Kiev, August 16, 2024
The Life-Giving Spring Church was renovated by the labors of the monks of the Kiev Caves Lavra. Photo: lavra.ua
Yesterday, OrthoChristian reported that the secular administration that legally owns the Kiev Caves Lavra had sealed and taken another church from the monastery brotherhood and the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
The Lavra brotherhood then published a statement expressing their sorrow over this event. The monks recall that it was the UOC that renovated the church, just as it revived the entire Lavra from ruin.
On the night of August 14 this year, an event occurred that deeply saddened both the brotherhood of the holy Caves Monastery and numerous pilgrims, especially the faithful of the UOC, who participated in the Sacraments celebrated in the church of the Kiev Caves Lavra in honor of the Life-Giving Spring Icon of the Mother of God.
According to the decree of the management of the Kiev Caves Lavra National Preserve, this church was closed and sealed. The brotherhood was permitted to take away the church utensils. Unfortunately, daily services will no longer be celebrated in this church as before.
The church building is located between the Near and Far Caves; the original purpose of the building was a water pump station for the Lavra’s water supply. During World War II, the chapel was severely damaged, its upper tier being destroyed.
In the early 1990s, through the efforts of the brotherhood and benefactors of the Holy Dormition-Kiev Caves Lavra, it was repaired and a church was established here, consecrated in honor of the Life-Giving Spring Icon of the Mother of God. The choice of the church’s dedication was due to the fact that two sources of holy water are located nearby—the wells of St. Anthony and St. Theodosius.
In 2008, the main repair work was completed and the ever-memorable primate of the UOC, His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir, consecrated the altar. In his welcoming speech that day, the abbot of the Kiev Caves monastery, Metropolitan Pavel, noted that, “This joyful event—the consecration of the altar—crowns the hard-working days of the monastery’s monks, who through their efforts carried out comprehensive repair work throughout the church."
In 2016, the primate of the UOC, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry, consecrated the iconostasis and the church appeared in the magnificent form in which it will forever remain in the memory and hearts of thousands of believers. The iconostasis and icon cases shone with gilding, and more space was freed up for worshippers. Thanks to the heated floor, it became possible to pray in the church all year round.
The church became widely known not only to residents of the capital but also to all pilgrims of the Lavra. It was in this holy church that they usually prayed during molebens before the skufia of St. Mark the Gravedigger, participated in the Sacraments of Baptism, Eucharist, Marriage, and ordered other services they needed. To our great sorrow, the right of the brotherhood and parishioners of the Kiev Caves Pray to pray and celebrate religious rites in their churches has again been violated. We hope that statesmen and human rights defenders will protect the rights of Ukrainian citizens to freedom of religion not only in words but also in deeds.
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