Prot. Serhii Prokopchuk, UOC, Sophia Brotherhood
On a well-known online resource close to the Chancellor of the UOC, Metropolitan Antonii (Pakanych), a publication appeared titled: “The Chancellor: we do not understand the ‘brotherhoods’ that support persecutors of the Church.”
It states that “the hierarch issued a sharp condemnation of representatives of church circles who, under the guise of ‘brotherly love’ and ‘tolerance,’ maintain relations with the persecutors of the UOC.” The article consists of quotations from the Metropolitan’s statement (posted on another resource close to him) claiming that there is a particular type of people who “seem to belong to the Church, yet at the same time demonstratively and publicly maintain close ties with those who persecute this Church.”
“They remain silent when churches are seized by force, when bishops, priests, and laity are beaten, when clergy are imprisoned. But as soon as any believer expresses indignation over repressions against their Church, voices from this milieu immediately call to ‘be more tolerant’ and ‘love everyone.’”
“The hierarch expressed particular criticism toward various organizations and ‘brotherhoods’ that hold conferences together with those ‘who seek to destroy our Church.’ According to him, such events are permeated by ‘a hypocritical spirit of ‘mutual understanding,’’ while outside there is ‘real banditry and raider seizures with beatings of UOC faithful.’”
The Metropolitan expressed special concern over the participation of priests and monks in such events, who, “naively believe that they can improve the situation by communicating with representatives of structures aimed against the Church.” As usual, at the end, “the Chancellor of the UOC called to ‘intensify prayers’ for all brothers who are being persecuted for their faith.”
It is not hard to guess that the target of this “harsh condemnation” was the Sophia Brotherhood, which unites representatives of the UOC, OCU, and the Ecumenical Patriarchate. In the past, the Chancellor of the UOC, Metropolitan Antonii, repeatedly sought to silence the voices of UOC clergy, accusing active priests of renovationism and of seeking to destroy the Church from within. He, like some other hierarchs, is outraged when UOC priests and laity take initiative and try at their own level to resolve inter-jurisdictional conflicts. For them, the ideal situation would be if their subordinates were silent sheep or obedient donkeys.
It is obvious that His Eminence understands perfectly well: ordinary priests, and even more so the laity of the UOC today, are deprived of any ability to influence global church policy. Yet they can independently carry out social or educational projects, even in an inter-jurisdictional format. The Sophia Brotherhood has now become the most active inter-Orthodox initiative of this kind, consisting of those who not only remember the call of the Savior, “That they may all be one” (John 17:21) and of the Apostle Paul, “Live in peace with all people” (Rom. 12:18), but also strive to make these words a reality.
It is, in fact, the leadership of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church that has brought it to its current critical state. Metropolitan Antonii is indignant about contacts between UOC clergy and other Orthodox structures in Ukraine, but this did not prevent him from visiting the aggressor country after 2014, nor from refraining from any public condemnation of the occupiers after 2022.
The Boryspil diocese, headed by the indignant Metropolitan, is one of the few in the UOC (excluding occupied territories) where churches and monasteries still serve on antimens with the name of Patriarch Kirill.
During his years as Chancellor of the UOC, Metropolitan Antonii has arguably done more than any other hierarch to ensure that the label of “Moscow Church” firmly stuck to the UOC. Today, it is no secret that he effectively leads a group of metropolitans with an explicitly pro-Moscow orientation. Whether he has the moral right to teach, let alone criticize, UOC faithful—members of the Sophia Brotherhood—is an open question.
The respected Metropolitan should not forget that brotherhoods in the history of Ukrainian Orthodoxy, especially in difficult times for the Church, played an important role not only as centers of culture and education. They often stood in defense of the Church and contributed to its cleansing and revival when the hierarchy proved incapable of doing so. Whether the UOC hierarchy is capable today—this is a question the Chancellor himself should answer.
Today, Metropolitan Antonii responds to threats to the Church only with appeals such as: “Bravely accept everything that the Lord sends us, and do not cross the final line, so as not to find yourself completely outside the canonical field” (a sermon from July 20, published online). “Not to find yourself outside the canonical field” obviously means not to completely break ties with the ROC.
Such a “wise” policy from the second most influential hierarch of the UOC leads to the Church being molded into the image of a “Moscow” one, and when everything collapses, the remaining faithful are called to “bravely accept everything.”
The only problem is that there are serious doubts whether this is truly “sent by the Lord”—when the Church has been driven into crisis by one’s own hands, hiding behind the name of God is, at the very least, inappropriate.
