The Church is accused... of pastoral care

Yes, this is not an exaggeration! The Ukrainian Orthodox Church, in the best traditions of the Soviet regime and the persecution of the NKVD, is accused of carrying the word of God to people, responding to their spiritual needs, praying with them to the Creator and our Savior.

The Church has done and will do so always and everywhere, regardless of what power is in the country – communist, nationalistic, democratic or otherwise. The Church carries out its saving mission in the world and cannot renounce it without giving up its essence as the Body of Christ, His ark in this adulterous and sinful world.

On July 13, 2017, an angry statement of the Ministry of Culture appeared on the website of the Department, outraged by the interaction of the Lugansk diocese of the UOC with the de facto authorities of the unrecognized LNR.



In the statement, Metropolitan Mitrofan (Yurchuk) of Lugansk and Alchevsk is blamed for being allegedly involved in the creation of the Committee for Religious Affairs and Spirituality in the LNR structure. Moreover, these accusations are made not on the basis of a verified fact, but from the accounts of the head of this committee, Andrei Litsoyev. In this regard, the Ministry of Culture calls on the clergy of the UOC to condemn the activities of bishops and priests in uncontrolled territories, and law enforcement agencies – to start prosecuting the clergy for these activities.

Such accusations are heard constantly, coming not only from the officials of the Ministry of Culture. Any worship, any moleben, any conversation with people from the LDNR is perceived as "betrayal" and aiding "terrorists". In this frenzied hatred of the Church of Christ, its detractors go through all the limits of common sense. According to their logic, the UOC should anathematize all people who are in uncontrolled territories, until they cease to be uncontrollable. After that, all the priests should close the temples, leave the LDPR and pray day and night for the victory of the "Ukrainian arms". Probably, then they would be granted the title of patriots, and the Ministry of Culture would finally calm down.

But in this case these priests would no longer be pastors, but would turn into hirelings, of whom it is said, "He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep." (John 10: 12, 13).

Throughout its history, the Church has performed its saving ministry, regardless of the country in which it happens, the rulers and ideology, etc.

The most difficult is the ministry, when the church people are on different sides of the armed conflict. There is simply a killer dichotomy: people united by one faith are politically separated so much that they physically destroy each other. This is what Metropolitan Mitrofan (Nikitin) of Gorlovka and Slaviansk, a man who is at the very epicenter of the confrontation in the Donbass, says about this:

"I remember the story well when I was going to Debaltsevo. It was then under the jurisdiction of Ukraine, and it was being fought for. I had to go to the temple for service there. I was going through Artyomovsk. Here stands the battalion named "Saint Mary", with the Mother of God on their flags. <...> We pass the neutral zone, approach the other side – over there is the "Orthodox army". The same story: the Orthodox army, the Orthodox flag, the Not-Made-By-Hands image is painted."

This is the greatest tragedy, both for society and for individuals on both sides of the confrontation. And the Church has no right to leave both without consolation, care, prayer and teaching of the sacraments.

"I cannot afford the luxury of being exclusively on one territory and feel at ease," says Metropolitan Mitrofan. "I have flock on both sides. In both territories are people. It's like your head – you cannot split it in half."

There are calls for peace, coming from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, but the Church cannot take only one side, as someone would like. Priests and bishops are experiencing colossal pressure from both sides in this regard.

"We are not trusted by either side, because we refuse to engage in politics," says Bishop Mitrofan. "In Ukraine we say, "We are out of politics." In the DNR, we say, "We are out of politics." And in Ukraine, they start suspecting us: why should they be out of politics? And in the DNR, they tell us: why are you so interesting? You must ...."

In its activities as a religious organization, the Church contacts with those authorities that in fact carry out this power in the given territory. The church may have a different attitude to this power, but it lives in the real world under specific political conditions. In pagan states, the Church contacted and prayed for pagan authorities, in Muslims - for Muslims. It also happened that the Church was on the territory of the belligerents.

