Filaret: It is normal that govt. organizes transfer of communities to OCU

“Honorary Patriarch” of the OCU Filaret (Denisenko)

The state is on the side of the Church that supports it, and there is nothing wrong with the fact that it obliges officials to influence parishes, said the “honorary patriarch” of the OCU Filaret in an interview with “Glavkom”, responding to a question about instructions regarding parish meetings from regional state administrations to heads of district administrations.

“The state facilitates – this is a fact,” agreed Filaret. “Just as the President encouraged receiving the Tomos.” But the state facilitates as the President did, from its state position, protecting itself. Should the President defend the state? Everyone will say that he should. And how? The way he does it. Should the local authorities help unite the Ukrainian society or not? Or should they divide the society?”

According to him, the state does not interfere in the internal life of the Church, and "if in Soviet times there was a complete dependence of the Church on the state, now we have complete freedom".

“Of course, the state is on the side of the Church that supports it. It is on the side of not only the Orthodox Church, but also on the side of the Greek Catholic Church, and the Roman Catholic Church, and Muslims and Jews. It is on the side of all those who support the state and against those who act against the state,” said the “honorary patriarch”, adding that he sees nothing wrong with the state obliging officials to influence religious parishes because, in his opinion, it is "a call to comply with the law".

As the UOJ reported, Filaret believes that the OCU should adopt and use its own Statute rather than the Phanar’s. 

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