• Home page
  • Monitoring
  • Christianity in Ukraine explained in 35 minutes by Right Rev. Dr. Andriy Chirovsky...

Christianity in Ukraine explained in 35 minutes by Right Rev. Dr. Andriy Chirovsky

04.07.2018, 13:42
Part one of an interview with Right Rev. Dr. Andriy Chirovsky, Toronto, Canada, 29 June 2018.

Part one of an interview with Right Rev. Dr. Andriy Chirovsky, Toronto, Canada, 29 June 2018.

- Tension between Ukraine and Russia, originally known as Muscovy, for the past 350 years - 1:04 Problem starts when the Ukrainian church, who received the faith in 988 from Constantinople-the mother church, suffered after the Mongol invasions in the middle of the 13th century. Some elites moved north to Vladimir-on-Klyazma (Владимир-на-Клязьме) then later to the young town of Moscow - 2:02 Muscovites then started feeling they were the inheritors of Kyivan tradition of the history of Kyivan-Rus', of the church of Kyivan-Rus'. In their eyes, everything had transferred north-east to the principality of Muscovy. Muscovy changed its name in the early 18th century to 'Russia'. They took the name 'Kyivan-Rus'' and befuddled west Europeans by calling themselves 'Russia'. - 3:09 Biggest problem is that Moscow in the 17th century claimed it is the mother church for the church of Kyiv which had its own hierarchy reestablished, and a sizeable church. Here is the historical dilemma - 3:58 Moscow Patriarchate, which came into existence in 1589, claims to be the mother church of the church of Kyiv which came into existence in 988: A 600 year difference in age - 4:33 If anything, the Church of Moscow is the daughter church of the Church of Kyiv. But through geopolitical circumstances, since the late 17th century, Moscow exercised control over Ukraine Orthodoxy - 5:05 Bishops and Metropolitan of Kyiv entered into communion with Rome, what we today call the Ukrainian Greco-Catholic Church, some call it the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (which is a mis-translation). UGCC is not a Greek church. It's Ukrainian Orthodox in communion with Rome - 6:18 Patriarchate of Moscow extends control into Left-Bank Ukraine, then later into Right-Bank Ukraine through acquisition of territory - 7:30 Ukrainian Greco-Catholics were never under the Moscow Patriarchate. Ukrainian Orthodox wound up under ecclesiastical control of the hostile Moscow Church. Fact remains that the true mother church of the Church of Kyiv is the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople - 8:12 This is the only sane way to interpret history: How can a daughter, Moscow, can be her own Mother's Mother? - 9:20 Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC) was created in 1921 - 10:02 In 1992 the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyivan Patriarchate (UOC-KP) was established. It did not accept the jurisdiction of Moscow. Moscow has been telling the world that these Ukrainian churches are schismatics, have no grace, church is not valid, etc. - 12:03 Efforts to turn to the Patriarchate in Constantinople to resolve this issue. It was not resolved because it was viewed as a dissolution of the Moscow Patriarchate in Ukraine - 13:32 Petro Poroshenko and Parliament of Ukraine appealed to Constantinople and presented documents in with the UAOC and UOC-KP both agree to be united into one Ukrainian Orthodox Church receiving autocephaly from Constantinople. With the proviso that if some people in Ukraine want to remain under the Moscow Patriarchate, have parishes, monasteries, schools, etc., they are free to do so. This very reasonable in a modern, pluralistic country like Ukraine - 16:42 Enter ecclesiastical politics: Who should be the leading voice in world-wide Christian Orthodoxy? - 18:20 2016 Great and Holy Synod in Crete (Moscow did not attend). Patriarch Kirill of Moscow (Кирилл (патриарх Московский)) Cuban airport meeting with Pope Francis - 21:45 Pope John Paul II - 22:40 Geopolitical problem: war in eastern Ukraine, Crimea invaded and annexed by Russia. Moscow Patriarchate never condemned Russian invasion of Ukraine - 23:48 National Catholic Register article http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/... - 25:00 It is the hope of millions of Orthodox in Ukraine who do not want to be under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate. They hope for the tomos of Autocephay will come - 26:30 Many fear Patriarch Bartholomew issue a tomos of autocephaly that this will cause a schism between Constantinople and Moscow - 27:50 Unlike the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kyivan Patriarchate, Moscow Patriarchate does not count the number of faithful in Ukraine, only the parishes. Power play using numbers - 29:25 Ecumenical Patriarchate: can he act unilaterally? Orthodox though is divided. Seek consensus? Yet, many Orthodox churches did not become autocephalous in that fashion. Russian Orthodox Church proclaimed its autocephaly and proclaimed its autocephaly for a century and a half - 31:55 Look at the perspective of the Moscow Patriarchate: Wouldn't Patriarch Bartholomew want grace to abound in Ukraine? Pastoral care for the faithful in Ukraine caught in a terrible situation

Rev. Dr. Andriy Chirovsky

UkeTube, June 29, 2018