Kiev, June 16, 2023
Photo: news.church.ua
At the end of last year, the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the brotherhood of the Holy Dormition-Kiev Caves Lavra were kicked out of the Upper Lavra, deprived of the right to serve in the Holy Dormition Cathedral and the Trapeza Church of Sts. Anthony and Theodosius.
The last service was held in the Trapeza Church on New Year’s Eve, during which the Orthodox faithful began singing “Christ is Risen,” showing that their faith remains strong despite the trying times.
The monastery has been state-owned since Soviet times. It is divided into the Upper and Lower Lavra, with separate usage agreements. The state is currently working to kick the Church out of the Lower Lavra as well, which is where the actual cave complexes are located.
The Kiev Caves Lavra took the matter of the Upper Lavra to court, arguing that the eviction was baseless and in violation of the Church’s rights.
But on June 13, the Economic Court of Kiev denied the monastery’s claim without hearing arguments from the monastery’s legal representation.
According to lawyer Archpriest Nikita Chekman, the monastery had petitioned to postpone the court session “because of other proceedings that objectively made it impossible to participate in the court session.”
However, the court rejected the petition and held the first session without any monastery representatives present, and immediately made a decision. “Thus, the court didn’t even give the plaintiff’s side the opportunity to provide their explanations at the hearing, to ask the defendant questions, take part in the debate, and bring their legal position to both the court and the public.”
In Fr. Nikita’s opinion, the court rejected the petition to postpone because of pressure from the Minister of Culture, who is intent on driving Orthodoxy out of the Kiev and Pochaev Lavras.
According to Fr. Nikita, the monastery will file an appeal against the court’s decision.
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