“Return to the Times of Totalitarianism”: Bishop Iona on the Actions of Museum Staff with the Relics of the Saints

Archbishop of Obukhiv Iona (Cherepanov) commented on photographs published in the Telegram channel “Fortetsia Lavra,” which depict museum staff and representatives of the so-called state church engaged in “re-clothing” the relics of the venerable saints of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra. According to the bishop, what is happening constitutes a terrible sacrilege, since the re-clothing of relics has always been performed exclusively by the Lavra’s monastic brotherhood in sacred orders. They were taught this by monks of the old post-war tonsure, who, in turn, inherited the tradition from the pre-revolutionary inhabitants of the monastery. The bishop’s comment was published on his Facebook page.

In the published photos, the hierarch emphasized that people who have no understanding of the proper handling of relics are interfering with the holy objects. For example, the wooden trays in the shape of a human silhouette were originally made in pre-revolutionary times specifically so that the relics could rest on them during transfer. This prevented damage to the relics and ensured that even the smallest particles were not lost. During re-clothing, the tray would be wrapped in a special light-colored mantle so that no particle of the relics would be lost.

Currently, the photos show trays placed vertically. “Where and on what the relics are lying, and how many particles of the holy objects have fallen to the ground, can only be guessed,” the bishop noted.

According to him, similar incidents already occurred during the Soviet period, when the Lavra was under the administration of a museum. Today, it appears as a “return to the times of totalitarianism and communism, a re-communization at the expense of the taxpayers of free Ukraine.”

The archbishop reminded that, since ancient times, the re-clothing of relics is performed once a year to allow the vestments to dry from the cave’s dampness. The transfer and clothing of the holy objects have always been carried out solely by monks in sacred orders. During the procession, a candle is carried before each saint, and the Psalter is read continuously throughout the ceremony.

It should also be recalled that a staff member of the National Reserve “Kyiv Pechersk Lavra” and, at the same time, abbot of the Kyiv Pechersk Monastery of the OCU, Avraamy Lotysh, accused the Lavra monks of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of having “abandoned the venerable saints.” According to Lotysh, this was evident because the UOC monks did not participate in the religious events recently conducted in the caves of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra by the head of the OCU, Epiphanius Dumenko.