UOC cleric: Chernivtsi pogrom is just the tip of the iceberg
Archpriest Oleksandr Klymenko. Photo: Screenshot from the Viche YouTube channel
Speaking on the Viche YouTube channel, UOC priest Oleksandr Kliymenko stated that the events in Chernivtsi revealed only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to church seizures across Ukraine.
“Patriarch Bartholomew – and I think this is very important – has the opportunity to put two and two together and see in Chernivtsi not just one incident, but 90% of similar cases happening now in Ukraine,” Fr. Oleksandr emphasized.
According to him, most such incidents go unnoticed simply because they are not captured on video.
“We’re outraged over what happened in Chernivtsi only because there were cameras and we saw the disgrace with our own eyes. A huge number of people in the ‘church–police’ or ‘church–city administration’ network act with impunity, hoping that if they seize a cathedral, the recordings will be erased, destroyed, or the cameras broken,” the priest explained.
He noted that most parishes lack proper recording equipment, and the number of defenders is often too small, which enables successful seizures with the backing of police and local authorities.
“The few videos that parishioners manage to film from the side – someone on the left, someone on the right – their phones are sometimes knocked out of their hands, and there’s simply no evidence left,” the UOC cleric added.
Earlier, the UOJ reported that according to OCU publicist Tetiana Derkach, the clerics who led the assault on the Holy Spirit Cathedral in Chernivtsi are “desacralizing both the holy priesthood and the Church itself.”
Read also
Vandals ransacked the Church of Saint Athanasius in Korçë, Albania
In the mountain village of Sinicë near Korçë, unknown individuals smashed icons and filled the Orthodox church with cement.
Egypt and Sinai monastery discuss dual-ownership formula
An Egyptian court has postponed consideration of appeals concerning St. Catherine’s Monastery on Sinai as the parties work on an agreement.
UOC faithful and provocateurs gather outside Kyiv court in Lavra case
Orthodox Christians and radicals gathered outside the capital’s commercial court of appeal, where the Upper Lavra case is being heard.
Greek hierarch: Bonds of Orthodoxy cannot be severed over geopolitics
The visit with the right hand of St. Spyridon was approved by the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece.
Authorities mobilize only UOC clergy, this is unfair, priest says
The Secretary of the Khmelnytskyi Eparchy noted the selective approach of officials in granting reservations.
Chief Rabbi condemns Kyiv rabbi for supporting deputy head of OP in court
Moshe Reuven Asman stated that the surety for Iryna Mudra was a personal initiative of the Kyiv rabbi.