Metropolitan Klyment: DESS experts found affiliation not in the UOC Statute but in ROC documents

The head of the Synodal Information and Education Department of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Klyment (Vecheria), commented on the work of experts from the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience to establish signs of affiliation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church with Russia. The hierarch noted that the examinations conducted by the DESS are based on documents of the Russian Orthodox Church, not the UOC, which indicates that the statements about the Ukrainian Church’s ties to Moscow are unfounded. The Metropolitan said this in an interview with Telegraph.

«The examination did not find this affiliation in our statute, but in the statute of the Russian Orthodox Church. If it is an analysis of the statutes of the Russian Orthodox Church and its documents, then, of course, anything can be found there. And if it is an analysis of the statutes in force in Ukraine, then there should be no restrictive measures against our religious organization,» the bishop said.

In addition, according to him, the Charter of Patriarch Alexy II on the independence and autonomy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church cannot be evidence of any ties between the UOC and the Russian Orthodox Church, as it only indicates how the Ukrainian Church received its current status.

«This mention of the charter does not indicate an existing connection, but rather how the UOC obtained its right to autonomy and independence. So far, no actions of the Kyiv Metropolis that would not be consistent with the legal field of Ukraine have been recorded. Any organization or individual can be restricted in their rights if they have committed a crime. If an organization has not committed a crime, it cannot be restricted in any way. Moreover, no one has the right to carry out collective punishment. If it is determined that the religious organization headed by me or someone else has had any ties with the aggressor state (or is currently doing so, with the entry into force of the law), then, of course, we will get to know this and eliminate all these issues. And if no such connections and actions are found, and we are accused of being guilty of something, perhaps in theory, it will be like looking for a black cat in a black room when it is not there yet,» Metropolitan Klyment said.

Earlier, we reported that the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience published a statement announcing the start of an inspection of the Kyiv Metropolis of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church for affiliation with the Russian Orthodox Church.