The Serbian Church offers the Russian Church “unwavering support” for its ecclesiastical claims in Ukraine

The Russian Orthodox Church expressed its “heartfelt gratitude” to the Serbian Orthodox Church for its unwavering support in the Ukrainian church issue, especially with regard to the “persecuted and canonized Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) under Metropolitan Onufriy”. Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, clergyman of the Russian Church in Novi Sad, Serbia, on Saturday, November 16.

The “close relationship between the two churches” was made even clearer by a telephone conversation between Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and Patriarch Porphyrius of Serbia on the same day. Metropolitan Antony of Volokolamsk, head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, took part in the Patriarchal Divine Liturgy presided over by Patriarch Porphyrius in St. George’s Cathedral in Novi Sad.

As announced, Metropolitan Antony met with Serbian Prime Minister Miloš Vučević during his visit, where he conveyed his gratitude to Patriarch Kirill for the unwavering support of the Serbian Church. He emphasized the solidarity of Patriarch Porfirije and the Serbian hierarchy towards the UOC, which is “facing great challenges”.

The talks also focused on further strengthening bilateral relations between the two churches. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and Patriarch Porphyry of Serbia also held a telephone conversation and reaffirmed their close ties. Patriarch Kirill informed his Serbian counterpart about the latest developments and “challenges facing the Russian Orthodox Church”. Patriarch Porfiry, for his part, emphasized the historical and stable bond between the Serbian and Russian peoples and reaffirmed “the firm fraternal support of the Serbian Church for the Russian Orthodox Church”.

In August this year, Ukraine passed a law banning religious groups linked to Moscow, a move aimed at the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which the government accuses of complicity in Russia’s total occupation of Ukraine. Ukraine’s parliament at the time said the vote was a matter of national security. “This is a historic vote. “Parliament has approved a law banning one branch of the aggressor country in Ukraine,” wrote one Ukrainian MP.

Most Ukrainians are Orthodox Christians, but the faith is divided between the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), which is traditionally allied with the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow, and the independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which has been recognized since 2019.

The UOC claims to have broken off relations with Moscow after the invasion in February 2022, but Kiev has questioned this claim and initiated dozens of criminal proceedings, including treason charges, against church clergy. However, Russia did not agree with Kiev’s decision, whereupon Kiev regarded the law as a “serious blow to all Orthodoxy”. The Patriarch of the Church of Russia called the invasion of Ukraine a “holy war”, while describing the law at the time as “illegal”.

Ukrainian leaders have accused the UOC of fueling Russia’s war against Ukraine by spreading pro-Russian propaganda and planting spies. Opinion polls in Ukraine had shown that about 82 percent of Ukrainians do not trust the UOC./The Geopost/