The vicar and brethren of the Lavra ask for support by presence and prayer

The brotherhood of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra is going through the most difficult times and therefore asks the faithful children of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to support them with their presence and prayer. Metropolitan Pavel of Vyshgorod and Chernobyl, the abbot of the monastery, said this in a commentary published on the Youtube channel of the monastery on March 22, 2023, Pravlife writes.

“We were given time until March 29 to move out of the monastery. We will not be able to do this under any pretext, because for 35 years the brethren have done everything to improve life for monks and pilgrims. There is everything necessary for life here, two kitchens, an embroidery shop, a laundry… We have no place, nowhere to take all this, and we do not intend to leave anything. If the state does this, leave it for what? To be plundered, as it was in 1917? If they do this, they are worthless on market day,” said Metropolitan Pavel.

As the bishop noted, the attitude of the state towards the Ukrainian Orthodox Church was demonstrated on March 20, when members of the Holy Synod, headed by His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine, arrived at the Office of the President to meet with V. Zelensky and, after standing in the cold for several hours, did not received by the head of state.

“This once again shows how much respect our government has for its people,” Metropolitan Pavel stated.

There are a lot of police inside and around the Lavra these days, the bishop said. To the accusations that the monks “surrender the monastery without a fight,” the governor replied: “Come and see. It is your duty to defend your holy places together with us… At the entrance to the President’s Office, only in the gate, there were 14 people with machine guns and, probably, other weapons. What we can do?”.

The situation with the eviction of monks from the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, according to Metropolitan Pavel, “testifies that there are no human rights, there is only violence.” The bishop does not know how the situation will develop further, but calls everyone to prayer.

“Come to the territory of the Lavra. You will see what the godless decrees of the tormentors do. But we should not be like unfortunate politicians. There can be no revolutions, combustible mixtures, stones – we can only pray,” Metropolitan Pavel said and warned that he could not “guarantee security, because provocateurs could come who would do everything to start a confrontation.”

“Today I ask for prayers for the holy monastery. Maybe the President will still hear or they will tell him … maybe the voice of conscience will cry out in his soul. If we are driven out of the Lavra, if we leave by force, what do we not want, what will happen to this holy place?.. We invite the faithful children of the Church to prayer every day,” concluded Metropolitan Pavel.