Monks of Mount Athos protested against Epifaniy Dumenko's visit to the Holy Mountain

A group of Athonite Kelliot monks issued a joint statement in which they expressed strong protest against the visit of the head of the OCU, Epiphanius Dumenko, to Mount Athos. The monks called his presence uncanonical, saying that it caused spiritual damage and deep sorrow in the monastic community.

According to the publication of the SPJ Athos, the Athonite monks emphasized that Epiphanius Dumenko does not belong to the canonical Church, and his participation in sacred services is a violation of the holy canons. According to them, the visit was a “spiritual degradation”. The statement lists the monasteries that received the OCU delegation, including Vatoped, Iveron, Xenophontos, Pantokrator, Simonopetra and the skete of the prophet Elijah.

In their appeal, the monks refer to the Second Rule of the Council of Antioch, which prohibits communion with those excommunicated from the Church. According to the canons, “if any bishop, presbyter or deacon is seen in communion with excommunicated persons, let him also be excommunicated as violating the order of the Church.” The authors of the statement warn that those who welcomed Dumenko are spiritually responsible and will answer before the Last Judgment of Christ, and this desecration , “like spiritual gangrene, will be transmitted through joint liturgies and common prayers.”

The statement pays special attention to the security measures that accompanied the visit. Despite Dumenko’s words that he arrived as a “simple monk and pilgrim,” his visit, according to the monks, was organized as the arrival of a secular ruler. The capital of Mount Athos, Kareia, was blocked off by security services and entry for many Athonite monks was restricted. The authors of the letter believe that this was done because of the authorities’ concerns about the possible reaction of the monks “to the presence of the schismatic, heretic and self-ordained uniate Epiphanius”.

Recall, the head of the OCU Epiphanius Dumenko, during a visit to the Holy Mount Athos, made a speech in which he sharply condemned the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church, drawing parallels with the biblical story of Ahab. Dumenko accused the Russian Orthodox Church of “disregarding the canonical church order and abandoning unity with the Ecumenical Patriarchate.” At the same time, the head of the RCU expressed deep gratitude to Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, “with whose blessing” the visit to Mount Athos took place.