In the Gorlovka diocese, we commemorate both His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry and His Holiness the Patriarch, - Metropolitan Mitrofan

Metropolitan Mitrofan of Horlovsky and Slavonic said that in his diocese they would continue to commemorate both His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine, and the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill. In general, everything in the diocese will remain as before. A recording of his address to the believers of the diocese was published by Pravblog.

“I voted against the last ruling, which was supposed to express no confidence in the Patriarch [Kirill of Moscow and All Russia] and I can confirm everything that happened. I said that if I vote for when I was given the floor, it would be a betrayal both in relation to our clergy and in relation to believers. I won’t be able to look them in the eyes later and come and say that we don’t commemorate the Patriarch now.

This will not happen, so how are we going to get out of this situation. His Beatitude invited us to do what we want and do as we see fit. Those. conditions were not set before us so that we would not commemorate the Patriarch or refuse those relations, the communication that we had before.”

According to the hierarch, he held a meeting of all the clergy, and deans who are in the uncontrolled territories, and his position was supported by the clergy of the diocese.

Commenting on the decision to stop the commemoration of the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, he noted: “Of course, this does not please me. I don’t think it’s good. I think that this decision was wrong. And I say this not only here, I also said this at the council. And it is wrong for many reasons, not only because a lot of people, including those in the central and western dioceses <…> do not agree with this decision, and believe that it is wrong <…> to tear unity with the whole church system, based on the political situation or because it can be scary. This is the wrong decision. I do not support it. And I do not approve. But I will not do anything to harm our brethren. We commemorate and His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry, and His Holiness the Patriarch,” the hierarch said.

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