Kiev, December 31, 2018
Clergy of the Konotop Diocese. Photo: spzh.news Despite the ongoing persecution and propaganda against the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church that is only increasing since December 15’s “unification council,” its dioceses are remaining faithful to it. A number of them have already openly expressed their support for the Church’s canonical status as a self-governing autonomous body and for their primate His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine, and now 3 more have joined them, and 2 have reaffirmed their loyalty again.
The clergy of the Volyn Diocese gathered on December 27 under the chairmanship of His Grace Bishop Nathaniel of Volyn and Lutsk in the Cathedral of All Saints of the Volyn Land. The clergy unanimously expressed their support for Met. Onuphry and their loyalty to the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, reports the Union of Orthodox Journalists.
The same day, more than 100 clergy of the Konotop-Glukhov Diocese gathered and voted unanimously in support of Met. Onuphry, the diocesan chancellor reported to the Union of Orthodox Journalists.
The Konotop-Glukhov Diocese had previously declared its loyalty in late October.
The clergy of the Rivne Diocese also gathered on December 27 for their annual clergy meeting, under the chairmanship of His Eminence Archbishop Panteleimon of Rivne and Sverdlovsk.
During the meeting, the clergy unanimously voiced their support for Met. Onuphry and their allegiance to the canonical Ukrainian Church, reports the diocesan press service.
The bishops and clergy of the Rivne Diocese previously voiced their unanimous support for the Church and its primate on October 19.
The clergy of the Dzhankoi Diocese gathered for their annual meeting on December 28 in the Church of the Tenderness Icon of the Mother of God, under the chairmanship of His Eminence Archbishop Alipy of Dzhankoi and Rozdolne.
The Dzhankoi clergy also unanimously voiced their support for the canonical Ukrainian Church and Met. Onuphry, reports the diocesan press service.
The clergy of the Mogilev-Podolsky Diocese also gathered in their annual meeting on December 28, under the chairmanship of His Eminence Metropolitan Agapit of Mogilev-Podolsky and Shargorod, in the Cathedral of St. Alexander Nevsky in Mogilev-Podolsky.
As the diocesan website reports, the clergy unanimously confirmed their loyalty to the canonical Ukrainian Church and their support for Met. Onuphry.
Recall that it was Met. Agapit who was taken to Kiev by the Security Service of Ukraine under false pretenses the day before the “unification council,” to try to force him to participate in the robber council, though he was able to avoid this spiritual danger.
The same support for the canonical Church and Met. Onuphry has also been expressed by the Dioceses of Uman, Ovruch, Berdyansk, Nikolaev, Nizhyn, Nova Kakhova, Izium, Crimea, Chernigov and Novgorod-Siversk, Kirovograd, Zhytomyr, Lugansk, Mukachevo, Alexandria, Zaporozhye, Kharkov, Voznesensk, Tulchin, Rivne, Kherson, Severodonetsk, Odessa, Dnipropetrovsk, Krivoy Rog, Kamenka, Zaporozhye, and Poltava, and the clergy of the city of Vinnitsa and of the Bar Deanery of the Vinnitsa Diocese.
Of those, the Severodonetsk, Voznesensk, and Tulchin Dioceses reaffirmed their loyalty to the Ukrainian Church yet again following December 15’s scandalous “unification council.”
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