RCC leader in Kyiv calls the Lavra show a "revival of communism"

Kryvytskyi in the Refectory Church of the Lavra during a "military breakfast" with Zelensky. Photo: Kryvytsky's Facebook

Vitalii Kryvytskyi, Bishop of the Kyiv-Zhytomyr Diocese of the RCC, criticized the culinary show in the Refectory Church of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in a post on his Facebook page.

He praised the show’s organizer, Klopotenko, for his creativity but stated that "in the case of his culinary show in the Refectory Church, this is no longer about cuisine but about a complete confusion in understanding the sacred and the traditional."

"It seems communism is no longer a relic of the past but, like a hydra, is reviving its tentacles in our present," wrote the RCC bishop. He recalled that after the Revolution of 1917, Catholic churches were turned into cultural centers, organ halls, and philharmonics by the Bolshevik authorities. "Now, the descendants of those communists, lacking counterarguments, simply say: 'This is what our legislation allows' or 'What's wrong with this?'" Kryvytskyi added.

In his view, "the problem lies in the fact that these newly concocted flavors are created by adding 'exotic components' derived from what is actually sacred to others."

"This is far from culture; it’s a simulacrum, because it’s not about 'cultivation' – understood as gathering – but about distorting what already exists. The biggest issue is that, like the Marxists of the 1920s, the Marxists of the 2020s cannot understand this. Or perhaps they understand all too well… and that’s why they create the corresponding legislation," the Catholic bishop noted.

He addressed the State Ethnopolitics Service, demanding "an appropriate assessment" of the incident. Kryvytskyi also expects "an apology from Mr. Klopotenko and his team for the mistake that occurred." However, the bishop did not specify to whom Klopotenko should apologize for the show in the Refectory Church.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that a culinary show had been held in the Refectory Church of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

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