Many hoped that the UOC would restore relations with the Phanar, — Shumylo

Serhiy Shumylo, Director of the International Institute of Athonite Heritage, commenting on the results of the UOC bishops’ meeting on the occasion of the third anniversary of the Council in Theophania, stated that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church continues to remain canonically dependent on the Moscow Patriarchate, which, according to him, only deepens its internal crisis and alienation from Ukrainian society and the state. He wrote this on his Facebook page.

The scholar noted that this date could have been an opportunity for decisive steps toward the «true independence of the Church.»

“Many hoped that at least this time real, official, and unambiguous decisions would be made about the UOC’s withdrawal from the ROC, that Eucharistic communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate would be restored, and appeals would be sent to the heads of the Local Churches asking to recognize the UOC’s autocephaly. But all hopes turned out to be in vain once again. To Moscow’s delight,” Shumylo said.

He also said that “God once again sent a reason and a chance for the UOC to free itself from the Moscow yoke (and how many there have been since 1991!),” but this chance was again lost.

“Instead of a simple phrase — ‘we declare the full withdrawal of the UOC from the ROC’ — we again hear only excuses,” Shumylo emphasized.

In his opinion, as long as the UOC remains in actual dependence on Moscow, its crisis will only deepen.

Earlier, we reported that the head of the Synodal Information and Education Department of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Klyment (Vecheria), noted the one-sidedness of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience in checking religious organizations for affiliation with Russia. The hierarch emphasized that, unlike the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the OCU has an entire diocese registered in Russia, but for some reason the SSEFC does not check the OCU for affiliation.