The Phanar called on Metropolitan Seraphim of Kifer to visit Kyiv to "verify the canonicity of the OCU"

Kostas Onisenko, a journalist for the pro-Phanar media outlet “Light of the Phanar,” called on Metropolitan Seraphim of Kifira, a hierarch of the Greek Orthodox Church, to visit Kyiv to “verify the canonicity of the OCU”. The journalist emphasizes that the bishop’s position contradicts institutional decisions made at the highest level, since the Patriarchate of Constantinople granted autocephaly to the OCU back in 2019, and the Greek Orthodox Church officially recognized the new church and its primate.

Metropolitan Seraphim’s statements regarding the non-canonicity of the OCU and its head, Epiphany Dumenko, are, in the author’s view, not merely a theological dispute but undermine the efforts of supporters of the Ukrainian schism, who seek to “to preserve their independent church structure amid the war and in the face of attempts by the Moscow Patriarchate to undermine their canonicity.” The journalist points out that “Metropolitan Seraphim’s statements ignore the suffering of millions of Ukrainians who struggle daily for their freedom and dignity.”

As a constructive step, the author suggests that Metropolitan Seraphim visit Kyiv in person to see the actual state of affairs with his own eyes. As the author notes, given that “thousands of people continue to live and minister under the threat of constant shelling, such a visit could help the hierarch better understand the position of those who are defending their right to ecclesiastical independence.”

It should be recalled that earlier, Metropolitan Seraphim of Kyphira and Antikyphira, in a recent interview, spoke at length on a number of pressing issues in church and public life, including ecclesiastical disagreements related to the Ukrainian question. The hierarch criticized the decision-making process regarding the Greek Orthodox Church’s support for the creation of the OCU in 2019, asserting that the vote did not comply with established norms. Furthermore, he expressed his disagreement with the recognition of Epiphany Dumenko as a legitimate hierarch, casting doubt on the canonicity of his ordination.