Back in the 10th century, when Prince Svyatoslav Igorevich led his Byzantine wars, Orthodox churches operated in Kiev and Orthodox priests who were part of the Constantinople Patriarchate served. During the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, the Russian Orthodox mission of St. Nicholas of Japan successfully developed in Japan. In the First World War, very often the front line passed in the middle of the Orthodox dioceses. But it never occurred to anyone to blame the Church and its clergymen for resolving administrative issues with those authorities that have been permanently or temporarily established in the given territory.

In its activities as a religious organization, the Church contacts with those authorities which de facto exercise this authority in the given territory. The Church can take a different view of this authority, but it lives in the real world in specific political conditions. In pagan states, the Church interacted with and prayed for pagan authorities, in Muslim – for Muslim ones. It used to happen that the Church was on the territory of the warring parties.

Back in the 10th century, when Prince Svyatoslav Igorevich made his Byzantine wars, Orthodox churches operated in Kiev, where Orthodox priests who were part of the Constantinople Patriarchate ministered. During the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, the Russian Orthodox mission of St. Nicholas of Japan successfully developed in Japan. In the First World War, very often the front line passed in the middle of the Orthodox dioceses. But it never occurred to anyone to blame the Church and its clergymen for addressing administrative issues, together with those authorities that have been permanently or temporarily established in a given territory.

The first to do this was the Soviet authorities in the civil war of 1917-1922. No matter what they may trumpet on every corner of "decommunization", the actions of today's Ukrainian authorities are just copied from the actions of the Bolsheviks. Then, too, part of the Church was in the territories controlled by the "white", and part – by the "red". And then the Bolsheviks began to accuse the priests of counterrevolution, of collaborating with the White Guards and deal with them. And the hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Church was forced to make the Church excommunicate such priests, as we have today.

But the Church, in the person of its Primate, the holy confessor Patriarch Tikhon and other bishops, was never tired of persuading the Soviet state that it was out of politics, that it could not take either side of that deadly confrontation, that it could not abandon its flock, and that war was the greatest tragedy for the Church. This position cost the lives of many bishops and priests. This position was not believed; the Church was suspected of "betrayal" and faced with intensified repression against it. But even under the threat of death, the shepherds of the flock of Christ did not leave their sheep.

Even during the Second World War, Orthodox pastors served in the territories occupied by the fascists to bring the Good News to people. And, of course, they interacted with the German administration, without betraying either their faith or their homeland. These tragic events were featured in a very interesting film "Priest".



And the Ministry of Culture and other prosecutors of the UOC would rather clarify some uncomfortable questions.

How does the Donetsk and Mariupol diocese of the UOC-KP carry out its activities, headed by "archbishop" Sergei (Gorobtsov)? Can’t it collaborate with the DNR authorities? Why aren’t there any charges against it? They, too, are praying "about the authorities and the army"!

How did "bishop" Afanasy (Yavorsky) of Lugansk and Severodonetsk of the UOC-KP in 2015 (!) began to build the whole Cathedral of the Intercession of the Mother of God in Severodonetsk?

How does "archbishop" Clement (Kusch) of the UOC-KP, who is also a Russian citizen, collaborate with local authorities in the Crimea? Why does the Ministry of Culture not mention this "betrayal"?

And in the territory of Russia, the "aggressor state", the whole exarchate of the UOC-KP carries out its activities. Let's ask ourselves how this exarchate participates in the "aggression" against Ukraine, because it registers documents in the Russian state bodies, pays taxes to the Russian budget, remembers at "worship" "God save our country (that is, Russia), the government and the army".

The same questions can be directed to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. It also has chairs and parishes both in Donetsk and in Lugansk, and even in the Crimea.



And in Moscow, the capital of the "aggressor state", the UGCC has a splendid cathedral.



Can anyone really think that these religious organizations do not interact with the authorities and do not participate in public life? Where is the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine? Where does the "patriotic" public look? "Betrayal", that’s it!