UOC priest speaks of pressure on his children at school
The story of the clergyman's family was shared by the ruling bishop of the Khmelnytskyi Eparchy.
Metropolitan Victor (Kotsaba) of Khmelnytskyi and Starokostiantyniv shared on his Telegram channel a conversation he had with a priest of the UOC, whose family and parish had faced the seizure of their church. Despite all the difficulties, the community survived, continues its liturgical life and is building a new temple. However, according to the clergyman, “it’s hard to imagine how much our children had to endure at school” during this time.
The bishop presented this story in the context of recent events dedicated to protecting children during wartime. For instance, the Polish Sejm made a decision condemning Russia's abduction of children; and in Kyiv, the fourth Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen, also dedicated to child safety during war, took place.
“When I read this news, I recalled a recent meeting with a priest whose family had lived through a real war – a war for the Orthodox faith, for the Holy Church, for the name of Christ,” Metropolitan Viktor noted.
Sharing his experiences, the priest said that his daughters faced tremendous pressure at school during that time.
“Our children had no right to any childish mischief; their behaviour always had to be perfect. And this irritated many people even more. The only wish of my daughters was to finish nine grades as quickly as possible and go to a big city to get lost in the crowd…,” he said.
The priest worried that “their childhood was unfairly and irreversibly stolen, and the deep psychological trauma is probably already incurable”.
However, when the children returned home for vacation, they joyfully shared, “Mom, Dad, we are just like the others there! And next to the dormitory, we found our church, and church youth gather there. We found our like-minded people!”
According to the priest, thanks to God, “there’s no trace left of those frightened, cornered children.”
“Ordinary humanity, simple respect and friendly support are the most effective medicine capable of healing even the deepest wounds. And also faith in God – without His support, it’s hard to cope, or rather, it’s impossible at all. These children didn’t just survive, they won the war against adults – adults who, because of their own ambitions and fabricated accusations, inflicted deep emotional wounds on the children. And unfortunately, there are many such families with similar stories in our Church. But the cure is always the same – LOVE. With love, we are healed, with love, we forgive, with love, we live!” concluded Metropolitan Victor.
As reported by the UOJ, the OCU plans to seize two UOC temples in Kremenchuk.
