UOC hierarch to “Miriane”: Everyone should raise voice in defence of Church

Bishop Victor (Kotsaba). Photo: Facebook page of the bishop

“We gathered here to be together, to work for the glory of God, to do our best to defend our Church,” said the head of the Representation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to European International Organizations, Bishop Victor (Kotsaba) of Baryshevka, to the participants of the 1st All-Ukrainian congress of the NGO "Miriane” (“Laity") in Kyiv. In the video published on the “Miriane” YouTube channel, the bishop conveys greetings and blessings from His Holiness Metropolitan Onuphry, the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

"First of all, I would like to convey to you the blessing on behalf of the Primate of the UOC, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry, as well as his gratitude for the work that you are doing for the sake of the Church of Christ, for the good of our believing people and our state of Ukraine,” said Bishop Viktor.

He noted that the leaders of the separate "Miriane" units from 24 eparchies of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church gathered at the Congress are ready to work for the glory of God to do their best to protect their Church.

"The Lord calls us today to raise our voices in defence of the Mother Church, not to be silent witnesses of Her abuse but to be her guardians. The laity are people who care about the fate of the Church," the UOC hierarch said.

He noted that, on the one hand, the words in the Gospel that the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church, may calm down and not require any action. But history shows that it was the actions of the faithful that helped to save Orthodoxy in the Ukrainian lands from being absorbed by Catholicism.

"But St. Maximus the Confessor, St. Athanasius the Great, St. Mark of Ephesus, St. Job of Pochaiv, could also have done nothing, as well as the Orthodox Brotherhood of Ukraine, which for centuries have protected the Church from absorption by Catholicism," bishop Victor reminded.

As reported, the “Miriane’ held their first All-Ukrainian Congress in Kyiv on December 24, 2021.

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