DESS ex-head: The state cannot regulate canonical relations of the Church

Olena Bohdan. Photo: raskolam.net

In an interview with the Viche You-Tube channel, former head of the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience Olena Bohdan noted that a secular state cannot dictate to religious associations what their canonical status should be, what their canonical relations should be.

She told what, in her opinion, the state should do in the religious sphere.

“What is important for the state to do? It is important for the state to make sure that the financial, organizational, communication ties of secular and religious organizations in Ukraine with the aggressor state be not such that could cause some harm to our society, our state,” Olena Bohdan specified.

When asked by a journalist whether the state can demand to eliminate the shortcomings in the documents of the UOC, the ex-official answered that, first of all, it is necessary to answer the question of what current legislation of Ukraine these documents do not comply with. To date, there is no answer to this question, said the former head of the State Ethnopolitics.

“If the state begins to dictate canonical relationships, this is a road to nowhere,” she summed up.

As the UOJ reported, in January 2023, the former head of the State Ethnopolitics, Olena Bohdan, warned that the church issue in Ukraine could turn into a tragedy.

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