Phanar hierach compares Dumenko to Christ "going to the terrible Golgotha"

Dumenko and Metropolitan Emmanuel. Photo: the OCU website

On 5 February 2024, Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon gave a speech dedicated to the 5th anniversary of the "enthronement" of Epifaniy Dumenko after the "liturgy" of the OCU at St. Sophia’s Cathedral, reports the OCU website.

The Metropolitan called the activity of the OCU during these 5 years "a miracle of God", in which "the Providence of God took care that the Mother Church of Constantinople, which itself experienced devastation and ruin, showed mercy to the children of the Church in every corner of the world so that this tender mother would continue to act for the spiritual good, despite secular and other obstacles".

According to the hierarch, the Church of Constantinople "solely for the sake of Truth and the salvation of souls, overcame the divisions that existed, forgave all mistakes and revived the clergy and people with forgiveness."

He assured Dumenko that the Phanar is aware of his "great efforts and hard work to achieve the unity and stability of the Church of Ukraine, the struggle against propaganda, various temptations, slander, false accusations, lies, bile, the Cross and the terrible Golgotha" to which Serhiy Dumenko has been walking "daily for five years".

The Metropolitan also praised Dumenko for his “faithfulness to the Most Holy Ecumenical Throne and His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch".

"We know that you are a true hierarch of the Church of Christ! And as a true hierarch you sacrifice yourself daily for the pardon of many,” Metropolitan Emmanuel assured, wishing Dumenko another 95 years at 'the helm of the Church of Ukraine'.

“And let during this time a new generation grow up, which you and your worthy associates will teach Orthodox ecclesiology, true, not altered. Let this generation learn our faith from inexhaustible sources of salvation, not from doubtful painful sources. And then the greatness of the Triune God will be intrinsically reflected in the life, progress and deeds of your Local Church,” concluded the hierarch of the Phanar.

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