UOC rep: Cross procession must be expression of unshakable faith of people

Bishop Victor (Kotsaba) at a prayer procession in Budva, Montenegro, 27. 01. 2020. Photo: Facebook page of the UOC spokesman, Archpriest Nikolai Danilevich

The cross procession should be an expression of the firm and unshakable faith of the people. Bishop Victor (Kotsaba) of Baryshevka, the vicar of the Kyiv Metropolis and head of the Representation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to European international organizations, wrote about this on his TG channel.

The hierarch noted that today many people compare Ukraine and Montenegro, and there are grounds for this – a large number of Orthodox Christians, oriented towards liberal values of power and adopted anti-church laws.

“In Montenegro, when time and circumstances demanded it, the believing people went on multi-thousand cross processions, which swept the whole country, in Ukraine – not yet,” stated Bishop Victor. “And it seems to many that it is quite easy to do this – all that is needed is an appeal from the hierarchy.”

Indeed, he added, if the Primate and the Holy Synod of the UOC turn to the multimillion flock with a request to protect the Church and Her shrines, “many Orthodox believers of our country will go out on cross processions and prayer standings throughout Ukraine. The example of Montenegro has already shown how this can actually happen”.

However, the hierarch emphasized, in Montenegro, the believers themselves did not wait to be called and went out to defend the shrines themselves, and “the leadership of the Church did not initiate religious processions but at some stage simply gave them an organizational character. It was not the call of the hierarchy, but the call of the hearts of the believing inhabitants of Montenegro."

“The cross procession should be an expression of the firm and unshakable faith of the people. And we know that our Ukrainian people sacredly keep the faith of their ancestors, which means that the voice of hundreds of thousands of believing hearts can sound overnight. Then the time will come when Orthodox Ukrainians "with one mouth and one heart" will stand up to defend their Church. And there is a feeling that this time is not far off,” resumed Bishop Victor of Baryshevka.

According to the UOC Chancellor, the cross procession of the faithful, postponed due to the situation with the pandemic, will certainly take place.

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