Pochaiv mayor:COVID-19 outbreak began not in Lavra but among city residents
Pochaiv mayor Vasily Boyko speaking about the real situation with coronavirus in the city. Photo: a video screenshot from the «Святині України» YouTube channel
The head of the Pochaiv City Council Vasily Boyko spoke about the real situation with coronavirus in the region, emphasizing that the information published in the media about the Holy Dormition Pochaiv Lavra as a focal point for the spread of infection does not correspond to reality. He said this in a comment for the media platform «Файне місто».
According to Boyko, there really are priests in Pochaiv with tested positive for COVID-19, but they all live in the city and are not monks of the monastery.
“These priests are not people who intentionally spread the virus,” he emphasized. “On the contrary, they got infected from parishioners, those people who had been working abroad, came here, were not quarantined and self-isolated. Consequently, in such a way this infection came to us in Pochaiv.”
The mayor of Pochaiv noted that there is no official information on the detection of the coronavirus with the monks of the Pochaiv Lavra and its abbot, which is also reported by some media outlets, and “no medical request confirmed this”: “As far as I know, the abbot is in the monastery. The monastery is closed for visitors and residents of Pochaiv, and generally for all but the monks. The service is held behind closed doors.”
“The outbreak of the coronavirus did not start in the Lavra; the outbreak began among the residents of Pochaiv. There was no outbreak in the Lavra,” he stressed, urging “not to make politics out of religion”.
Also, in his opinion, there is no reason to suspect the clergy are trying to hide their condition since those who have some symptoms of the disease themselves go to medical institutions and undergo testing.
As reported, earlier local authorities placed Pochaiv on lockdown due to the coronavirus. The National Police called this decision illegal because those who took it did not have such authority. On April 21, against the background of provocative and unconfirmed allegations against the Holy Dormition Pochaiv Lavra and the UOC of spreading the coronavirus, the monastery was quarantined.
Read also
"Stigmatization based on faith": DESS reprimands TSN for story about Muslims
DESS criticized TSN because "the investigation in the "1+1" news story immediately took on an accusatory bias, and the accused themselves were not given a voice."
His Beatitude Onuphry: Through fasting, man returns to Paradise
On Forgiveness Sunday, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry reminded the faithful about Adam's fall and urged them to repent before Great Lent.
Archbishop of Greece speaks about his successor and the Church's future
On the occasion of the 18th anniversary of his leadership of the Greek Church, the Primate gave an interview in which he spoke about relations with the state, the situation in Sinai, and the challenges of the modern world.
In Barcelona, Sagrada Familia’s central tower completed after 144 years
In Barcelona, a glass cross was installed on the Sagrada Familia temple, completing the central tower and bringing the building to the height of 172.5 meters.
On Forgiveness Sunday, His Beatitude Onuphry celebrates Liturgy at Lavra
During Cheesefare Week, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry celebrated the Liturgy at the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, addressed the flock with a sermon, and offered prayers for peace and the preservation of Ukraine's people.
In Hnidyn, St. Nicholas Church of UOC damaged by shelling
As a result of shelling, the St. Nicholas Church of the UOC in the village of Hnidyn of the Boryspil Eparchy was damaged.