Head of the UOC KP: Phanar appropriates the entire Ukrainian diaspora
"Patriarch of Kiev and All Rus-Ukraine" Filaret believes that the OCU, having agreed to give foreign parishes to the Phanar, defends the interests of the Greeks.
During the briefing, which took place on June 20, 2019, immediately after the “Local Council” of the UOC KP, the head of the Kiev Patriarchate Filaret said that the Phanar had appropriated the entire Ukrainian diaspora and the OCU serves the interests of Greece.
“Constantinople has appropriated the entire Ukrainian diaspora of Europe, America, Canada, Latin America, Australia and Russia,” the head of the UOC KP told reporters. And since his structure does not agree with this, the Resolution of the “Local Council” of the UOC KP reads that “The UOC of the Kiev Patriarchate also includes those foreign eparchies and parishes that are still affiliated with it”.
Filaret expressed confidence that only the UOC KP is the “real Ukrainian Church”, which defends Ukrainian interests. At the same time, according to the head of the UOC KP, the OCU is “the Greek Church that defends the interests of Greece”.
The same is said in the Resolution of the “Local Council” of the UOC KP, the text of which states that “The Tomos of autocephaly <...> makes the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (OCU – Ed.) dependent on the Constantinople Patriarchate”.
In addition, when a journalist asked if the convocation of the “Local Council” was a schism, Filaret answered: “Who broke away from whom?” They from us or we from them? We have existed since 1992, and they – since 2018. So who breaks away from whom?”
According to Filaret, it is the representatives of the OCU that are breaking away from the UOC KP, but sooner or later they will return: “They’re breaking away from us. They’re breaking away, but they will come to this Church.” Earlier, the UOJ wrote that Filaret announced that a “bishop” of the Kiev Patriarchate would appear in every region of Ukraine.
