was established in 1998. For 24 years, Larry has trained members of the Special Forces of the US Armed Forces.

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that, according to Fox News host Tucker Carlson, there is no justification for destroying and outlawing the UOC.

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