Auditor is going to Kyiv: on the arrival of Phanar delegation to Ukraine
The Greek media reported that a Phanar delegation headed by the "Tomos Father" Emmanuel of Chalcedon is going to Ukraine. What does it have in store for the UOC?
On July 26, 2023, it became known about the upcoming visit of the delegation of the Patriarchate of Constantinople to Kyiv. This was reported by the Greek edition Romfea, citing its sources in the Holy Synod of the Phanar. According to the publication, the delegation will be headed by Metropolitan of Chalcedon Emmanuel (Adamakis), who was allegedly invited to Kyiv personally by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky. It is clear that, taking into account all developments with the UOC, the arrival of Phanariots cannot be a formality. In that case, what does it mean?
Why does Kyiv need the “Father of the Tomos”?
According to Romfea, the visit of the Phanariot delegation was actually supposed to take place much earlier, on June 15, 2023. However, referring to their sources in Ukraine, the Greeks write that the government of our country "refused to accept the delegation without the participation of Metropolitan Emmanuel, as a result of which the visit was canceled." If this is true, then the question arises, why is Emmanuel so important to the Office of the President?
The thing is, his personality is somewhat emblematic for Ukraine. Metropolitan Emmanuel led the "Unification Council" of the OCU in Kyiv and promoted the Tomos of the OCU in the Orthodox Churches worldwide. It will suffice to recall Emmanuel's last visit to Bulgaria, where he directly demanded from Patriarch Neophytos "to fulfill the previously made promise to recognize Dumenko." In other words, the Tomos is his brainchild, and he simply cannot give it up just like that. Now, let's put two and two together.
Recently, the persecution of the UOC by the authorities has become more resolute, which is likely to have to do precisely with the upcoming visit of Phanariots. Sources of the UOJ in the Rada claim that on July 27 or 28, the government will put to a vote (if there are votes) Law No. 8371 on a complete ban on religious organizations "affiliated with the aggressor state." It is not difficult to guess that the authorities have already decided which one is certainly "affiliated" – this is the UOC.
Also on July 27, the "Local Council" of the OCU will be held, which will approve and support the decision of the Verkhovna Rada on the "complete spiritual independence" of Ukraine.
In this context, Metropolitan Emmanuel, according to Romfea, is needed by the Ukrainian authorities in order to “bless” the persecution and label the legislative ban on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as “beneficial”. Whether the Phanariot Metropolitan will go for this is unknown, since “the increasing persecution of the UOC will undermine the prestige of the Phanar, which is well understood by both the Ecumenical Patriarch and Metropolitan Emmanuel,” write the Greeks. Moreover, according to the information available to the UOJ, Patriarch Bartholomew was very much dissatisfied with those violent incidents that occurred in Ivano-Frankivsk, where supporters of the OCU used nerve-paralyzing gas, and in Bila Tserkva, where clerics of the Dumenko structure used crowbars and sledgehammers to knock out the doors to the Transfiguration Cathedral. Even if there was any discontent, it was expressed only somewhere at a personal level, as Patriarch Bartholomew did not make any public statements.
Therefore, taking into account the experience of dealing with the Phanariots, we can conclude that their decisions too often depend on the benefits that the Phanar can receive. Therefore, one should not count too much on a principled position from the “Father of the Tomos”.
Price of the issue?
Bankova also understands that in negotiations with Phanariots, the price that they are willing to pay for a “positive” solution to the issue is of great importance. And we're not talking about money now.
Previously, there was information, voiced by the protodeacon of the UOC and the former MP of the Verkhovna Rada, Vadim Novinsky, that the "price of the issue" is the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, which the authorities allegedly intend to hand over to the Phanariots. The publication Romfea also wrote about this.
