On his first day in office, MinCult's gay official meets with Dumenko

Dumenko and Verbytskyi. Collage: UOJ

On his very first working day, the new Deputy Minister of Culture, Ivan Verbytskyi – who presents himself as openly gay – held a meeting with the head of the OCU, Serhiy Dumenko, Verbytskyi reported on Facebook.

“I was very glad to begin my first full working day with a meeting with His Beatitude Metropolitan Epifaniy. It was important for me to hear which issues concern the Church in the field of heritage and monuments, as well as to assure [him] of my intention to maintain good partnership relations with religious organizations,” Verbytskyi wrote.

He claimed that the OCU “is identified with by the largest part of Ukrainians,” and for this reason Verbytskyi began his personal communication with this structure.

“Churches were important community centers and today are landmarks; icons occupy a significant place in visual art; many traditions are intertwined with religious rituals. The Church has been and remains an institution that plays an important role in the life of society,” Verbytskyi wrote, emphasizing that the state’s function in preserving churches “does not contradict the use of these buildings by religious organizations for their original purpose.”

Verbytskyi thanked Dumenko for the meeting but did not provide any joint photographs. The OCU itself did not report on the meeting with the gay official.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that an openly homosexual man had been appointed Deputy Minister of Culture.

It should be recalled that the OCU leader previously commented on possible support for LGBT.

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