SECOND UKRAINIAN METROPOLITAN REPUDIATES SIGNATURE UNDER MEMORANDUM ABOUT CREATION OF LOCAL CHURCH
Interfax-Religiia, 20 November 2014
Metropolitan of Sarny and Polesskoe Anatoly repudiated his signature under the memorandum calling for the creation of a local church in Ukraine.
"Displaying fraternal solidarity, I repudiate my signature under the memorandum," the metropolitan's statement says, which was published on the website of the Sarny diocese.
The hierarch noted that he made his decision after Metropolitan of Rovno and Ostrog Varfolomy repudiated his signature.
The referenced document was adopted on 13 November by leaders of the dioceses of Rovno province from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow patriarchate, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, and two schismatic structures (the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church and the Kiev patriarchate). One of the points of the document expressed the desire for a peaceful resolution of religious conflicts.
However, as Metropolitan Varfolomy noted, the memorandum "did not bring peace and stability for Orthodox believers of Rovno province." He said that supporters of the "Kiev patriarchate" grossly violated point No. 4 of the memorandum "which speaks about stopping seizures of Orthodox churches," and three days after the signing of the document new attempts were made to seize churches in the villages of Ptichia and Badovka. Thus, "provocations on the part of UPTsKP have not ceased," the bishop declared.
He acknowledged that he had signed the document "sincerely hoping that there would be no more seizures of Orthodox churches and all religious conflicts in the future would be resolved peacefully and justly." At the same time the metropolitan noted that after becoming acquainted with the memorandum many representatives of the clergy and ordinary believers of the diocese viewed it "as betrayal of the Orthodox faith and various rumors began, leading to ecclesiastical instability in the diocese." (tr. by PDS, posted 22 November 2014)
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