95% of SBU cases against UOC clergy are fake, protodeacon says

SBU officer during a search in one of the UOC churches. Photo: SBU

UOC Protodeacon Vadym Novynskyi said that the overwhelming majority of criminal cases opened by the Security Service of Ukraine against UOC clergymen are fabricated.

“When the leadership of the Security Service of Ukraine reports how many priests have been convicted and how many criminal cases have been opened – these are all fake criminal cases. I am convinced that perhaps only about five percent of them had any real basis,” Fr. Vadym said.

The protodeacon gave a detailed description of how such cases are fabricated: “They take some priest’s phone and ‘find’ some kind of correspondence in it. Based on that correspondence, they open a criminal case under the charge of ‘treason.’ Then the priest is offered a deal: either we throw you in a cell, or you sign a plea agreement, we convict you – perhaps even give you a suspended sentence – and let you go. That is how the statistics of convictions are built.”

Fr. Vadym called accusations of weapons possession, missile targeting, and coordinating actions against Ukraine false: “A priest lives a different life, he lives differently, because he serves God. That is his main task.”

The clergyman also spoke about the difficult situation of specific hierarchs. Metropolitan Theodosiy of Cherkasy, Fr. Vadym said, was beaten during the seizure of the Cherkasy cathedral and was poisoned several weeks ago: “He was in the hospital, in intensive care. Doctors cannot understand what substance he was poisoned with.”

Metropolitan Longin of Bancheny, who adopted more than 500 disabled children, “goes to court as if it were his job” – several criminal cases have been opened against him despite the fact that he has suffered three strokes and two heart attacks.

The protodeacon also recalled that Metropolitan Arseniy, abbot of the Sviatohirsk Lavra, was held behind bars for almost two years on what he called fabricated charges.

“This is how our authorities are fighting Orthodoxy, trying to fight the Church, without understanding one thing: it is impossible to fight against God. You are bound to lose. Only madmen can set themselves such a goal,” the protodeacon concluded.

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that in 2018, Patriarch Bartholomew assured a UOC delegation that 30 of its hierarchs would join the OCU.

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