Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew
The group of deputies has asked Patriarch Bartholomew to defer consideration of the question of granting autocephaly to the Ukrainian Church for 2019.
Deputies of the Verkhovna Rada appealed to Patriarch Bartholomew with a request to postpone the decision on the granting of autocephaly of the Ukrainian Church. The text of the message with the signatures of Andrei Derkach, James Bezbah, Andrei Shipko, Vasyl Horbal and Grigory Smityukh published September 21, Browser.
“Your Holiness! In troubled times for Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the times we consider it our duty to address You, – the letter says. We appreciate your attention to Ukrainian Orthodoxy and the desire to raise a new level of dialogue in our big Christian family.”
MPs expressed concern in connection with the fact that the fate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to discuss policy, which was not Orthodox.
“We don’t want to see You as a respected Ecumenical Patriarch, entered Ukraine on the shoulders of the Greek-Catholics and those politicians who are guided by their own interests in the framework of the presidential elections,” the MPs say.
The authors propose to consider the question of granting autocephaly after the presidential elections in 2019.
“We suggested to have a pan-Orthodox conference, in agreement with the Patriarch of Moscow to develop the right approach, either granting autocephaly to the UOC or the location of the farmsteads of the Ecumenical Patriarchate on the territory of Ukraine (such already in fact exist here), or otherwise a joint solution that will help to heal the rift that will suit all and will reconcile all in the name of Salvation and for the good of Orthodoxy”, – stated in the letter.
The MPs also called on Patriarch Bartholomew is possible to weigh the future a historic step to avoid political speculations on this topic. The authors of the letter believe that the haste in this matter is a concern for many Orthodox.
“They do not understand the haste of the process and frustrated by the lack of Your dialogue with the UOC – said in a text message. – However, they clearly see the Greek Catholic “the locomotive” in the Central authorities of Ukraine, carrying Tomos of Your Holiness to Ukraine as “propaganda sheet” to the presidential election. I would not want to put the historic opportunity of autocephaly and Your bright desire was covered in the speeches of Presidential candidates and used by them for selfish purposes.”
Earlier, the head of the UOC-KP, while delivering a lecture in the United States, announced that it expects to Tomos this year, because the next President may not be “interested in establishing a United Autocephalous Church and then the question of the Tomos will be postponed in a distant box”.