Religious scholar Yuri Chernomorets said on the air of Ukrainian Radio that the termination of the lease agreement with the UOC “is an outstanding milestone not only in the history of Ukrainian Orthodoxy, when the Moscow Patriarchate is finally treated correctly in Ukraine, but also in the context of the formation of the Ukrainian legal state.”

“Because for 31 years we had a religious organization that could violate all legislation on the protection of historical and cultural monuments, could do anything, including on the territory of national reserves. Representatives of this organization were in fact in a privileged position, and then finally, after 31 years, they were told: “You exist in a state of law. We looked at everything you did, and we have complaints, ”he said.

According to the religious scholar, the leadership of the monastery should have foreseen that they could be evicted from the Lavra for non-compliance with the law.

“The state absolutely should not deal with such problems, where the monks live. The leadership of the UOC and the monastery had to think about how they comply with the law, what will happen when they are suddenly asked to the fullest extent of the law. Where will they live? Half of the people there are normal monks, that is, those who keep their vows. And half of the people just earn money in the Lavra, have several apartments. Therefore, let them live in the dachas of the Pasha Mercedes, in their own apartments, this should not worry the state at all, ”Chernomorets said.

He added that “the state should be concerned whether there is compliance with the law or not? Violated the law – the reserve has no right to renew the contract. And the fact that it was necessary to put things in order for a long time, we have been saying for decades – historians, religious scholars, lawyers.

“These people should be held accountable. And we think that if they are priests and can go on a hunger strike, then we should not touch them. But we should not make any group of people outside the law. The authorities must clearly say: here are the deadlines, follow the law; if your bishops are deprived of citizenship, they must be evicted. There should be no doubt that we are doing something wrong. This is how it is done in all civilized countries. If there are any preachers in France who do not adhere to the protection legislation regarding architectural monuments, whether they are Muslims or Catholics, the police come and seal everything. And goodbye!” said Yuri Chernomorets.