OCU Hierarch Says January 7 Nativity Will End With UOC Believers’ Death

Zinkevych. Photo: Konkurent Volyn

VOLYN, UKRAINE — Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) “Metropolitan” Mykhailo Zinkevych has sparked controversy after stating that observance of Christmas and other feasts according to the Julian calendar will disappear only when believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) die. He made the remarks in a recent interview with Konkurent Volyn.

Responding to a question about when Ukraine would fully adopt the revised church calendar, Zinkevych said, “When those who celebrated the old way die,” likening the process to the biblical account of Moses leading Israel through the wilderness for 40 years. He suggested that the persistence of the old calendar reflects a mindset that has yet to change.

Zinkevych further claimed that UOC faithful “remain in Egypt in their minds,” comparing them to people nostalgic for the Soviet Union. According to him, while the children of such believers may temporarily continue inherited traditions, those practices will eventually fade with time.

Previously, the UOJ reported that a UOC cleric attributed Ukrainian January 7 Nativity feast day to Soviet rule. 

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