www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall UOC(MP) head on how difficult it is to live in Ukraine

METROPOLITAN ONUFRIY TELLS IN MOSCOW HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO LIVE IN UKRAINE

4 February 2016
http://risu.org.ua/en/index/all_news/orthodox/uoc/62391/

On February 2, the Bishops' Council of the ROC was held in Moscow. The second speaker after Patriarch Kirill was the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) Metropolitan Onufriy, Religion in Ukraine reports, citing Ratriarchia.ru.

Developing the theme of the persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Ukraine, raised by the head of the Russian Orthodox Church in the first report, Metropolitan Onufriy confirmed: “During the past two years the Lord deigned us, the faithful of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, a great honor, participate in suffering for the loyalty to his holy laws.”

At the same time, he said: “Our Ukrainian Orthodox Church together with all the people of Ukraine shares today the hardships and sorrows that fell to our lot. We diligently pray that God sent to our land lasting peace and saved us all from temptations.”

Assessing the ministry of the previous head of the UOC as “a true shepherd of Christ and a true patriot,” the speaker noted “a marked quantitative growth of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church” in the period since the death of Metropolitan Volodymyr (Slobodan).

Thus, “the total number of parishes until the beginning of 2016 was 11,949. 11,976 priests perform their ministry there, including 11,037 priests and 939 deacons. In Ukraine there are 247 monasteries (including 129 men’s and 118 women’s), where 1,603 monks and 2,515 nuns bear obedience. The number of monks in the holy orders is 888, and 303 deacons.”

His Beatitude Onufriy called “an important challenge” for the UOC a problem of pastoral care of the Ukrainian diaspora and members of diplomatic missions of Ukraine abroad. Metropolitan Onufriy called to "pay special attention to this problem,” so that Ukrainian migrants did not go to the UGCC and UOC KP, given the fact that the UOC “repeatedly expressed the initiative to develop a more effective mechanism for pastoral care of the Ukrainian diaspora.”

Metropolitan Onufriy presented details of peacemaking and charitable activities of the UOC from the beginning of the protests during Euromaidan up to the present, complaining that, despite these facts, the media “regularly publish reports denigrating the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.”

The head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church also noted the repeated appeals to “all the faithful of our Church,” to Patriarch Kirill and Russian President Vladimir Putin not to allow bloodshed in Ukraine and raise their voice for the preservation of territorial integrity of the Ukrainian state.

As follows from the report of the head of the UOC, he got a half-hearted response from Patriarch Kirill and no response from Vladimir Putin.

Today, as a result of fighting on the territory of the dioceses in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, 9 churches were destroyed, 77 churches have received various kinds of damage, three clergymen were killed.

Metropolitan Onuphrius said that “in a situation of continued military confrontation in eastern Ukraine, we emphasize that we unfailingly stand on the side of peace and support all peace initiatives of the Ukrainian authorities.”

He also listed a number of positive trends in the development of church-state relations in Ukraine under the new government. However, he referred to the parliamentary bill on labor law, which provides for the notions of “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” as presenting a serious concern.

Metropolitan Onufriy also called “challenging” the relations with local authorities, as well as with non-canonical denominations in different regions of Ukraine. Thus, “in the 2014-2015, 31 seizures of the temples of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church were registered, 8 more religious communities have changed voluntarily their jurisdiction and passed to the so-called “Kiev Patriarchate.” In 12 towns today, the threat of power seizure of churches remains. The situation remains especially tense in Volyn, Lviv, Rivne, Ternopil and Chernivtsi dioceses.

In such a situation “dialogue with those who remain today in the split is hardly possible,” the head of the UOC (MP) said

FR GEORGIY KOVALENKO: HUNDREDS OF MONKS AND PARISHES "DISAPPEAR" FROM THE UOC(MP)

2 February 2016
http://risu.org.ua/en/index/all_news/orthodox/uoc/62370/

I reviewed the statistics presented in the report at the Council of Bishops of the UOC by Metropolitan Onufriy. Some figures were surprising,” former spokesman of the UOC (MP) priest George Kovalenko writes on his Facebook page.

As of January 1, 2016, there are 11,949 parishes.

I remember that Metropolitan Volodymyrmentioned this same figure in 2012 at the Jubilee Council of the UOC. Then in 2013 he referred to 12,500 parishes.

I looked up the statistical data of the State Committee on religions (figurespresentedby the previous Primate did not differ).

As of 01.01.2011 – 11,952 parishes

01.01.2012 - 12,230 parishes

01.01.2013 - 12,485 parishes

01.01.2014 - 12,714 parishes

01.01.2015 – 12,241 parishes

I became curious what is the statistic presented by the state for this year. But it immediately becomes clear that in 2014 the UOC lost about 500 parishes. And if the figures from Metropolitan Onufriy’s report and the new report of the National Committee on Religions coincide, then we can state that the UOC has lost more than 700 parishes and has been thrown back to 2011 in terms of quantity.

Of course, everything can be attributed to the inadequacy of state and church statistics. But of course we must sort the things out and see the actual number of parishes (and not only in of the UOC) instead of those on paper.

The statistics monks and nuns proved to be similarly interesting.

In 2012, according to the report of Metropolitan Volodymyr, there were 1,747monks and 3,079 nuns in 211 monasteries of the UOC.

In 2016, according to the report of Metropolitan Onufriy, 1,603 monks and 2,515 nunslive in 247 monasteries.

The question is where these 144 monks and 564 nuns have gone during 4 years?

By the way, according to the State Committee on Religions, as of January 1, 2015, the UOC had 4869 monks and nuns. If we compare these figures with those given by the Church, 751 people are missing!

Where have these people gone? Have they died? Have they left the monastery? Have they been expelled? Or may be again, no one knows their actual number?

Hmmm . . . very interesting.

Alex