However, after these publications, the head of the press service of the Phanar said that the reports about the negotiations between Zelensky and Bartholomew on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra "do not correspond to reality." The Phanariots can be understood in this regard, because if they were to receive the Kyiv Caves Monastery, the Patriarchate of Constantinople would not receive support from ordinary Ukrainian believers. Moreover, there is too much controversy surrounding the Lavra, and any attempts to seize it only discredit the invaders, depriving them of even the hypothetical support of the people.
On the other hand, for the Phanar, the main thing is not control over the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, but a global victory over the Russian Orthodox Church, including within the territory of Ukraine.
Plan for the liquidation of the UOC
Romfea writes that on July 8, 2023, during Zelensky’s visit to the Phanar, “the Ukrainian side hinted that by these dates (July 28–29 – Ed.), they would be able to achieve a softening of the position of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, headed by the Metropolitan of Kyiv and all Ukraine Onuphry. That is, the authorities promised that His Beatitude would be “more accommodating” than before July 8.
The Greeks claim that earlier Viktor Yelensky developed a plan to liquidate the UOC, “involving gradual pressure on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church with the aim of finally breaking off its ties with the Russian Church.”
Romfea writes: "It is believed that after this the UOC will lose the support of the Local Orthodox Churches and fall into a state of isolated ‘schism’, after which it will be possible to pass a law on its dissolution and the forcible unification of its communities with the OCU."
The first stage for the implementation of this plan was Yelensky's ultimatum, which he put forward to the leadership of the UOC. Let us briefly recall its main points:
- To publish an official document on the withdrawal of the UOC with all its dioceses and parishes from the ROC.
- To officially notify the Local Orthodox Churches about the withdrawal of the UOC from the ROC.
- To depose all bishops and clerics of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church who "cooperate with the Russian occupiers."
- To officially condemn "the teaching of Patriarch Kirill about washing away the sins of the invaders who died in Ukraine, blessing them with the war against Ukraine, as well as the actions of church authorities to annex the dioceses of the UOC."
On May 31, this ultimatum was sent to the leadership of the UOC, and on June 12, 2023 in Istanbul, where Viktor Yelensky arrived, it was approved by Patriarch Bartholomew.
On July 25, Yelensky met with His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry. Probably, the head of the State Ethnic Policy once again tried to convince the Primate of the UOC that there was no other way but to merge with the OCU. In addition, he suggested that His Beatitude accept the above ultimatum or, as Romfea writes, announce the “self-dissolution” of the UOC. The Primate of the UOC answered all the proposals with one word – “no”. This means that the pressure on our Church will only intensify.
What does the Phanar delegation have in store for Ukrainians?
The role of the Phanar delegation in this matter remains to be seen. However, one would like to believe that the representatives of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, three of whom have Ukrainian roots, are not coming to "bless" the decision of the members of the Ukrainian Parliament to destroy the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
Be that as it may, the Constantinople Church understands perfectly well that the Tomos did not bring unity or peace to the Church in Ukraine. Moreover, by legitimizing the schismatics, many of whom are as far from Christ as the Soviet Bolsheviks, the Phanariots "legitimized" the use of hammers, crowbars, and tear gas to resolve "church disputes." The Phanar already realizes that there is a significant number of spiritually unhealthy individuals within the OCU, whom one cannot call true Christians.
As we have previously reported, the new charter for the governance of the OCU contains several points that directly contradict the Tomos. After our article, the head of the OCU, Dumenko, became quite nervous, trying to prove that the decisions of his "episcopate" in no way violate the document issued by the Phanar. However, the Patriarchate of Constantinople did not believe Serhiy Dumenko's words and stated that they would definitely send an "authoritative commission" to verify the new clauses of the OCU's charter for compliance with the Tomos.
Therefore, Emmanuel's visit also includes a review of Dumenko and his comrades' activities. We are unlikely to see any serious decisions on this matter right away, but in any case, Dumenko will have to worry. The Patriarchate of Constantinople knows how to play the long game, and no one knows for sure what surprises it has prepared for the Ukrainians.
