Are Greeks opening their Patriarch’s eyes to Ukraine?
Almost 40 monasteries from Greece and Mount Athos have raised their voices in defence of the UOC. What are the main points of their appeal?
1. The text is signed by abbots and monastics who are under the jurisdiction of the Phanar and Greece – Churches that have recognised the OCU. Formally, they should not even admit the existence of the UOC, since Patriarch Bartholomew does not recognise it. Nevertheless, they refer to it not as a collection of “eparchies of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine” (as the head of the Phanar does) but the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under Metropolitan Onuphry, who is followed by the vast majority of Ukrainian Orthodox Christians (about 24 million).”
2. The UOC is the true Church of Christ because it is undergoing persecution: “Persecution is a sign of the authenticity of Christian life.”
3. They refer to the OCU as the “so-called” Church and note the collaboration of its members with bandits who are seizing UOC churches.
4. The signatories condemn the Ukrainian authorities, who are trying to outlaw the UOC, calling them a state “in the times of Hitler and Stalin”.
5. The text provides details of the seizure of the cathedral in Cherkasy. This shows that Greece and Mount Athos are following the situation in Ukraine closely. And if they know about Cherkasy, they are aware of many other similar cases.
6. The Greeks quote Patriarch Bartholomew’s words about the inadmissibility of violence in churches, specifically in the context of the Church of St. Dionysius in Athens.
And here it is appropriate to recall one of the decisions of the 2018 Synod, by which the Phanar legitimised Filaret, Macarius and their followers: ‘To appeal to all parties involved to refrain from seizing churches, monasteries and other property, as well as from any other violent actions.’
In other words, Patriarch Bartholomew feared that seizures and violence would occur in Ukraine. And if a person fears something, at the very least, they keep an eye on the situation to take action if there are excesses.
All this time, while violence has been directed at the believers of the UOC, the head of the Phanar has remained silent. Let’s even assume that he truly did not know about it. But now, pretending not to see is impossible – his own clerics are opening Patriarch Bartholomew’s eyes.
Will he take steps to correct what he has wrought?
