OCU cleric: Our presence in Poland is coordinated with the Ecumenical Patriarch

Cleric of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in Warsaw S. Syrenko together with S. Dumenko. Photo: Syrenko's Facebook

An OCU “priest” in Warsaw, Serhii Syrenko, accused the Polish Orthodox Church of sympathizing with Russia and stated that his structure operates in Warsaw with the knowledge of Patriarch Bartholomew. He made these remarks in an interview with the outlet Dzerkalo Tyzhnia.

Syrenko said that, according to the Tomos, the OCU has no right to open parishes outside Ukraine, but after Russia’s invasion “the situation changed.”

According to Syrenko, Ukrainian refugees “did not always want to go to the local Orthodox church and in fact were left without spiritual care.” Therefore, the OCU, contrary to the Tomos, organized its own communities in Poland and called them a “chaplaincy mission.” Syrenko claimed that the OCU’s presence in Poland (as well as in other countries) had been “coordinated with the Ecumenical Patriarch.”

“We are not a parish; it is precisely a chaplaincy mission providing spiritual care to OCU faithful abroad. Such missions operate in many Polish cities, as well as in Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, the Baltic states, and so on. But the largest number of missions operates precisely in Poland,” the OCU cleric emphasized.

According to him, the OCU’s presence in Poland will remain even after the war in Ukraine ends.

“For now we are talking about the work of the missions only until the end of hostilities. But we understand that some OCU faithful will remain abroad. In Poland’s case, if the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church recognized the OCU, our missions would simply become parishes and would transfer into the PAOC. But if the PAOC continues not to recognize the OCU and the faithful of our church need spiritual care, I think no one will leave them behind,” Syrenko said.

He criticized the Polish Church for refusing to “enter into contact” with the OCU and for allegedly pro-Russian activity.

“Among the majority of the PAOC clergy, pro-Russian sentiments prevail, and one can hear sermons of the ‘Russian world,’ which is absolutely unacceptable for Ukrainian believers,” Syrenko assured.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that the OCU is upset about the Polish Church’s “unfriendly attitude.”

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