UOC Chancellor: Woe to the One Who Struggles with Church and its Creator
Any recognition for the OCU will not abolish the essence of schismatics, whose unchanging fruits are seizing other people's property, sacrilege, lies and beatings.
The Church is the city of God where His people dwell, and woe to those who destroy this city and expel its inhabitants. Metropolitan Anthony (Pakanich) of Borispol and Brovary, UOC Chancellor, told the “Pravlife” edition, commenting on the recent seizure of the UOC church in the village of Pogreby of the Brovary district, Kiev region.
“How can one comment on the robbery?” We are building, robbers are taking over. Our fruits are built temples, revived monasteries. Their unchanging fruits are seizing other people's property, sacrilege, lies, and beatings. They have been enemies of Christ and His Church. ‘Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inside they are ravening wolves. By their fruits you will know them ... A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a bad tree can bear good fruit’(Matthew 7: 15-18),” noted the hierarch.
According to him, recognition of the newly formed Ukrainian Church, which supporters of the OCU are striving for, will not cancel their essence.
“Even if someone recognizeв them, it would in fact be only a political move exclusively at the political level,” he added. “Recognition for OCU supporters is a political act rather than a path to church unity, the satisfaction of one’s ambitions and passions rather than a step towards humility and reconciliation, service to lies rather than God.”
The hierarch emphasized that the recognition of the church structure does not give the holiness that only Christ and His Truth give, which the schismatics have denied.
"’No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Mammon’ (Matthew 6:24). Unfortunately, the OCU proponents made their choice. And their last actions in the Dormition Church (in the village of Pogreby, – Ed.) only confirm this,” Vladyka Anthony said, adding that never have immorality, pride, arrogance and desire for dominion been Christian virtues.
He recalled that “the Church is a place of true worship of God rather than a miserable caricature, the Church is the nurse who feeds us with piety rather than a bar for drinks, the Church is the house of God rather than a robber den. The Сhurch is the city of God, where His people dwell: “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy dwelling places of the Most High ...” (Psalm 45: 4-6). Through baptism, we become its citizens. And woe to the one who will destroy this city and expel its inhabitants.”
The UOC Chancellor explained that the faithful children of the Church of Christ have nothing to fear of, but "those who are fighting the Church and its Creator should be fearful".
“Only the power of Christ, for which we should all hold onto, can save in the maelstrom of temptations,” summed up Metropolitan Anthony.
We recall that on August 24, 2019, about 100 supporters of the OCU broke the doors and seized the Holy Dormition Church of the UOC in the village of Pogreby of the Brovary district, Kiev region. Drunk activists broke open the temple sealed by police, saying that they were not going to wait for three years for a court decision on who it belongs to. The UOC believers demand from law enforcement agencies that the church should be sealed again before the court’s ruling.
