Primate: One cannot fight elderly and women with bats and balaclavas
His Beatitude Onuphry believes that the ongoing confrontation around the temples of the UOC is being fueled by representatives of the “old” local authorities.
The Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine, in an interview with “First Cossack”, stated that the confrontation around the temples of the UOC, which is still taking place in western Ukraine, is wrong and should be stopped.
“If you are approached with a word, then you need to defend yourself with a word, but if you are approached with bats, in balaclavas intended for ordinary women and our grandmothers, then you need to make your offenders understand that this is the wrong way to do: “Show your strength before someone as strong as you, rather than before a weak person," said His Beatitude. "Therefore, we need to adequately protect our shrines."
He called the attempts of raider seizures of temples of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church "an echo of the times of President Petro Poroshenko", who created precedents and legislative conditions for these offences. At present, according to the UOC Primate, the situation "has changed dramatically" – the central government does not interfere in the internal life of the Church, however, the "negative remainder must be done with."
“The state has no right to interfere in the affairs of the Church, as the Church is separated from the state. We prepare people for eternity, while the state cares about earthly life. And if the Church and the state have common ground and mutual understanding, then we can yield double benefits by cultivating good citizens,” Metropolitan Onuphry offered an ideal pattern of relationships.
Earlier, the UOJ wrote that the hierarch of the UOC named three things that can protect against church raiders.
