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Unity Council elected Metropolitan of bila Tserkva and Pereyaslav Epiphany (Dumenko) for the post of Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox United Church.
December 15, elected the new head of the Ukrainian Church / photo by UNIAN

In St. Sophia Cathedral in Kiev on Saturday, 15 December, hosted the unity Cathedral of the Ukrainian Orthodox churches, which chose the head of a unified local Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

How did the Unification Council of Ukrainian churches

Before the Cathedral in a Small temple of Sophia, served the hierarchical divine Liturgy, followed by registration of participants in the Unification Cathedral.

They were three Orthodox churches currently exist in Ukraine – the Ukrainian Orthodox Church Kyiv Patriarchate, the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which is in communion with the Moscow Patriarchate.

At the unity Cathedral of the Ukrainian Orthodox churches have registered at least two hierarchs of the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan of Vinnitsa and Barsky Simeon (Shostatsky), Metropolitan of Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky and Vishnevsky Alexander (drabinko).

This is evidenced by photos posted to Facebook by the rector of the Church of the Holy great Martyr Demetrius, the head of the Department of social service and charity Pereiaslav-Khmelnytskyi and bila Tserkva diocese of the UOC-KP Bogdan Tymoshenko, who was present at the unity Cathedral.

Tymoshenko has published the corresponding photos with the inscription: “the Representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate are recorded at the unity Cathedral.”


Photo Facebook Bogdan Tymoshenko

The President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko had also arrived at the Sofia square, where gathered thousands of people waiting for the decisions of a Unifying Council of the Ukrainian Orthodox churches.

He appealed to the participants of the Unification Church: “I Appeal directly to you all, members of the Council, to the leaders of the churches. A huge responsibility in this watch is for you. The government has done everything he could. Now it is up to you and only on you depends the future of Ukraine, the future of our great nation, our freedom, our state and spiritual independence from Russia”.

Poroshenko recalled that the Ecumenical Patriarchate by his recent decision to finally Moscow declared illegal the annexation of the Kyiv metropolis, carried out at the end of the XVII century. “They were told that the Russian Orthodox Church has the canonical rights of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine. And that our Orthodox Church does not have a subordination of the Russian Orthodox Church”, – the President added.

President Petro Poroshenko said that, besides him and the Church hierarchy, in a meeting of the Unification Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox churches attended by former President Viktor Yushchenko and the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Andrew Parubiy.


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In the first round of voting for all attending clergy, regardless of rank. In the second round of the voice could give only the bishops. This was stated by the Archbishop Drohobych of the UOC (KP) Jacob.

“In the second round of Metropolitan Epiphanius of Simeon won with a lead of about 20 votes,” he said.

In the center of Kiev on the Sofia area thousands of people, who were waiting for the completion of the Unification of the Cathedral, greeted the news of the establishment of one national Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

Who was elected the new Primate of the Church in Ukraine

Metropolitan of bila Tserkva and Pereyaslav Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate (UOC-KP), rector and Professor of the Department bilanych and philological disciplines of the Kyiv Orthodox theological Academy Epiphanius was elected Primate of unified local Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

The candidate Metropolitan of Pereiaslav and Belotserkovsky Epiphanius was nominated on Thursday the Council of bishops of the UOC (Kyiv Patriarchate).

He is rector and Professor of the Kyiv Orthodox theological Academy. According to the website of the Kyiv Orthodox theological Academy, Metropolitan of Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky and bila Tserkva Epiphany (Dumenko in the world Sergey Petrovich) was born on 3 February 1979 in the village of Volkovo in the Ivanovo district of Odessa region. He graduated from the Kiev theological Seminary and Academy. In 2006-2007 he studied at the national University of Athens at the faculty of philosophy.

PhD in theology, Professor, rector of the Kyiv Orthodox theological Academy, a permanent member of the Holy Synod, member of the Supreme Church Council of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyiv Patriarchate, the vicar of St Michael’s Vydubichsky monastery of Kiev, rector of the academic Church of the Holy Apostle and Evangelist John the theologian.


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Reaction to the creation of a new Ukrainian Church and the election of its head

President Petro Poroshenko said that a United and independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church is the Church without the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and the Patriarch Kirill.

“Today the birth of a new United and independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church. What is the Church? This is the Church without Putin. This is the Church of Cyril. It is a Church without praying for the Russian government and Russian army who are killing Ukrainians. But this is a Church with God and Ukraine”, – said Poroshenko.

The President also stressed the importance of creation independent of the Russian Church, because, according to him, “where today are waving the Russian censer, tomorrow we beat the Russian “Grad””.

Also Poroshenko announced that together with the newly elected Primate of the Autocephalous Church of Ukraine Epiphanius go for Tomos of granting autocephaly of the Church in Fanar (the historical area in Istanbul, where the residence of the Ecumenical Patriarchate).

In the Russian Orthodox Church has stated that the “canonically null and void” Unification Council, which was elected the Primate of a local Orthodox Church in Ukraine Epiphany.

In the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, commented on the participation of its bishops in the Unification Cathedral on December 15. “We are only stating that they went into schism, and inform local churches in the diptych of canonical bishops of Ukraine, they no longer are,” said Clement.

A little background to create a single national Orthodox Church in Ukraine

On 11 October the results of the Synod of the Constantinople Patriarchate had published the decision, which States that the Ecumenical Patriarchate continues the procedure of granting autocephaly churches in Ukraine.

In addition, it canceled the letter of the Synod of 1686, after which the Kievan Metropolia came under the jurisdiction of Moscow, restored the canonical status of the UOC of the Kyiv Patriarchate, Patriarch of Kyiv and all Rus-Ukraine Filaret and the head of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church Macarius.

On 3 November the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew signed an agreement on cooperation and interaction between Ukraine and the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

On 29 November, the Ecumenical Patriarchate approved the draft Charter of the Ukrainian Church, which granted the Tomos of autocephaly.