“Succumbed to the false teachings of the Russian world”: Head of the OCU criticizes Serbian Patriarch Porphyry

The head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Epiphanius Dumenko, criticized the Primate of the Serbian Orthodox Church, His Holiness Patriarch Porphyry. Epiphany accused the Serbian Patriarch of making complimentary remarks about Russian President Vladimir Putin. Dumenko believes that in doing so, Patriarch Porphyry “succumbed to the false teachings of the Russian world.” He stated this in a report he read at a meeting of OCU hierarchs.

«The public flattery of Serbian Patriarch Porphyry towards the bloody Kremlin dictator, whom he called ‘the trump card of Orthodoxy’ during a personal meeting in the presence of the press, allegedly quoting the words of the Patriarch of Jerusalem, can only evoke regret and indignation. This and other similar examples show that the theory and practice of the false doctrine of the ‘Russian world’ extends far beyond the Russian Orthodox Church, affecting individual hierarchs outside it and even entire Local Churches,» — said the head of the OCU.

It should be noted that earlier, the Primate of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Porphyry, criticized the constant pressure and attempts to ban the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The first hierarch noted that, taking advantage of the military conflict in Ukraine, the UOC wants to seize church property and transfer it to a loyal religious structure.