UOC refuses to provide authorities with evidence of break with ROC
16 August 17:15
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) has refused to provide evidence of a break with the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC).
A statement signed by UOC Metropolitan Onufriy was published on the official website of the UOC, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
In July, the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience demanded that Metropolitan Onufriy provide the decision of the highest church authorities on the withdrawal from the ROC, as well as the invalidation of all provisions of the Statute of the Russian Church, by August 18, and publicly declare his disagreement with his appointment to the ROC.
In a statement, Metropolitan Onufriy said that the order of the State Department of Economic and Social Services demanding to eliminate “far-fetched signs of affiliation with the Russian Orthodox Church” is a gross interference in the internal life of the UOC and a violation of Ukrainian legislation and international law.
It is noted that the Kyiv Metropolis of the UOC considered the order of the State Emergency Service and concluded that the points of the order demanding to eliminate violations of the law are fictitious, have nothing to do with the UOC, and therefore cannot be fulfilled. The UOC also stated that the order is not a legal act, but a public ultimatum based on the subjective opinions of the service’s leadership.
