Patriarch of Alexandria declares "strong support" for OCU head
Patriarch Theodore, who earlier called His Beatitude Onuphry the only canonical Primate in Ukraine, expressed support for the OCU head and wished him every success.
On August 13, 2021, Patriarch Theodore of Alexandria declared to Epiphany Dumenko his "strong support", reports the OCU press service.
He said this after a joint service with Patriarch Bartholomew and the head of the OCU in Imbros (Turkey).
“As the second and apostolic throne, we followed the decision of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a first among the Primates, and we strongly support Your Beatitude as Primate, wishing you every success,” the OCU resource quoted the words of Patriarch Theodore addressed to Dumenko.
In memory of the event, the head of the Alexandrian Church presented Epiphany with a panagia depicting the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt, and the head of the OCU said that “we know that Ukraine is kept in your loving heart and we will always be glad to welcome you, Your Beatitude Vladyka”.
The Alexandrian Patriarch Theodore came to Ukraine in September 2018. Then, at the Odessa Transfiguration Cathedral of the UOC, he urged believers "to remain faithful to the Orthodox faith, to remain in the canonical Church" and stressed that the head of the canonical Church in Ukraine is His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry.
