Schismatic resource "exposes" OCU-OP conspiracy against Filaret

Eustratiy Zoria, Filaret Denisenko and Epiphany Dumenko. Photo: unian.net

The Churcher Telegram channel, whose administration sympathizes with Ukrainian schismatics, assures that the OCU and the Office of the President of Ukraine are allegedly involved in a conspiracy against Filaret Denisenko.

On January 11, 2021, in one of their posts, the channel's authors recalled their recent messages about the agreements between the OCU and the OP according to which if Filaret refuses to cooperate, a campaign will be launched to discredit him. As proof of their innocence, Churcher cited the recent words of Ivan (Eustratiy) Zoria, in which he states that “hundreds of respected people are still trying to reach out to him (Filaret – Ed.), but everyone speaks with one voice – he does not hear."

According to the spokesman of the OCU, Denisenko is allegedly "confident that in the near future Moscow will give real autocephaly to the UOC, and he, Patriarch Filaret, will be ‘the patriarch of this real autocephalous Church’. To do this, he just needs to ‘wait’ and ‘not give in’."

Back in October, the authors of the Churcher channel wrote that in the President's Office "there are rumors about some secret negotiations between the OCU and the UOC-KP", which "are being mediated by Yermak's people (head of the OP Andrei Yermak – Ed.)." 

According to the channel, Filaret was given conditions in the format of "an offer that cannot be refused." They boil down to the fact that Denisenko “returns to the Synod and remains behind those parishes that did not want to go to the OCU,” “his current hierarchy is accepted as it is, in the episcopal rank,” Filaret retains the house in Pushkinskaya Street and St. Vladimir Cathedral, while parishes in the Diaspora go to Phanar.

Churcher claims that the narrowest possible circle of people took part in this “issue” – Epiphany Dumenko, Eustratiy Zoria, “Bishop” Dmitry (probably Dimitri Rudyuk – Ed.) and several close people. “The Synod was not announced in order to prevent disclosure. A draft memorandum was also developed,” the channel's authors say.

Churcher writes that “the plan is a risky scheme but lurks benefits for everyone involved. By uniting the OCU again, Zelensky intercepts the laurels from his "predecessor" Petro Poroshenko and receives a bonus to the falling rating of Servant of the People party. The OCU, albeit at a considerable price, gets unity and development prospects. Phanar can again work on the recognition of the United Autocephalous Church of Ukraine.” However, Denisenko refused to cooperate.

That is why, according to Churcher, “Plan B” came into force, the essence of which is to discredit Filaret in front of believers through spreading rumors that he wants to join the UOC.

"The first step will be to launch accusations in the press (that Denisenko wants to join the UOC – Ed.), the second is to publish Filaret's fake letters to the Moscow Patriarchate with a request to receive him with all parishes and real estate of the UOC-KP", which will allow to "finally take away all the property from the elder, his hierarchs and clergy,” the authors of the channel believe.

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that the liquidated UOC-KP urged the head of the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience, Elena Bogdan, “not to use offensive cliches invented by the Orthodox Church of Ukraine” and not to reduce the problem only to Filaret's status.

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