KIEV PATRIARCHATE ASKS ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH TO RECOGNIZE THEIR AUTOCEPHALY
The Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev patriarchate [UPTsKP] intends to send to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew a request to begin a dialogue concerning recognition of the autocephaly of the Kiev patriarchate. This is stated in a resolution of the synod, which was held on 27 July in Kiev. Citing numerous historical evidences, the UPTsKP bishops note that in its time Moscow illegally seized power over the Kiev metropolitanate of the Constantinople patriarchate, and thus the RPTs does not have any rights to canonical authority in Ukraine.
"A number of sobors of the Ukrainian church have repeatedly demonstrated that the acts of 1685-1686 regarding the subordination of the Kiev metropolitanate to the Moscow patriarchate are illegal, unlawful, and associated with simony, and thus they were from the start invalid and cannot be accepted as legal even after a long time of their application under pressure from civil authorities and external circumstances," the hierarchs conclude.
Consequently the Holy Synod of the UPTsKP considers that the best means of existence for the Ukrainian church, for believers, and for improvement of pastoral ministry is autocephaly, and it asks that Constantinople begin a dialogue concerning recognition of the UPTsKP.
"Desiring to achieve this, the Holy Synod decided to send to His Holiness Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople—New Rome—and Ecumenical Patriarch and to the Holy Synod of the Constantinople Mother Church a request to begin an officially certified dialogue with our church concerning recognition of its autocephaly," the resolution of the synod says.
Hierarchs of the Kiev patriarchate also decided to request Orthodox Ukrainians from the diaspora, who are under the omophorion of the ecumenical patriarch, to help them in establishing such a dialogue and recognition of autocephaly.
In a separate point, the UPTsKP synod instructed Patriarch Filaret to send corresponding letters to the ecumenical patriarch and the Holy Synod of the Constantinople Mother Church as well as to the Ukrainian Orthodox churches in the diaspora that are under the omophorion of the ecumenical patriarch. (tr. by PDS, posted 28 July 2015)
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