UOC rep: Phanar's disregard for canonical tradition aggravated schism

Bishop Sylvester of Bilohorodka speaking at an international conference in Kyiv. Photo: a screenshot of the video on the KDAiS Facebook page.

The acceptance of Ukrainian schismatics into communion by Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople happened with complete disregard for the canonical tradition of the Church, and this led not to church peace but only to the aggravation of the schism. This is stated in the report of the rector of the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary, Bishop Sylvester of Bilohorodka "Theological, canonical and historical aspects of the issue of recognizing ordinations performed in schismatic communities" at an international conference held at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, reports the KDAiS official website.

At the conference, organized by the UOC, "Catholicity of the Church: Theological, Canonical and Historical Dimensions" Bishop Sylvester said that the Patriarchate of Constantinople accepted Ukrainian schismatics into communion not only without canonical ordinations over them but even without their repentance and without any church liturgical rite. After analyzing the examples from the history of the Ancient Church related to the acceptance into communion of persons who received ordinations in schismatic communities, the bishop generalized the principles of the attitude of the Orthodox Church towards such ordinations. “If we now look at the procedure by which in 2018 the Patriarchate of Constantinople accepted Ukrainian schismatics into communication, it’s easy to see a gross disregard for almost all of the listed principles,” said the rector of the KDAiS.

He noted that the Phanar's deviations from the practice of the Ancient Church led to the fact that the church schism in Ukraine was not healed but only received a new impetus. “The result of healing the schism should be the reconciliation of Orthodox believers in Ukraine. However, the actions of the Patriarch of Constantinople led to the opposite result. The intervention of Patriarch Bartholomew in Ukrainian church affairs upset the already fragile confessional balance in Ukraine and provoked a new wave of religious violence,” stated Bishop Sylvester.

He also recalled that the extreme indulgence shown by the Patriarchate of Constantinople towards the schismatics led to the fact that even within the newly created OCU, already in the first months of its existence, a new split took place. “Filaret (Denisenko), as you know, said that he continues to consider himself a “patriarch” and claims to be the dominant position in the OCU. He actually resumed the activities of the self-dissolved "Kyiv Patriarchate", continuing to perform episcopal ordinations, which are no longer recognized in the OCU either. The latter circumstance proves once again that the acceptance into communion of the perpetrators of church schisms, who have spent many years not just outside the Church, but also in an active struggle against the canonical Church, requires special wisdom and responsibility. Ill-considered decisions that ignore the canonical tradition of the Church do not lead to church peace but only to the deepening of the schism,” said the bishop of the UOC.

He also stated with regret that because of the Phanar’s actions in Ukraine, the entire World Orthodoxy is on the verge of schism, and the relations of the Local Orthodox Churches are in a grave crisis. Overcoming this crisis is possible only on condition of strict adherence to those canonical principles that have been developed by the centuries-old experience of the Orthodox Church.

As reported, the head of the Phanar can provoke a break with the Serbian Church, the SOC hierarch believes.

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