Metropolitan Hilarion: By his invasion in Ukraine Patriarch Bartholomew has fulfilled a political order

In his address to the youth in Volgograd, the Russian Federation minister of foreign affairs Sergey Lavrov noted that the Russian Orthodox Church “is experiencing now a very strong pressure from western states, primarily the USA, who set their minds to destroy the unity of world Orthodoxy”.

Making on the air of the Church and the World program his comments on the topic raised by the head of Russia’s MFA, the chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk suggested to have a look at the fruits of the external policy of the USA: “Unfortunately, the American policy very often resorts to the well-known principle ‘divide and rule’. That is to say, the stake is made on dividing, on deepening the conflict. We also see it in the Middle East and in Ukraine. And the Russian Orthodox Church - as a power called by her very nature to consolidate people, including in various countries, rather than to divide them - is for the United States a geopolitical opponent, whether we want it or not. Therefore, there is an opinion in the USA that the Russian Orthodox Church should be weakened, dismembered”.

According to His Eminence Hilarion, precisely this order was fulfilled by Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople by his invasion in Ukraine. “He has worked off the order to the full: today, the Ukrainian society is divided not only on the grounds of language, on the grounds of political orientation, but also on religious grounds”, the DECR chairman stated, “Patriarch Bartholomew promised to heal the schism but what happened is its deepening; he promised to unite Orthodox believers but instead of unification there is further disunity and polarization”.

Being guided by the divide and rule principle, it is impossible to achieve either unification or consolidation, the archpastor stressed. “The Russian Orthodox Church plays the consolidating role throughout the post-Soviet space”, he reminded the audience, “Even in a situation when conflicts arise between states, the Church continues uniting people, and this is why she is a thorn in the side of the politicians who use the divide and rule principle”.

Speaking about the Church’s response to the actions aimed against her, Metropolitan Hilarion said, “She responds just as she has always responded: she continues to fulfil her salvific mission of bringing the word of the Lord Jesus Christ to the world, to unite people, to remind them of love, faith and that it is impossible to build on disunity a lasting civic peace, and most importantly, that along with material values there are spiritual values in the life of the human being. She reveals to each one a dimension of life that can be opened only through one’s communion with God”.

DECR Communication Service

Print publication

Metropolitan Hilarion: By his invasion in Ukraine Patriarch Bartholomew has fulfilled a political order

Patriarch

Department Chairman

Sermons

Patriarch

Department Chairman

Sermons