Yesterday, our President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during a briefing that the Church is not oppressed in Ukraine. Ironically, it became known yesterday that the adviser to the mayor of Ivano-Frankivsk Nazariy Kishak actually called for violence against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Bishop Victor Baryshevsky wrote about this in his Telegram channel, Chairman of the Representation of the UOC to European International Organizations.

The words that all “Moscow” monasteries in Ukraine need to be cleaned, said by a person who is directly related to the authorities, writes the hierarch.

“You need to understand that the vocabulary of enmity is in principle unacceptable, especially when it comes to a state in which people with different religious views live. Therefore, the statements of the councilor of the mayor of Ivano-Frankivsk, undoubtedly, should be taken up by the competent authorities.

On the other hand, returning to the words of our President, we must sadly note that the oppression of the Church is not only a ban on worship services or the closure of churches (as was the case during the Soviet era), but also legislative initiatives restricting the rights and freedoms of believers, as well as the absence of a legal (!) reaction to physical violence or aggressive statements in relation to the entire Church and millions of faithful citizens of Ukraine,” says Bishop Viktor.