KONOTOP MAYOR EXPLAINS WHY U.P.Ts.M.P. BANNED IN CITY
Artem Semenikhin, the mayor of the city of Konotop in Sumy oblast, is sure that he does not have the right to distance himself from the question of the ban of the UPTs (Ukrainian Orthodox Church) of the Moscow Patriarchate at least on the territory of the community he leads. He made this statement in an interview with Glavkom.
"The Verkhovna Rada has removed itself from the resolution of this matter. But I think that this is a renunciation from its direct function to defend the state, and this self-elimination is a crime on the part of a majority of the people's deputies. I do not want to be their accomplice, and therefore I will do everything I can to hasten Ukraine's victory and to fully comply with the rules of the constitution, which says that the highest value is the individual," the mayor of Konotop said.
In his opinion, everybody has long known that actually throughout the Ukrainian regions the Moscow patriarchate is a network of F.S.B. agents on Ukrainian territory—in cassocks. However, the central authorities, even despite the start of a full-scale war, has still not prohibited the church of a hostile state, although deputies have already worked out several draft laws on this matter.
"The fact is that this actually (the order to ban the Moscow patriarchate) is possibly somewhere beyond the limits of my authority to some degree. But I am guided by the fact that the oath that I took upon taking office states clearly that I am required to observe the laws of Ukraine and the constitution. The fundamental law states that the highest value is the life of the individual, his rights and liberties, and the person is the supreme value. And it also says that nobody should violate the borders of Ukraine and its territorial integrity. I now see, and we all see, what is happening. We have lost territory temporarily, we are being killed, we are being violated, we are being kidnapped, we are being robbed," Semenikhin added.
We recall that on 3 May the head of the city of Konotop, Artem Semenikhin, signed an order banning the activity of the UPTsMP on the territory of the community. He emphasized that he decided to prohibit the activity of the church of an enemy state because of the threat to the national security of Ukraine and he is sure that such a decision will facilitate the consolidation of the community and put an end to Russian propaganda in Konotop.
On 6 May, local authorities of Brovary in Kiev oblast also declared a ban on the activity of the UPTsMP on the territory of the city. The decision to suspend the activity of the Ukrainian affiliate of the Moscow church was made at a session of the Brovary city council. (tr. by PDS, posted 10 May 2022)
Russia Religion News Current News Items
Editorial disclaimer: RRN does
not intend to certify the accuracy of information
presented in articles. RRN simply intends to certify the
accuracy of the English translation of the contents of the
articles as they appeared in news media of countries of
the former USSR.
If material is quoted, please give credit to the
publication from which it came. It is not necessary to credit
this Web page. If material is transmitted electronically, please
include reference to the URL,
https://www2.stetson.edu/religious-news/