Metropolitan Hilarion explains why Phanar head has no flock in Ukraine

The head of the Phanar, Patriarch Bartholomew, granted the Tomos to the OCU. Photo: president.gov.ua

Where can the flock of Patriarch Bartholomew come from in Ukraine, when the majority of Orthodox believers in this country are the flock of the canonical UOC, and the schismatic OCU is independent from the Phanar head since he gave it a tomos of autocephaly. This was said by the head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Hilarion, on the air of the programme "Church and Peace", commenting on the recent statement of Patriarch Bartholomew that he will definitely come to Ukraine, "after all, his flock is there", reports the official website of the Moscow Patriarchate.

“It is not clear what kind of flock the Patriarch of Constantinople has in Ukraine. The majority of Ukrainian Orthodox believers belong to the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which is not in communion with him now. And some of the people belong to the schismatic structure, to which he gave the so-called autocephaly. If this is an "autocephalous church" from the point of view of the Patriarch of Constantinople, then what kind of his flock is there?” said the hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church.

He recalled that the actions of the head of the Phanar, which he announced as overcoming the schism, did not bring the Ukrainian people either peace or unity. On the contrary, the schismatics began to attack the temples of the canonical Church, expelled by force priests and parishioners from the temples. A number of communities that have lost their churches due to the raiding of schismatics are forced to pray in the street in winter frosts.

“I think that if Patriarch Bartholomew comes to Ukraine, it would be good for him to go to such places and see what his actions have led to,” Metropolitan Hilarion emphasized.

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