Provocations of radicals at the Lavra: “homework” from the authorities?

In the Lavra, the radicals tried to arrange provocations to discredit the UOC. Photo: UOJ

Kyiv is now hit by a showdown at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. On March 29, the term of the Ministry of Culture's ultimatum to the monastery expired, and the brethren were supposed to vacate the premises and leave in an unknown direction. The Lavra does not agree with this and claims that according to the law, they can be expelled only by a court decision. In the meantime, there is no decision, so any actions of the authorities are illegal.

On March 29, the commission of the Ministry of Culture tried to go to the church of Agapit of the Caves to take stock of the property, and then to the academic church of the Nativity of the Virgin. Both times flopped. The believers did not let the commission in, fearing that the churches would simply be closed and sealed, as was the case with the Refectory and Assumption Cathedrals.

On March 30, the commission came to the Lavra again. But this time it was accompanied by young boisterous guys, who rushed to the monastery, crying out chants about the glory of the nation and death to the Muscovites, as well as about the “murderer Onuphry”.

Yet, these guys did not come by themselves, they were organized. Late at night, audio files were published on the Net with instructions from Yevhen Karas, the C14 leader, who told his subordinates in detail how to act in the Lavra in order to provoke believers to aggression and film it on video. As conceived by the radicals, the Europeans, when they see this, will have to say that the UOC is not monks, but terrorists. This means that they can and should be expelled from the Lavra and, in general, destroyed.

Yevhen Karas: “Don't take weapons with you. Divide into triplets. Two should film, one, the most talkative, should speak. Choose lone targets. You see priest walking away to talk on the phone – follow him and listen to what he says, bluntly over his ear. Just mock and tease them so that they fly off the handle. Our task is to act as a catalyst, to exacerbate it. (To show – Ed.) that they behave like aggressors and like cattle. Because if the special forces go there and take the Lavra, then in this way all their aggressive behavior will help a lot. So that everyone, including Europeans, would say that this is some kind of aggressive terrorist group, not monks.”

Thus, early in the morning, Karas' henchmen began to act exactly according to his training manual.

And it is unlikely that Karas' briefing is his personal initiative. He is known for long-standing “communion” with law enforcement officers and the OCU since the Poroshenko time. For example, together with the ex-president, he was among the VIP guests at the Tomos celebration in Sofia in 2019.

Insider sources report that Karas' radicals are supervised by government officials, who tasked them to provoke believers to unleash certain emotions, which could be fixed to create the "anticipated" picture. Just like a kind of "anti-crisis". After all, what the Ukrainian authorities are doing in relation to the UOC is already being discussed by the whole world. The UOC was supported by the Antiochian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Russian, Georgian, American, Jerusalem, Polish Churches, the Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, the Montenegrin Metropolis, and the World Council of Churches. Even the Pope expressed his support for the Lavra. Footage of iniquities in Ivano-Frankivsk, where the OCU, with the help of tear gas, raided the last UOC church in the region, also became viral.

In addition, the United Nations pointed out discrimination against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in its latest report. Therefore, the authorities urgently needed a picture where believers express aggression in any form, where they are not victims, but criminals.

However, the plan failed. The believers were ready and did not fall for provocations. Some even trolled the radicals, asking about Karas.

The picture of the confrontation at the entrance of the Lavra looked true. The radicals were hostile, while the believers only prayed. Here are very characteristic contrasts by opponents.

Activist: “Glory to Ukraine – glory to the heroes! Glory to the nation – death to enemies!

Activist: “Glory to Prophet Mohammed!”

The contrast is visible even among children. On the part of the OCU and the radicals, we see a teenager with a poster "Get the Russians out." On the part of the believers, it is a little boy with a crucifix.

But for the sake of what did the authorities send radicals to attack the Lavra? Why are the Ukrainian Orthodox Church being expelled from their shrine? In order to have the OCU there. Here is what Mykhaylo Podolyak, spokesman of the President's Office, says:

“Everything that happens around the UOC allows this abscess to be finally resolved surgically. We will do it in any case, because they initiate escalation. There will be an OCU in Ukraine. Only the OCU."

Consequently, the authorities, out of lawlessness, expel priests, brethren, in order to replace them with the OCU, the “correct” state church. Representatives of Dumenko's structure are already approaching the monastery. But let's look at those who came to support this structure.

Now take a look at the outfit of another supporter of the OCU. The hoodie says,

"Do you have a moment to talk about our Lord and Savior Satan?"

This inscription is very suitable for the current situation. It is very symbolic that a man with such clothes came to expel the Church from her shrine.

However, this is not the key takeaway from these events. The conclusion is that people are with their Church, they are ready to defend it, ready to defend their right to prayer. We are intimidated, we are threatened, but they cannot do anything with us. Because we have a future.

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