"Bishops' Council" of UOC-KP appeals to Zelensky over situation with Filaret

"Hierarchs" of the UOC-KP. Photo: UOC-KP's Facebook

On November 9, 2025, six "hierarchs" of the Kyiv Patriarchate held a video conference, the results of which were published in a statement of the "Bishops' Council of the UOC-KP".

In it, the "hierarchs" addressed "the entire fullness of Ukrainian and world Orthodoxy in connection with the critical situation surrounding His Holiness Patriarch Filaret".

The document speaks of the poor health condition of the 96-year-old Filaret and his complete isolation from the "episcopate and clergy" of the UOC-KP.

"For the past several months, His Holiness Patriarch Filaret has been in isolation, with representatives of the episcopate and clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate not being allowed to see him," the statement reads. According to the signatories, Filaret's life and activities are completely controlled by his blood relatives: his niece – Inna Mykolaivna Denysenko, an employee of the State Scientific Institution "Center for Innovative Healthcare Technologies" of the the State Administration of Affairs, and her son Dmytro Volodymyrovych Kurylenko, as well as Olena Mykolaivna Denysenko and her son Mykhailo Serhiovych Denysenko.

The "hierarchs" were particularly concerned about the events of November 5 at St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery. They emphasize that the "episcopate" of the UOC-KP did not approve decisions to start a dialogue with the OCU, and Filaret himself never expressed such intentions but fundamentally defended the Kyiv Patriarchate.

According to them, Filaret was drugged with psychotropics and forcibly brought to the OCU leaders, who have betrayed him over the past years.

The "Bishops' Council" claims that Filaret was forced to sign an unknown document without the presence of the UOC-KP leadership. "We declare that we will not recognize any document allegedly signed by His Holiness Patriarch Filaret without the presence of the episcopate and clergy of our Church," the statement reads.

The signatories appealed to Zelensky to assist in restoring the registration of the UOC-KP Statute, which was unlawfully canceled by the previous government. They also request the return of the Kyiv Patriarchate buildings at the address: Kyiv, 36 Yevhen Chykalenko St. (formerly 36 Pushkinska St.), which were fraudulently re-registered during Poroshenko's time without Filaret's and the Synod's consent.

The "Bishops' Council" demanded that law enforcement agencies conduct an investigation to verify the correctness of Filaret's treatment. "There are grounds to believe that he is being deliberately put into an inadequate state through the use of excessive doses of medication," the document claims.

In addition, the "hierarchs" appealed to the US government and President Donald Trump to assist in preserving Filaret's life and freedom of religion in Ukraine.

The document was signed by "Metropolitan Filaret of Fălești and Eastern Moldova, Patriarchal Exarch of Moldova; Archbishop Nykodym of Sumy and Okhtyrka; Archbishop Daniil of Dnipro and Kryvyi Rih; Bishop Nikon of Odesa and Balta; Bishop Mikhail of Kherson and Tavria; and Bishop Aviv of Rîșcani and Ocnița".

Earlier, the UOJ reported that the "archbishop" of the UOC-KP reported threats and pressure from the OCU.

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