By Their Fruits You Will Know Them

In the Gospel of Matthew, Christ warns, “By their fruits you will know them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.” These words resonate profoundly amid the ongoing schism in Ukrainian Orthodoxy, a division that has pitted the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) against the schismatic Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).

This schism is not merely administrative. It’s also spiritual. It invites us to examine the “fruits” of each side’s leaders and monastics. Such an examination reveals stark contrasts that speak to the authenticity and depth of each tradition.

At the helm of the UOC stands His Beatitude Met. Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine, a figure whose life embodies the ascetic ideals of Orthodox monasticism. For thirty years he was a monk of Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius , taking the name of St. Onuphrius the Great. He was consecrated a bishop in 1990 at the age of 46, becoming metropolitan of Chernivtsi before assuming the UOC’s primacy in 2014.

Over decades, His Beatitude has served in various capacities—as a priest, bishop, and metropolitan—always prioritizing prayer, humility, and service. Met. Onuphry's demeanor is one of profound serenity and spiritual depth. He is often described by the faithful as a living icon, eschewing worldly pomp for a life of fasting, vigils, and pastoral care. Even in the face of persecution—seizures of UOC churches, bans on services, and personal attacks, etc.—he responds with calls for peace and forgiveness, mirroring the patience of the early Church fathers.

Indeed, His Beatitude’s holiness is affirmed even by his enemies. Several months ago, the Orthodox Times (a pro-OCU outlet) published leaked statements from a Phanar insider. The source accused Onuphry of lacking “vision”—while, in the same breath, praising him as a “spiritual father” who “tries to keep the Church united and independent from Russia.”

Even this so-called lack of vision is nothing more than a total commitment to the Traditions of the Orthodox Church, untainted by political ambition or worldly ideology.

In contrast we have Epiphanius Dumenko, “primate” of the OCU, who presents a markedly different profile. Born Serhii Dumenko in 1979, he adopted the monastic name Epiphanius upon tonsure in 2007. He was consecrated as bishop of Vyshhorod in 2009 at the age of 30, having spent less than two years in the monastery. Dumenko was ordained a bishop in 2009 and named head of the OCU head in 2018, His rapid rise through the ecclesiastical ranks has been inextricably linked to Ukraine's shifting political scene.

Dumenko spent most of his ecclesial career serving as secretary to Filaret Denysenko, the “patriarch” of an older schismatic group calling itself the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate. Then, in 2014, the Ecumenical Patriarchate, acting at the behest of the governments in Kyiv and Washington, united the UOC–KP with another schismatic body, the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. Together they formed the OCU.

One might assume that Denysenko would be chosen to lead the newly-formed OCU. However, he was passed over in favor of his secretary, Dumenko. Why? Because Dumenko was seen as more pliant, more subservient—more willing to sell out his principles in order to serve his paymasters. And so he has proven to be.

Indeed, Fr. Yaroslav Yasenets, a former OCU cleric, recently told the UOJ that he (Dumenko) is beholden only to the Ukrainian government. A strident nationalist, Yasenets claims he was persecuted by his superiors for resisting the OCU’s liberalizing agenda, which Dumenko is advancing on Kyiv’s behalf.

Dumenko's brief monastic experience left him with a clear lack of spiritual depth. Met. Onuphry’s life reflects the slow, organic, rooted growth of the UOC; Dumenko is a symbol of the OCU’s venal, slapdash, deeply political origins.

These leadership contrasts extend to the monastics each church holds up as exemplars, further illuminating the fruits of their respective paths. Consider, too, the lives of the most prominent monastics associated with each group: the UOC’s Met. Arseniy of Svyatogorsk and the OCU’s Barbara Larin.

Met. Arseniy stands as a beacon of unwavering fidelity to the monastic vocation. Born in 1968, he entered monastic life young, becoming abbot of the Holy Dormition Svyatogorsk Lavra in 1995—a role he has held for 30 years. This ancient lavra, nestled in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region, has endured the war's worst horrors, with Arseniy guiding its community through shelling, evacuations, and sieges. Known as a strict ascetic, he lives simply, emphasizing prayer, labor, and obedience.

Despite imprisonment by Ukrainian authorities in 2023 on trumped-up charges of "justifying Russian aggression," he continues his ministry undeterred, preaching perseverance and faith. His life reflects the desert fathers' endurance: faithful to vows, rooted in community, and bearing spiritual fruit amid adversity. Arseniy's example bolsters the UOC's claim to canonical continuity and resilience.

On the OCU side, one prominent figure is Barbara Larin (formerly known as “Sister Vassa”), an academic and online personality whose trajectory raises serious concerns about monastic authenticity. Born in 1970 in Nyack, New York, to a Russian Orthodox priest and his matushka, Larin entered ROCOR’s Lesna Convent in France and was tonsured as a rassophore nun on March 9, 1998. However, she soon left the structured monastic life to pursue advanced studies in Germany and Austria, earning a doctorate in Orthodox liturgy by 2007.

For the last 25 years, Larin has not resided in a traditional monastery, instead living independently in Vienna with her mother, engaging in scholarly work, and producing “Coffee with Sister Vassa,” a popular vlog series blending catechesis with casual commentary. While her intellect is undeniable, her lifestyle diverges sharply from monastic norms. She travels extensively, meets celebrities and influencers, and focuses on media and academia rather than communal prayer or manual labor.

Whenever anyone criticized her unusual lifestyle, Larin pointed out that she acted with the blessing of her then-superior, Abp. Mark of Berlin. She even referred to her public activity as her “obedience.” And that’s fair enough! However, in January 2025, she was transferred to the supervision of Bsp. Luke of Syracuse: abbot of Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville. Bsp. Luke ordered her to cease her internet activities and return to a convent in order to live a more authentic monastic lifestyle.

Larin refused. It seems she is only obedient when she likes the orders she’s been given.

Larin was defrocked by the ROCOR in later that year for repeated disobedience. The straw that broke the camel’s back was her decision to worship with the OCU, a body that ROCOR regards as schismatic. Larin was immediately “received” into the OCU. Of course, she continues to live in her stylish Viennese apartment and teach at a Catholic university.

These comparisons are not meant to judge or demean anyone. Rather, we are simply following Christ’s warning, “By their fruits you will know them.” The UOC, under the spiritual leadership of Onuphry and Arseniy, produces leaders forged in long-suffering humility, yielding spiritual stability amid chaos. The OCU, represented by Dumenko and Larin, often bears marks of haste, worldly accommodation, and division.

Know them by their fruits.