To the Chancellor: “We do not understand bishops who defend unity with murderers”
Prot. Serhii Prokopchuk, UOC, Sophia Brotherhood
On a well-known online resource close to the Chancellor of the UOC, Metropolitan Antonii (Pakanych), a publication appeared titled: “The Chancellor: we do not understand the ‘brotherhoods’ that support persecutors of the Church.”
It states that “the hierarch issued a sharp condemnation of representatives of church circles who, under the guise of ‘brotherly love’ and ‘tolerance,’ maintain relations with the persecutors of the UOC.” The article consists of quotations from the Metropolitan’s statement (posted on another resource close to him) claiming that there is a particular type of people who “seem to belong to the Church, yet at the same time demonstratively and publicly maintain close ties with those who persecute this Church.”
“They remain silent when churches are seized by force, when bishops, priests, and laity are beaten, when clergy are imprisoned. But as soon as any believer expresses indignation over repressions against their Church, voices from this milieu immediately call to ‘be more tolerant’ and ‘love everyone.’”
“The hierarch expressed particular criticism toward various organizations and ‘brotherhoods’ that hold conferences together with those ‘who seek to destroy our Church.’ According to him, such events are permeated by ‘a hypocritical spirit of ‘mutual understanding,’’ while outside there is ‘real banditry and raider seizures with beatings of UOC faithful.’”
The Metropolitan expressed special concern over the participation of priests and monks in such events, who, “naively believe that they can improve the situation by communicating with representatives of structures aimed against the Church.” As usual, at the end, “the Chancellor of the UOC called to ‘intensify prayers’ for all brothers who are being persecuted for their faith.”
It is not hard to guess that the target of this “harsh condemnation” was the Sophia Brotherhood, which unites representatives of the UOC, OCU, and the Ecumenical Patriarchate. In the past, the Chancellor of the UOC, Metropolitan Antonii, repeatedly sought to silence the voices of UOC clergy, accusing active priests of renovationism and of seeking to destroy the Church from within. He, like some other hierarchs, is outraged when UOC priests and laity take initiative and try at their own level to resolve inter-jurisdictional conflicts. For them, the ideal situation would be if their subordinates were silent sheep or obedient donkeys.
It is obvious that His Eminence understands perfectly well: ordinary priests, and even more so the laity of the UOC today, are deprived of any ability to influence global church policy. Yet they can independently carry out social or educational projects, even in an inter-jurisdictional format. The Sophia Brotherhood has now become the most active inter-Orthodox initiative of this kind, consisting of those who not only remember the call of the Savior, “That they may all be one” (John 17:21) and of the Apostle Paul, “Live in peace with all people” (Rom. 12:18), but also strive to make these words a reality.
It is, in fact, the leadership of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church that has brought it to its current critical state. Metropolitan Antonii is indignant about contacts between UOC clergy and other Orthodox structures in Ukraine, but this did not prevent him from visiting the aggressor country after 2014, nor from refraining from any public condemnation of the occupiers after 2022.
The Boryspil diocese, headed by the indignant Metropolitan, is one of the few in the UOC (excluding occupied territories) where churches and monasteries still serve on antimens with the name of Patriarch Kirill.
During his years as Chancellor of the UOC, Metropolitan Antonii has arguably done more than any other hierarch to ensure that the label of “Moscow Church” firmly stuck to the UOC. Today, it is no secret that he effectively leads a group of metropolitans with an explicitly pro-Moscow orientation. Whether he has the moral right to teach, let alone criticize, UOC faithful—members of the Sophia Brotherhood—is an open question.
The respected Metropolitan should not forget that brotherhoods in the history of Ukrainian Orthodoxy, especially in difficult times for the Church, played an important role not only as centers of culture and education. They often stood in defense of the Church and contributed to its cleansing and revival when the hierarchy proved incapable of doing so. Whether the UOC hierarchy is capable today—this is a question the Chancellor himself should answer.
Today, Metropolitan Antonii responds to threats to the Church only with appeals such as: “Bravely accept everything that the Lord sends us, and do not cross the final line, so as not to find yourself completely outside the canonical field” (a sermon from July 20, published online). “Not to find yourself outside the canonical field” obviously means not to completely break ties with the ROC.
Such a “wise” policy from the second most influential hierarch of the UOC leads to the Church being molded into the image of a “Moscow” one, and when everything collapses, the remaining faithful are called to “bravely accept everything.”
The only problem is that there are serious doubts whether this is truly “sent by the Lord”—when the Church has been driven into crisis by one’s own hands, hiding behind the name of God is, at the very least, inappropriate.