Filaret Denisenko made a statement regarding the situation around the Holy Dormition Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. This is reported by the official website of the UOC-KP.

“As the Hieroarchimandrite of the Holy Dormition Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, who back in 1988 achieved the transfer of the Lavra from the atheistic museum of the Orthodox Church, revived monastic life in it and restored it, I want to appeal to all parties to the conflict that has flared up in recent days, I ask everyone, on whom it depends, to prevent bloodshed. Otherwise, it will be not only a great sin, but also a gift to our enemy, Russia, which wants to kindle the fire of civil war in Ukraine so that Ukrainians do not resist the external Moscow aggressor, but fight among themselves,” Filaret said.

He added that the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra is the inheritance of the Mother of God, one of the greatest shrines of the entire Christian world and the spiritual heart of the Ukrainian people.

“There is no doubt that the Kiev Lavra should be Ukrainian and belong to the Ukrainian Church, and not to the Moscow Patriarchate. There is no place for the ideology of the “Russian world”. I spoke about this more than once at the dawn of Ukraine’s Independence. And this is happening before our eyes,” said the “hierarch”.

At the same time, Filaret stressed that the relics of the saints, which rest in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, are a great shrine, and not “museum exhibits,” and therefore asked the authorities to “take this into account and respect the religious feelings of believers.”