Reserve director: Imperial murals in Lavra were preparations for occupation

According to Ostapenko, the mural style in the Lavra were "preparations for occupation." Photo: RBC

In an interview with RBC, Ostapenko voiced a number of extravagant claims.

He stated that some of the murals in the Dormition Cathedral were allegedly commissioned by Moscow and serve as evidence that the Lavra was being prepared for occupation.

He asserted that "the style of the murals in the St. Andrew Chapel is a 'Russo-Byzantine' trend of the 19th century, typical of cities such as Mozhaisk and Ryazan. It is a style that reinforces the 'Great Russian imperial idea.'"

Ostapenko also criticized the UOC for including on the frescoes of the Dormition Cathedral an image of St. Seraphim of Sarov, whom he described as "the official patron of Russia’s nuclear weapons."

In addition, the director of the reserve claimed that frescoes depicting Metropolitan Pavel, the abbot of the Lavra, among the lineage of past superiors of the monastery throughout its history, were a "personalized attempt to consolidate power."

"According to the plan, after the capture of Kyiv in 2022, it was here that Patriarch Kirill was to serve – 'as a warning to all Mazepians'," Ostapenko said, without clarifying whose plan it was or where he got this information.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that Ostapenko urged Ukrainians not to protest the culinary show held in the Lavra’s Refectory Church so as not to "aid Russia."

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