Primate of ROCOR urged to protect Ukrainian Orthodox Church

Metropolitan Nikolay, the First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR), has issued an official statement explaining the purpose of his recent visit to Washington, DC. In the statement, he condemned the distorted media coverage of the meetings and called for the defense of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) amid continued pressure.

According to the UOJ news portal, Metropolitan Nicholas visited Capitol Hill as part of an inter-Orthodox delegation that advocated for religious freedom in Ukraine and recognition of the UOC’s plight. Clergy and laity from the Antiochian, Serbian, American and Greek jurisdictions also participated in the trip. The delegation, operating under the auspices of the Society of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco, met with a number of U.S. officials, including Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, Congressman Darrell Issa and Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers.

Commenting on the trip, Metropolitan Nicholas expressed regret that the visits coincided with «a media article that presented all of our Churches in such a distorted way, trying to put Orthodoxy in a negative light.» However, he noted that «the real reception we received from political leaders in Washington was warm, filled with a desire to understand and a realization of our common desire to work together for peace.»

The hierarch emphasized that it is the special responsibility of Orthodox Christians to protect «members of our own House of Faith.» «Therefore, we seek to alleviate the pressure and hostile actions directed against our brothers and sisters in Christ belonging to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, including the forced closure of their churches and violence directed against their clergy and faithful,» the Metropolitan said. He added that the Ukrainian government, «defending itself from external aggression, harms itself by allowing actions that contradict the free practice of religion, and thus weakens itself.»

Metropolitan Nicholas also reaffirmed the significance of the 2007 Act of Canonical Communion, which restored eucharistic unity between ROCOR and the Moscow Patriarchate while preserving ROCOR’s administrative independence. He expressed gratitude that the United States provides a platform for the defense of the ROCOR and, in the run-up to Thanksgiving, urged everyone to «appreciate the freedom that is the heritage of all Americans and to see it increasingly spread around the world.»

Recall, the Order of Archons of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in the United States made harsh accusations against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), saying that it persecutes and attacks members of the PCU. The statement was made in response to a meeting between a delegation of US Orthodox churches and US politicians, where the plight of the canonical UOC was discussed.