UOC Spokesman: There is a new religious policy of government in Ukraine

Archpriest Nikolai Danilevich. Photo: YouTube

The new religious policy in Ukraine lies in the equidistant attitude of the state towards all faiths, which is a good signal for the Church, said Archpriest Nikolai Danilevich, a deputy head of the Department for External Church Relations of the UOC. He said this in a comment to the journalists of the First Cossack channel.

“We are witnessing a new religious policy of the Ukrainian authorities,” said the spokesman of the UOC. “And this policy consists in the equidistant attitude of the state towards all faiths and an attempt to bring this sphere into the legal channel.”

He recalled that this year during the celebration of the Christianization of Rus, the newly elected President of Ukraine did not participate in religious events of any of the faiths, but "just from afar congratulated everyone and called for dialogue".

Also, the Archpriest noted this year the President for the first time ever has not initiated a “prayer for Ukraine” at St. Sophia Cathedral, which was pioneered by Viktor Yushchenko and taken up by Viktor Yanukovich and Petro Poroshenko.

“This is also a signal which, it seems to me, shows that secular society is moving away from religious affairs. This is very good for the Church, since we hope She will be left alone. We hope that the mistakes having been made during the previous President’s office will be corrected. But for this purpose, it is necessary that all those middle-level officials who worked in the Department for Religious and Ethnic Affairs also leave, because it is important that people who would not be biased come to power,” summed up the deputy head of the UOC DECR.

Recall, on August 29, 2019, on the occasion of taking the oath by the newly elected MPs of Ukraine, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine took part in the solemn meeting of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.

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