Press secretary of Metropolitan Volodymyr: 'We will continue to humbly ask for permission to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in St. Sophia'
"The Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) did not initiate the transfer of the National Reserve St. Sophia Cathedral to the ministry of Culture and Tourism of Ukraine. For us, this question is not a matter of principle. As far as we know, this is due to UNESCO's recommendation, for Sophia of Kyiv is inscribed on the World Heritage List," commented the press secretary of the head of UOC-MP, Fr. Heorhii Kovalenko, on the transfer of the reserve to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Culture.
"The UOC-MP never claimed and does not claim jurisdiction over Sophia of Kyiv as a property complex, as some journalists write. Our church has no funds to maintain the reserve, but we have always claimed permission for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to conduct services in the Sophia of Kyiv at least a few times per year. We are ready to comply with all the conditions of the museum regarding the number of people, choir singing, absence of candles, etc. But, unfortunately, unlike President Yushchenko, His Beatitude Metropolitan Volodymyr of the UOC-MP never celebrated a divine service in the ancient Cathedral of the Kyivan Metropolitans. We will not act as the White Fraternity or the Kyivan Patriarchate did. We will continue to humbly ask for permission to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in the church, which was the intended use for the cathedral when it was built by our holy ancestors, Prince Volodymyr and Holy Prince Yaroslav Mudryi," said Fr. Heorhii Kovalenko according to orthodoxy.org.ua.
"We believe that the monuments of our spiritual culture should be preserved by the church and state together. St. Sophia Cathedral should be both a museum and a place where prayer is said, for then the church is alive and, however surprising it may be, better preserved," stated Fr. Heorhii Kovalenko.
As RISU reported on February 8, the National Reserve St. Sophia Cathedral sent a letter to the president calling him to protect the greatest Christian shrine of Ukraine from destruction. The letter was signed by hundreds of people including foreign scholars who joined the address. According to the authors of the letter, the subordination of Sophia will destabilize the work of the reserve, eliminate the current effective system of management, and threaten the preservation of the world and national cultural heritage."
