OCU lobbyist proposes to create temporary exarchate of Phanar to disintegrate UOC

OCU lobbyist in the media Andriy Kovalev has proposed disintegrating the structures of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. He proposes to create a temporary exarchate that will be directly subordinated to Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, which, in his opinion, is a canonical and legal way for the UOC hierarchs to withdraw from the subordination of Moscow Patriarch Kirill. Kovalev emphasized that this initiative should come from the Ukrainian state authorities, and also noted that Ukraine is canonically the territory of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. He spoke about this in an interview with Channel 5.

As Andriy Kovalev explains, the Tomos of autocephaly of the OCU contains a specific algorithm of actions for the current conditions. According to one of its provisions, the Patriarch of Constantinople reserves the right to establish in Ukraine, in the plural, Stavropegia — parishes directly subordinate to him — and to create exarchates. An exarchate is defined as a religious organization directly subordinate to the head of Phanar.

The main purpose of creating such structures, according to Kovalev, is to disintegrate the Moscow Patriarchate in Ukraine. He proposes that the hierarchs of the UOC move from the subordination of Moscow Patriarch Kirill to the direct subordination of Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople. At the same time, the exarchate is conceived as a temporary entity: «This is not a religious organization created forever. It is a temporary way of existence of this religious organization,» the OCU lobbyist clarified.

Andriy Kovalev emphasizes that from the point of view of church building, or ecclesiology, this approach is «quite canonical,» in line with the spirit of Orthodox decrees. Moreover, it is«in fact a legal way out of the subordination of the Moscow Patriarch and into the transition to the Ecumenical Patriarch’s direct subordination.» He argues that according to the current Orthodox canons, Ukraine is the canonical territory of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and therefore Patriarch Bartholomew has every right to make decisions regarding the Orthodox in this territory.

At the same time, the OCU lobbyist is convinced that the initiative to create exarchates should come from the state authorities, just as the Verkhovna Rada initiated an appeal to the Ecumenical Patriarch to grant autocephaly to the OCU. The state should declare the problem of the existence of two parallel jurisdictions in Ukraine, recognize the lack of prospects for their unification due to the high level of confrontation, and propose the creation of a temporary exarchate as a way out of the stalemate.

Earlier defrocked former cleric of the Russian Orthodox Church Kirill Govorun is convinced that the creation ofan exarchate of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in Ukraine will help resolve the deepening interfaith crisis. He believes that such a decision, which should be made for a certain period of time, will help reconcile the UOC and the OCU, which are in conflict with each other.