The Orthodox Church of Ukraine (WTO) expects to receive an agreement on the use of two churches of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. The recent services of the OCU in the Lavra were held thanks to two one-time permits.
The head of the WTO, Metropolitan Epifaniy, spoke about this in an interview with the publication.
We dreamed that we would celebrate services on the territory of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, our ancient Ukrainian shrine. We started this process even earlier. Synod in June it was decided to register a legal entity in the WTO – the Holy Dormition Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, – he said.
According to the metropolitan, the OCU decided to follow the diplomatic path in this matter, so they proposed such a mechanism, although by that time no one fully understood that this could be realized as early as the next Christmas.
Now we really have received two one-time permissions to perform worship, because we still need to arrange legal nuances, but I am sure that we will also receive a long-term agreement for the use of two churches in the Upper Lavra: the Holy Dormition Cathedral and the Refectory Church,” Epiphanius added.
He noted that at the beginning, the OCU will receive one-time access to the temples of the Lavra – services will be held only on major holidays.
Over time, when our monastery is formed and a part of the brethren from the Lower Lavra joins us, then we will put everything in order, adjust it, and then the service will be held regularly in the central Assumption Cathedral every Sunday, and already on the territory of the Lavra, services will be performed every day. It is a matter of time,” the metropolitan added.
The Lower Lavra during the presidency of Viktor Yanukovych was transferred to the Moscow Patriarchate for an indefinite lease. Epiphanius notes that this was done with numerous violations.
An interdepartmental commission has now been set up to review how all this was done at that time and how many violations were committed there over the past two decades. Because the historical gates were demolished there, many new different houses have already been set up, and this is a UNESCO historical monument, there are many questions about their preservation, he stressed.
According to the metropolitan, now there is the will of the state to review what was done by the predecessors, so the WTO expects that this will achieve a result.
Our ultimate goal is for the Lavra to be completely Ukrainian. So it will be. This is an irreversible process, the Lord will help us in this. The main thing is that everything happens peacefully, calmly and without provocations, – said the head of the OCU.
Epiphanius noted that most of the monastic community of the Lavra is already ready to join the OCU monastery, but there are no premises on the territory of the Upper Lavra in which they could live permanently.
They need normal living conditions, so now they remain part of the monastery of the Moscow Patriarchate and are awaiting the decision of the commission dealing with the status of the Lower Lavra. Appropriate conditions should be created, and the people themselves should feel protected from the Ukrainian authorities, from law enforcement agencies. If nothing threatens them, then over time they will join, the metropolitan added.
Source: “NV”
Source: Racurs
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