As Filaret and Epiphany shared the Orthodox souls

Everything is unchanged in Ukraine. That is, the eternal squabbling and fights continue. The Wild Field’s traditions prosper.

The eternal Maidan, on which everyone is for and against at the same time, entered the church, which should seemingly unite, not separate. But it is not only in Ukraine...

The special operation of Phanar, developed and approved by Washington and the aim of which was complete separation of Orthodox believers of Ukraine from the Russian Orthodox Church by the creation of heretically divisive “Orthodox Church of Ukraine”, began with fun and smothering. Even more, as the President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, was the main initiator and handler of this CIA-State Department product...

However, the specialists on the countries of the former USSR, including Ukraine were disappeared both in the U.S. State Department and the CIA. There were naively expected that the Orthodox believers of Ukraine would happily and simultaneously run to a divisive church, seeking to get rid of “Moscow religious occupation” as soon as possible.

But not so fast: no one wished to change the mother-church except for a few dozen of West Ukrainian parishes. Some village parishes in Central and Eastern Ukraine were stormed by the radical “activists”, who received considerable money for it. But in the vast majority of cities and villages, mostly the old parishioners manly defended their church.

The truly epic showdown in the style of a la Maidan between two Ukrainian “pastors of human souls”, the so-called “Honorary Patriarch of OCU” Filaret and no less “Honorary” Bishop of canonical unrecognized Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarch Epiphany was a shock for the State Department of the United States, the CIA, not to mention Vatican and Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew.

In the shortest possible time these two most worthy personalities managed to violate so many commandments of Christ immediately and qualitatively that, according to rumors, their behavior was devoted to several meetings in the supervising organizations at once. However, there is no point: the power of money turned out to be so attractive for Filaret and Epiphany that allowed them to forget not only about religion, but also elementary rules of decency.

It is not the first time Filaret has arranged the scandal and splits referring to the church. After all, before he was known for the fact that in the early 1990s he founded the divisive Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate, which allowed him to live comfortably.
Scandals in the newly formed “UOC” began immediately after its proclamation. More than one book can be written about the history of mutual accusations of Filaret and Epiphany for this year.

Briefly, the essence of this market endless fight is as follows: on December 15 of last year the unifying council was held in Kiev Sofia Cathedral in the presence of “saint” Petro Poroshenko, where not only the local Orthodox Ukrainian Church was approved, but also its “head” Metropolitan Epiphany was chosen.

The paradox was that this exemplary husband was the successor of Patriarch Filaret in case of his death. But he persistently did not want to die...

One can only imagine Filaret storm of emotions and probably even foul expressions caused by the very fact of presentation of the notorious “independence letter of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church” on January 6 of this year, where the head of the unrecognized heretical church was not Filaret himself, but his “child” Epiphany.

In addition, the UOC of the Kiev Patriarchate and the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church were officially dissolved within the creation of the new canonical church.
The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, before this fateful moment, brazenly made it clear to Filaret that he could not head the local church for several reasons.

Bartholomew accused the long-time leader of “divisive church”, which was called as the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate, who made so much effort to deepen the split, that he would not have been accepted by other local churches, as well as by most believers, priests and bishops of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
Having finally considered himself almost the only representative of God on sinful earth, Filaret proudly proclaimed on May 9 of this year:

-- The one who created the Kiev Patriarchate can eliminate it...

Indeed, Phanar gave the status of metropolitan to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and Filaret did not want to downgrade his status, having demonstrating the complete absence of Christian humility.

The push between the chief leaders passed even into the law enforcement plane: “Honorary Patriarch” complained to the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Arsen Avakov that “Orthodox Church of Ukraine” took St. Theodosius Monastery and Temple of Assumption away from him in Kiev.

In Odessa there was a violent confrontation around the Cathedral of the Nativity, which “Bishop” of “OCU” Pavel (Yuristy) took away from the former prior of “UOC” of the Kiev Patriarchate” Vitaly Senik six months ago. Supporters of Epiphany removed a sign of the church affiliation to “UOC of the Kiev Patriarchate” of Filaret, put the metal doors and closed inside the temple, intending not to allow the members of “Kiev Patriarchate” community.

There are such scandals again, which gives reason to speak about a conflict between “new” OCU and “old” UOC of the Kiev Patriarchate, which will not fail even if Filaret leaves the post of “Honorary Patriarch”. The priests of UOC of the Kiev Patriarchate are so used to the existing orders that don’t want to change them, especially to increase the share of “contributions” to Kiev, which “His Beatitude Metropolitan of Kiev and all Ukraine” Epiphany requires to do necessarily. He has to pay Constantinople for letter getting...

The Orthodoxy in Ukraine is in the worst crisis, comparable in size to the one that took place during the Tatar-Mongol invasion.