Yelensky: Not recognizing OCU means indirectly denying Ukrainian statehood

DESS head Viktor Yelensky

The head of the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) Viktor Yelensky linked the refusal of Local Churches to recognize the OCU with non-recognition of Ukraine's statehood. He stated this in an interview with a UOC cleric of the Vinnytsia Eparchy, Archpriest Roman Makar, on the YouTube channel "DNK".

“I believe that the non-recognition of this independence amounts to a denial of the country’s statehood, albeit an indirect one,” Yelensky said. According to him, he often makes this point to colleagues from the countries whose Orthodox Churches do not recognise the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).

The DESS head believes that that a country with an Orthodox majority should necessarily have its own autocephalous Church. He acknowledged that "constitutionalists might attack him" for this view, since Ukraine is a secular state. Nevertheless, in his opinion, for Orthodox nations, an independent Church has always been "an attribute of statehood." The official cited the experience of the Georgians and Serbs: according to him, when a people gained independence, its Church also obtained autocephaly, while the loss of independence meant the loss of autocephaly.

Yelensky also expressed hope that a "united Ukrainian Orthodox Church" will be built on Gospel principles. Then, he believes, there will be no problems with its recognition by other Orthodox Churches, "except for one, let’s put it that way."

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that, according to Yelensky, Orthodox Romanians in Ukraine must be subordinate to Epifaniy Dumenko.

Read also