Dumenko: UOC communities belong to the OCU, although they do not want it
Sergei (Epiphany) Dumenko, Patriarch Bartholomew and Petro Poroshenko. Photo: gov.ua
In an interview with Radio Svoboda, the head of the OCU, Sergei (Epiphany) Dumenko, stated that absolutely all communities in Ukraine, including those in the UOC, belong to the OCU.
Those who "do not recognize this reality," according to Dumenko, create a "certain canonical collapse." The fact that the believers of the UOC "temporarily want to belong to the ROC (as Dumenko calls the UOC – Ed.)" is "canonically wrong."
Speaking about the "transitions" of the UOC communities into its structure, Dumenko complained that "the situation has suspended a bit lately," and now there are only "isolated cases". But at the same time, he claims that it is wrong to call these transitions as transitions, because “they (UOC communities – Ed.) are actually based in Ukraine. Moreover, according to the decisions that were made by the Ecumenical Patriarchate, they all belong to the OCU."
Earlier, the head of the OCU said that there is a problem with the registration of religious communities in the country and insisted on the creation of a separate unit within the RSA.
Read also
Kyiv conscription officers abduct UOC priest
TRC officers reportedly abducted Maksym Kostiuchenko, a cleric of a UOC church in the Ukrainian capital.
Court grants DESS lawsuit to dissolve UOC’s Rovenky Eparchy
The appeals court partially granted the DESS lawsuit seeking to dissolve the Rovenky Eparchy but rejected the request to seize its property, citing a gap in Ukrainian legislation.
Met. Meletiy consecrates house of worship for UOC community in Dankivtsi
Members of the persecuted UOC Intercession parish in Dankivtsi have converted a house into a place for communal prayer and worship services.
OCU eparchy sells church center site to developer for housing
The OCU’s Volyn Eparchy sold land intended for a spiritual center to a private developer planning to build townhouses and residential buildings.
SBU names UOC priest’s wife a suspect in Cherkasy region
The SBU accused Matushka Kateryna Prykotenko of “spreading enemy propaganda” through correspondence with parishioners.
UGCC cleric calls Russian Orthodox literature dangerous for clergy
While examining the causes of divisions within the UGCC, Yustyn Boiko concluded that Russian Orthodox literature had influenced Greek Catholic clergy.