"Why is the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches silent?" - Metropolitan Antony on the forced mobilization of the UOC clergy

The hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Antony (Pakanich), drew attention to the fact that the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations ignores the violation of the rights of the UOC clergy and believers. The bishop cited the example of forced mobilization of the UOC clergy, noting that the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations does not seem to notice what is happening. Metropolitan’s words are transmitted by “Orthodox Life”.

“No one hears the voice of the Church. We have been isolated from the all-Ukrainian media space. But why are silent those who, as they say, God Himself told to tell the truth? Why do they not show a desire to see the real picture, the ongoing iniquities and honestly call things by their names. […] And the persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church?! How can they not be noticed? One of the most numerous confessions of the country, a significant part of society, of the Ukrainian people, is being persecuted. There is no explanation for this, only associations with dystopias of famous writers come to mind, ” the hierarch noted.

Metropolitan Antony cited the situation with the forced mobilization of the UOC clergy into the AFU as an example. The Hierarch is convinced that the UOCARC is well aware of what is happening and knows that a priest cannot be at the front in the role of a soldier, but persistently continue to ignore this fact.

“Take, for example, the monstrous cases when priests and bishops of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church are forcibly sent to the active army. From the point of view of those who do this, everything is “legal”: this citizen is suitable for mobilization by age, and the reservation provided for representatives of the clergy does not apply to him, because for the power functionaries he is not a priest. After all, the “religious association” to which the clergymen who are forcibly “conscripted” belong is not recognized by the state. So they believe. However, from the point of view of the Church and, more importantly, from the point of view of God, a priest is still a priest, no matter what the laity in power think about it, no matter how high the status. According to the Church, sending a priest to the front, who is forbidden by Church rules to shed blood, is an unconditional sacrilege, a purposeful desecration of the sacred ministry. And this is just one example. The question arises: why is the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches silent about it? After all, sooner or later the atheistic godless agenda will affect them as well. It is naive to believe that by sacrificing your neighbor to a soulless machine, you will remain unharmed. It’s a matter of time. If you do not defend the truth and the innocently persecuted, you first become an accomplice of lawlessness and then the next victim. Because, unlike earthly laws that do not work, spiritual laws are always in force,” he added.

We will remind, on September 2, 2025 employees of the territorial acquisition center (TAC) subjected to forced mobilization of a clergyman of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The victim of the TSC this time was the clergyman of the Rivne diocese of the UOC Archpriest Alexander Soltis.

Author: RaskolamNetNews

AUCCRO ban on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church Metropolitan Anthony (Pakanich)UOC

Read also