Jerusalem Church condemns the persecution of UOC

Archbishop Theodosios of Sebastia. Photo: dogma.gr

On March 27, 2023, the hierarch of the Jerusalem Orthodox Church, Archbishop Theodosius of Sebastia, stated that he condemned the persecution against the UOC, according to the Greek website Romfea.

The Metropolitan condemned the persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and noted that the Jerusalem Patriarchate views it “as persecution of the entire Church, since at the moment there is a threat of eviction of bishops, priests and monks from the Lavra in Kyiv, an ancient historical monastery, well known as one of the largest monasteries of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.”

“The Ukrainian Orthodox Church, headed by His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry, is subjected to systematic hostile campaigns, behind which there are many threats and attacks,” Vladyka Theodosius noted, pointing out that “Her message has always been to preserve love, brotherhood and peace.”

Archbishop Theodosius expressed the hope that such statements "would become a strong deterrent step for the Kyiv authorities" and demanded "urgent action from the entire Orthodox community to stop these severe persecutions."

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that the Church of Antioch hopes for the cancellation of the decision to evict the monks of the Lavra.

Read also

Parolin: It is premature to talk about Pope Leo’s trip to Kyiv

The Vatican Secretary of State noted that the Pontiff, after receiving an invitation from President Zelensky to visit Ukraine, "will weigh what to do".

Khust Eparchy refutes fake news about receiving a bell from Russia

The statement stresses that the monk Panteleimon Rastvorov, mentioned in the publications, is not a cleric of the Khust Eaprchy of the UOC.