Metropolitan Antoniy: “External persecutions are frightening, but internal divisions are even worse”

The situation with the termination of the citizenship of His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufriy has caused serious concern in the church environment. Commenting on what is happening, Metropolitan Anthony (Pakanich), the manager of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, warned against the danger of an internal split, which, according to him, is much more dangerous than external persecution. His thoughts were published on the Pravlife website.

The archpastor emphasizes that the defense of Blessed must be balanced and not serve as a reason for divisions within the church environment.
“It is inadmissible to use the sincere desire to protect His Beatitude to achieve sometimes their own personal goals, as well as inadmissible to lay in the content of certain appeals theses that can knowingly divide the church environment,” – said Metropolitan.

He draws a historical parallel with the events of the early 20th century, in particular Metropolitan (later Patriarch) Sergius’ 1927 message of loyalty to Soviet power.

“I have no intention, much less the right, to condemn Metropolitan Sergius. Before his eyes churches were destroyed, clergymen were shot, entire dioceses and parishes were transferred to the Renewalist schism…. Only with the advent of the era of glasnost and the publication of hundreds of archival documents has it become known what was behind this document, what methods the authorities of the time used to beat out such statements and declarations: threats, blackmail, disinformation, etc. “, – writes the bishop.

He recalls that external concessions did not save the Church from repression, but caused a long-lasting internal disunity:
“This is exactly what the anti-Church authorities of that time wanted: to weaken the Church, to divide it from within, to introduce poison into the minds of the faithful under well-intentioned pretexts.”

“In defending our Primate, we must not cover the retreat from the truth. External persecution is terrible, but internal schisms are even more terrible,” Metropolitan Anthony emphasizes.

“Thinking that one is defending the Church, one can become a prisoner of the enemy’s forces, while constant concessions increase the likelihood of not noticing that one has crossed the line beyond which the truth is lost. Protecting the Church, it is important not to become an element of the struggle against the Church itself,” – said the Bishop.

Earlier it was reported that Ukrainian lawyer Eugene Morozov told about what the consequences of the loss of Ukrainian citizenship may be for the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufriy. Among the possible options for further development