OCU head's visit to Athos causes tension in monastic community

The upcoming visit of the head of the OCU, Epiphany Dumenko, to the Holy Mount Athos has caused serious tension and discontent among most monastic communities. It is expected that the visit, which will not be accompanied by an official reception by the highest governing body of Athos, will take place in the middle of this week.

The reason for the unrest was the refusal of a significant part of the Athos monks to recognize the legitimacy of the OCU, created with the assistance of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in 2019. According to the Greek edition of Vima Orthodoxias, many monasteries consider the Ukrainian church issue to be a source of deep division in the Orthodox world.

The most telling signal of disagreement was the decision of the Holy Kinot, the highest executive body of Athos, not to hold an official reception for the delegation. This step demonstrates that the visit does not reflect the position of the entire monastic community and is essentially private.

According to the available data, Epiphany Dumenko’s program includes a visit to the skete of the Prophet Elijah and several monasteries that maintain close ties with Constantinople. In Athonite circles, this is seen as an attempt to gain symbolic «legitimization» through presence on the Holy Mountain, even in the absence of universal approval.

The Athonites themselves emphasize their desire to keep Athos away from church conflicts. «The unity of Orthodoxy is above all,» they say, characterizing the Ukrainian issue as an open wound that continues to divide believers.

Earlier, we reported that the planned visit of the head of the OCU, Epiphany Dumenko, to the Holy Mount Athos, organized with the support of Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, provoked serious disagreements and protests among the Athonite monks. The main reason for the discontent is the situation with the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church and its believers in Ukraine.