All three prefaces relate to the manipulation with the name of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky of the UGCC, said rector of the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU), history professor Igor Skochylias to Radio Liberty.
The book contains three introductory words – by Roman Catholic Bishop Emeritus Marian Buchek, scholar of Catholic University of Lublin Volodymyr Osadchy and the publisher, a UGCC priest Igor Pelehaty (now the ecclesiastical proceedings are held against him).
All three prefaces relate to the manipulation with the name of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky of the UGCC, said rector of the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU), history professor Igor Skochylias to Radio Liberty.
“Obviously, the big flaw of this book is that it has not been considered in the plane of contemporary historical, political events nor the relationship between the Metropolitan Andrey and Bishop Khomyshyn have been put in proper context, nor has it considered a generally wide background of Ukrainian-Polish and Ukrainian-Jewish relations, the relationship between the Church and the Polish authorities, Ukrainian national liberation movement - the OUN, UPA, unfortunately, they have not been contextualized. And if they are in this book, in my opinion, have not been consciously considered in the light of those events, we can say rightly and academically, that they have been manipulated, and it is a successful academic manipulation, which lies in the instrumentalizing of the issuance of this book in 2016,” the historian said.
According to Igor Skochylias, the preface of “Two kingdoms” presents overtly logistics chain of the so-called “connections” when it comes to Andrew Sheptytsky, the next connection is the Ukrainian integral nationalism and the third is Volyn 1943.
That is, in other words, the compilers’ logic is that if there were no Andrey Sheptytsky, there would be no Ukrainian integral nationalism, if there were no Ukrainian integral nationalism, there would be no dramatic events in Volyn 1943. Obviously, it is clear even to an unprofessional historian that this is outright manipulation,” he said.
The UCU Academic Council has doubts about the authenticity of the letters by Khomyshyn, if they are authentic or the book compilers have interfered in original content. Now the Church is investigating the situation, because the archives of Bishop Khomyshyn are the property of Ivano-Frankivsk Archdiocese. Igor Skochylias is confident that in Poland a certain environment is interested in discrimination of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, whose beatification process is under completion. The publication of the book, says Ukrainian professor, is only the beginning of a manipulation scenario with the metropolitan’s name.
“It is clear that this book is only the first touchstone that this is obviously a whole system of discrimination measures towards the figure of Andrey Sheptytsky and torpedoing the good and positive image of Ukraine and in particular, the UGCC, created after the Revolution of Dignity, after the Euromaidan. And it is that the Poles like to call themselves - scores with history,” Igor Skochylias said.