On January 7, the day of the Nativity of Christ according to the Julian calendar, the Primate of the HCU, Metropolitan Epiphanius, will celebrate the Nativity Divine Liturgy at the Dormition Cathedral of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.
The Assumption Cathedral is considered the main temple of the Lavra. Until December 31, 2022, priests of the UOC (MP) performed services there. But on January 1, the Assumption Cathedral and the Refectory Church of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra were officially returned to public use.
The Ministry of Culture gave permission for the service of the Bishop of the WTO, and the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra reserve concluded an agreement to hold a service on January 7.
At the same time, the UOC-MP stated that Epiphanius did not have permission to worship, and his intention was called an attempt to seize the cathedral by force. In the capital’s patriarchate they say that the Lavra churches belong to them until the end of the war. The reserve was sued.
Earlier, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy did not recommend the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra to renew the agreement with the UOC (MP) on the lease of two cathedrals, which ended on December 31.
Before the New Year, the state reserve of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra informed the UOC that from January 1, the agreement on the use of the Assumption Cathedral and the Refectory Church of the Lavra would not be extended.
At the end of last year, the Security Service of Ukraine conducted numerous searches at facilities used by the UOC. The SBU stated that the purpose of these measures is to check whether the premises of the dioceses are used as “cells of the “Russian world”, whether citizens of the aggressor state are hiding in the premises of the UOC, and whether prohibited items are stored there (that is, weapons and explosives).
Before the war with Russia, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church was known as the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (MP), but in May this church held a council, following which it declared independence from the Moscow Patriarchate. The Assumption Cathedral and the Refectory Church of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra were returned to state ownership.
The commission for the transfer and acceptance of the cathedral and the church from the UOC-MP to the state started working on January 2. The work of the Commission provided a description of the property of the cathedral and the church, the condition of iconostases and icons, and other property in order to return it to the balance holder.
The head of the Ministry of Culture, Tkachenko, said that Metropolitan of the UOC-MP Pavel did not appear at the last meeting of the commission to sign the relevant act, but this would not interfere with the return of state property. The speaker of the UOC-MP Clement, in a commentary to the Public, stated that they were not informed about this and this decision was “illegal”.
The Ukrainian shrine should serve the entire Ukrainian people, and we will adhere to this principle in the future, – said the Minister of Culture Oleksandr Tkachenko.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.