VINNYTSIA DIOCESE OF UPTs IS NOT COMMENTING ON NEWS MEDIA ARTICLES ABOUT ADMINISTRATION'S PLAN TO MAKE ITS METROPOLITAN THE HEAD OF THE NEW CHURCH
Interfax-Religiia, 6 November 2018
In the Vinnytsia diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, articles in the Ukrainian news media to the effect that its ruling bishop is considered by the authorities of the country to be one of the candidates for the post of head of the "united local church" are considered unsurprising, although these reports are not seen as "grounds for comment."
"There is nothing surprising in the fact that the name of Metropolitan Simeon once again is being mentioned in the context of events that are accompanying the granting of autocephaly to the Orthodox church in Ukraine," a statement of the diocese sent to Interfax says.
In the diocese it was explained that four years ago, when after the death of Metropolitan of Kiev Vladimir a new head of the UPTs was elected, Metropolitan of Vinnytsia and Barskoe Simeon was in third place in the elections, although "neither church nor secular administrative resources took his side."
"Therefore it is not surprising that it is his name that journalists now are mentioning," the statement says.
In the diocese also it is not considered that the good relations with the authorities, of which the metropolitan of Vinnytsia is being accused, are a shortcoming.
"Are bad relations with secular authority really the required evidence of spirituality?" the authors of the statement ask, noting that it is the position and vigorous actions of Metropolitan Simeon in the past four years that have avoided many conflict situations.
"At the same time, Vladyka Simeon consistently defends the interests of the church," the Vinnytsia diocese emphasizes, because it is "very difficult in conditions of war, when the UPTs is explicitly called the 'fifth column of the enemy,' to maintain the authority of his church on a high level."
"Returning to the informational wave which was caught by both the Russian national and regional and even some foreign news media, we repeat that such a reaction by journalists is expected, taking into account the memory of past elections in the UPTs. In essence, the very report that is being replicated so massively, in our view, is not sufficient grounds for comment," the Vinnytsia diocese sums up. (tr. by PDS, posted 6 November 2018)
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