From "seps in lavras” to inciting and forgiving: Shary presents film on UOC

Anatoly Shariy presented a film about the UOC. Photo: screenshot/youtube.com/Anatoly Shariy

On November 23, 2020, Ukrainian journalist and video blogger Anatoly Shariy presented the film “UOC. From 'Separatists in Lavras' to Incitement and Forgiveness” on his YouTube channel, which tells about the realities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, living amid constant pressure and accusations.

"Ukraine. The country is unique for its centuries-old history and beauty, in which millions of representatives of different nationalities and religions live. It was here, in Kiev, that Prince Vladimir baptized Rus in the 10th century. It was from here that the history of religion began for many countries of Eastern Europe. However, today, more than a thousand years later, the Ukrainian Church is experiencing great problems. The parishioners were divided into different denominations; forceful seizures of temples take place regularly, accompanied by accusations of betrayal of the homeland. Within two months, our film crew visited the main Orthodox hubs in the country. We tried to understand the problem that arose in the Ukrainian Church. What is it like to do your duty amid constantly growing pressure and threat to your life, with law enforcement agencies purposefully not paying attention to it?" says the new project "Shariy.net", in which journalists tried to find answers to questions of interest to millions of Ukrainians.

As reported by the UOJ, earlier the political force “Shariy Party” filed the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine with an application for registration of a criminal offence against blogger-journalist Ayder Muzhdabaev, who had recorded the video “Church is death”, “Church is evil”, Moscow priests have proved that they despise Ukrainians". However, the National Police did not find incitement to religious hatred in Muzhdabaev's statements.

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