Festivities in Kharkov on the occasion of 25th anniversary of Bishops’ Council (PHOTO, VIDEO)

On 27 May 2017 His Beatitude Metropolitan of Kiev and All Ukraine Onuphry led the Divine Liturgy at Kharkov-based Holy Annunciation Cathedral, reports the Information and Education Department of the UOC. In Kharkov there have been commenced festivities on the occasion of 25th anniversary of Kharkov Bishops’ Council.

At the end of the Liturgy, Metropolitan Agafangel read out a greeting word to His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of the Holy Synod of the UOC, and presented the Primate with the Commendation and the Order of St. Job of the 1st degree.

His Beatitude Onuphry presented awards to other participants of the Kharkov Council of 1992. The Order of St. Job of Pochaev I was awarded to: Metropolitan Agafangel of Odessa and Izmail, Metropolitan Lazar of Simferopol and Crimea, Metropolitan Mark of Khust and Vinogradov, Metropolitan Hilarion of Donetsk and Mariupol, Metropolitan Iriney of Dnepropetrovsk and Pavlograd, Metropolitan Sergius of Ternopil and Kremenetsky. Metropolitan Onufriy of Kharkov and Bogodukhov received the Order of St. John the Theologian of the 1st degree.

On the same day, May 27, a solemn meeting of the UOC Holy Synod of the took place.

In 1992 Kharkov Bishops' Council of Bishops of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church was held on the territory of the Holy Intercession Monastery of Kharkov. Because of direct threats of using physical force against the bishops, organizing the Council of the UOC Bishops in Kiev was impossible, therefore, it was held in Kharkov – at the Department of senoir Archbishop of the UOC, Metropolitan of Kharkov and Bogodukhov, Nikodim (Rusnak). Metropolitan Nikodim headed the work of the Kharkov Council.

The bishops worked for two days, on May 27-28, 1992. The main reason for the convocation of the Council was non-canonical actions of Metropolitan Filaret (Denisenko), who violated the oath given before the Cross and the Gospel at the Bishops' Council in April of the same year not to violate the church peace and leave the post of the UOC Primate.