Bishop of Kyivan Patriarchate: Patriarch Kirill Involved in Conflict Within UOC-MP

According to representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate, Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church played a significant role in the removal of Metropolitan Volodymyr from the leadership of the Church and sharpening of the conflict within the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate. This opinion was expressed by Archbishop Yevstratii (Zoria) of Chernihiv and Nizhyn of UOC-KP to Portal-Сredo.ru.

“It is quite obvious that the group of the three metropolitans (Ahafanhel of Odesa, Ilarion of Donetsk and Pavlo of Vyshhorod) made an active effort to remove Metropolitan Volodymyr from the influence on the leadership of the Church, exercised by him during his sickness through his closest entourage, at least with the consent of Patriarch Kirill or even upon his instruction,” said he.

According to the bishop of UOC-KP, the struggle within UOC-MP is focused on the question if the Church will be independent in its government or not.   He stressed that one group defends the independence of the Church, guaranteed by Metropolitan Volodymyr, and the other group, the triumvirate of metropolitans seeking to seize power, are trying to reduce the independence as much as possible.