KDAiS rector responds to critics of delegation’s visit to Phanar exarch
Archbishop Sylvester said that congratulating the Phanar exarch on his anniversary was part of the Church’s diplomatic life.
Archbishop Sylvester, rector of the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary (KDAiS), commented in an interview with Archdeacon Andriy Palchuk on a visit by KDAiS representatives to St. Andrew’s Church in Kyiv, where they congratulated Bishop Michael, the Phanar’s exarch, on his anniversary and presented him with gifts.
According to the hierarch, Church life is not limited to sacred ministry. “Throughout history, the Church has also maintained ecclesiastical-political, ecclesiastical-diplomatic, and other kinds of relations,” the rector noted.
He recalled that meetings with representatives of other denominations, including those with which the UOC has had and continues to have strained relations, had taken place before, and reports about them had appeared on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s official websites. “For some reason, no one seems to remember that now,” the hierarch added.
“When we congratulate our boss on a birthday or anniversary, we don’t start by asking, ‘What religion are you?’” he explained.
The rector described the presentation of gifts to the Constantinople bishop as part of the Church’s “ecclesiastical-diplomatic” life. “There is no reason to draw conclusions from this as though it were an ecclesiastical-political declaration, much less an ecclesiastical-canonical one,” Archbishop Sylvester said.
Responding to calls to reject any form of dialogue, he pointed out that diplomacy has always been part of Church life. According to him, the Holy Fathers were uncompromising only on matters of dogma, while in all other areas they sought opportunities for compromise.
The KDAiS rector thus explained the delegation’s visit to the Phanar exarch in terms of the need to bring as many people as possible into the Church. “Let us not forget: our task is to strive to bring as many people as possible into the Church. And that is never an easy path,” the hierarch concluded.
He did not explain, however, how congratulating the Constantinople exarch would help bring more Ukrainians into the Church.
As the UOJ previously reported, the Phanar exarch attempted to stand surety for a former deputy prime minister accused of corruption.
