Dumenko stated that Russia has no right to be called the "Holy Rus"

During his sermon on April 6, the fifth Sunday of Great Lent, the head of the OCU, Epiphany Dumenko, made critical statements about Russia, questioning its right to associate itself with the concept of “Holy Rus.” This was reported by the RISU website.

In his speech, he compared the modern Russian Federation to the “Empire of Evil,” citing the military actions on Ukrainian territory. As an example, Dumenko mentioned the shelling of Kryvyi Rih and stated that such actions are incompatible with Christian principles. At the same time, he criticized those who, in his opinion, attempt to justify violence under the guise of religious rhetoric.

The head of the OCU paid special attention to the concept of “God’s Kingdom on Earth,” warning against identifying the Christian faith with political regimes and ideologies. According to Dumenko, the involvement of the clergy in supporting armed aggression is, as he put it, “complicity in the crimes of the Empire of Evil.”

Earlier, it was reported that Ukrainian MP, head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy, and co-author of the law banning the UOC, Mykyta Poturaev, shared his views on which Local Churches from countries bordering Ukraine are influenced by Moscow. According to the MP, the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church is most under the influence of the Russian Orthodox Church, while the Romanian Patriarchate he called “pro-Ukrainian.”