HEAD OF UAPTs, METROPOLITAN MEFODY, DIES
Religiia v Ukraine, 25 February 2015
The patriarchate of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAPTs) reports that on 24 February, at around 19.00, His Beatitude Mefody (Kudriakov), Metropolitan of Kiev and all-Ukraine and primate of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, died after a severe and debilitating illness. This was reported by Religiia v Ukraine, with reference to the UAPTs website.
Metropolitan Mefody headed one of the Ukrainian Orthodox churches that does not have canonical recognition in world Orthodoxy, but which occupies third place numerically among Orthodox churches of Ukraine, following UPTsMP and UPTsKP.
The UAPTs patriarchate published a list of events for commemoration of the deceased:
25 February, from 14.00—start of the funeral services in St. Andrew's church in Kiev. The St. Andrew's church will be open until morning and UAPTs faithful will be able to say farewell to the body of the deceased throughout the entire night.
26 February
8.00—Divine Liturgy involving the episcopate of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, after which will be the ritual of the funeral for the deceased primate;
19.00—viewing of the body of His Beatitude in the church of the Nativity of Christ in Ternopol. The church will be open all night.
27 February, 9.00—Divine Liturgy and burial.
Metropolitan Mefody (secular name Valery Andreevich Kudriakov) was born 11 March [1949] in the city of Kopychintsy, Gusiatin district, Ternopol province.
He received his religious education in Moscow ecclesiastical schools, the Moscow Ecclesiastical Seminary and Academy of RPTs.
After ordination to the priesthood in 1981, with a vow of celibacy, Priest Valery performed pastoral ministry in the Lvov and Ternopol dioceses. He left the latter in 1988.
In 1990, as one of the prominent figures in the struggle for the Ukrainization and independence of the Ukrainian church in Ternopol region, he joined the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. On 16 June 1995, with the blessing of Patriarch Vladimir, he received the monastic tonsure with the name of Mefody, in honor of Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles Methodius, the teacher of the Slavs. On 17 June 1995 he was consecrated bishop of Khmelnitsky and Kamenets-Podole by Patriarch Vladimir and Bishop of Donetsk and Luhansk Iziaslav.
After the death of Patriarch Vladimir (14 July 1995), of whom Bishop Mefody was a like-minded friend, he recognized the jurisdiction of Patriarch of Kiev and all-Ukraine Dimitry and he joined the UAPTs that he headed, where subsequently he received the rank of archbishop (1997) and metropolitan (1999).
After the death of Patriarch Dimitry
(1915-2000), Metropolitan of Ternopol and Podole Mefody was chosen
first as locum tenens of the patriarchal see of UAPTs (1 March
2000) and subsequently as primate of UAPTs (14 February 2000)
[sic: the correct month is September--tr.]
While occupying the office of primate, Metropolitan Mefody tried for many years to implement a policy of settling the canonical status of UAPTs by means of joining the UAPTs in communion with the ecumenical patriarchate of Constantinople.
During Metropolitan Mefody's ecclesiastical administration, the UAPTs suffered actual division. The Kharkov-Poltava diocese, headed by the chancellor of UAPTs, Archbishop Igor, separated and was registered as the UAPTs diocese of Kharkov-Poltava (Renovationist).
Recently, Metropolitan Mefody met and discussed prospects for the development of UAPTs with a delegation of the Orthodox Church in Canada (in the jurisdiction of the ecumenical patriarchate) headed by Metropolitan of Winnipeg and all-Canada Yury.
The head of the UPTs of the Kiev patriarchate, Patriarch Filaret, expressed condolences to the episcopate, clergy, and faithful of the UAPTs and to relatives and friends of the deceased. The primate of the Kiev patriarchate also called the episcopate of UAPTs to revive a dialogue about church unity. "I want to appeal to the bishops of UAPTs, who in accordance with the church's charter will assemble for discussing the future life of the church they lead. In the conditions of the external Russian aggression, the internal unity of the Ukrainian people is extremely important. Fruitful dialogue about the achievement of unity between our churches and the unification of all proponents of the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine can become our joint substantive contribution to the struggle of the Ukrainian people for a better future," he stressed in appealing to the UAPTs bishops.
"Death comes to us all and it reminds us of our personal responsibility before God, to whom we will give account in our own time of our ministry. Praying for our late brother Metropolitan Mefody, we also have to think about ourselves and do all that depends upon us in order to give a good response to the Chief Shepherd Christ in our final day," the primate of the Kiev patriarchate concluded.
On 25 February the primate of the Kiev patriarchate performed, with concelebrating clergy, a memorial litany in the Vladimir cathedral church for the repose of the soul of the recently departed hierarch.
The primate of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, in the name of UGKTs, expressed condolences to the whole Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, noting that with the departure into eternity of Metropolitan Mefody, the whole Ukrainian society and Christians, regardless of their confessional affiliation, are experiencing a great loss. "He was a genuine spiritual father, who always was concerned for his children, despite circumstances and physical trials that he experienced in the last years and which he bore courageously and with Christian humility," the words of sympathy of the head of the UGKTs said. (tr. by PDS, posted 26 February 2015)
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