Simeon: I told Onuphry to meet with Poroshenko to be Patriarch of Ukraine

"Hierarch" of the OCU Simeon Shostatsky. Photo: news.church.ua

In 2018, the Primate of the UOC, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine, should have met with Petro Poroshenko and then could have become "Patriarch of all Orthodox Ukrainians in a single united Church." Simeon Shostatsky, former metropolitan of the UOC and now "hierarch" of the OCU, said this in an interview with RISU publication.

He confirmed that His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry enjoys love and respect of his flock and hierarchs of other Local Churches, and, in his opinion, it is the factor being "manipulatively" used when discussing the problem of Ukrainian autocephaly.

"A lot of hierarchs of other Churches say they support, love, respect Metropolitan Onuphry. Well, didn't we support, love and respect him? But his decision and the wall of incomprehension about autocephaly made us leave him. However, he is known and respected in World Orthodoxy," noted the "hierarch" of the OCU.

According to him, "This trend, this slogan of 'support for Metropolitan Onuphry' has also penetrated into autocephalous Churches," but "that’s not the right approach."

Now, he stressed, "We have a single Primate of the Ukrainian Church, His Beatitude Metropolitan Epiphany, while Metropolitan Onuphry is the bishop and representative of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine."

"Yet I said to him on November 13, 2018, 'Your Beatitude, let’s all go to the meeting with the President, let’s all go to the Council – and you’ll become Patriarch of all Orthodox Ukrainians in a single united Church,'" added the OCU "hierarch" Simeon Shostatsky.

Recall that in Shostatsky's opinion, presbyteras and kliros hamper the transition of the UOC priests to the OCU.

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