We support the canonical Church in Ukraine and pray for Filaret to come to reason – Hierarch of Antiochian Church

Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch does not encourage any splits and prays for the Church unity. It was said by the vicar of His Beatitude Patriarch of Antioch John X, Bishop Qais (Sadek) of Erzurum in his interview to the UOC Information and Education Department.

“This is deplorable – what has happened in the Ukrainian Orthodoxy. We know about it. It is particularly tragic for the fact that the split was initiated by the man who had led the Church for a long time and who used to withstand various challenges under the Communist rule. Finally, he was the one to have hit his own Church,” said Bishop Qais.

His Eminence underscored that the Orthodox Church of Antioch does not support or favor any schism. “We keep praying for the Church unity. We also believe that having autocephaly – if there is any necessity – must be carried out only canonically, in line with the church canons and generally accepted procedures.”

“Being an ancient Apostolic Cathedra, the Church of Antioch supports the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. We wish Filaret could come to senses and return to the canonical Church so that the split might be further cured in a canonical way,” said the hierarch.