Serbia criticizes "Trump's spiritual advisor" for working against the UOC
The spiritual advisor of US President Donald Trump met with Patriarch Porfirije, despite having previously supported the law banning the UOC in Ukraine.
Serbian journalists have drawn attention to a contradiction in the position of American pastor Mark Burns, who calls himself the spiritual advisor to US President Donald Trump: he publicly honors the memory of Orthodox Serbs and meets with hierarchs of the Serbian Orthodox Church, yet at the same time supported the ban on the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church. This is reported by the Union of Orthodox Journalists in Serbia.
As the publication notes, in March 2025 Burns visited Ukraine at the invitation of Rabbi Moshe Asman and called the country "a beacon of religious freedom," without meeting with representatives of the canonical UOC. It was Mark Burns who became one of those who effectively justified the persecution of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
"The pastor demonstrated a glaring disregard for the numerous documented testimonies of the persecution of Orthodox Ukrainians by the government of Vladimir Zelensky. He compared believers to terrorists and supported the law that is now being used as grounds for banning the activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Such statements raise serious doubts about the sincerity of Burns's commitment to the rights of Christians, which he speaks about in his public appearances," the publication states.
At the same time, the pastor visited Republika Srpska, Serbia, and Kosovo and Metohija, where he met with Patriarch Porfirije of the Serbian Orthodox Church and honored the memory of the victims of the war of 1992–1995. According to the publication, he visited Serbian shrines, including the Patriarchate of Peć, and met with Bishop Ilarion, discussing with him the situation of Orthodox Serbs in Kosovo.
"Can a person holding such views sincerely sympathize with all the suffering that the Orthodox people endure? We want to believe that visiting the holy sites of the Serbian land will truly move him and open his eyes to the truth," the publication wrote.
The law banning the UOC in Ukraine has been in effect since 2025 and continues to draw criticism from religious organizations around the world.
Previously, the Union of Orthodox Journalists reported that, according to a hierarch of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, Burns is helping the Phanar to disrupt meetings in the USA in defense of the UOC.
