UOC-KP head: Constantinople recognizes our consecrations unconditionally

“Patriarch” Nikodym. Photo: Nikodym’s Telegram channel

The newly elected “patriarch” of the UOC-KP, Nikodym, said in an interview with the NTP YouTube channel that the consecrations performed in his structure are recognized by the Patriarchate of Constantinople.

According to him, the Phanar recognizes all ordinations performed in the Kyiv Patriarchate because they were carried out by Filaret after his legitimization in 2018.

“Our consecrations are recognized by Constantinople unconditionally, because from Constantinople’s point of view they were performed by Patriarch Filaret after his restoration, after his appeal,” Nikodym said.

At the same time, he drew attention to a fundamental contrast with the situation in the OCU: the consecrations of that structure’s clerics before 2019 were accepted “through church economia.” In Nikodym’s view, this indicates that Constantinople acknowledged their problematic nature.

The “patriarch” also recalled the illustrative case of Avraamiy Lotysh – the only monk of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra to join the OCU. According to him, Lotysh set a special condition: that at least two hierarchs of the Church of Constantinople take part in his episcopal consecration.

“Guess why. That is, two bishops can ordain another,” Nikodym stressed. “You can look at the recording and see who took part in the consecration: Metropolitan Emmanuel and Bishop Michael of Comana. That is, they participated in the consecration and effectively fulfilled his condition, so that someone would move from the Lavra to the OCU and so that his episcopal consecration would be recognized in the family. Why? Because I will not say where this comes from, but this is the position of the Patriarchate of Constantinople regarding all consecrations.”

Earlier, the UOJ reported that Epifaniy had “defrocked” UOC-KP head Nikodym.

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