Statement of the Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern Christian Studies Regarding the Meeting of Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill of Moscow in Cuba

The
Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern Christian Studies at Saint
Paul University in Ottawa, Canada, welcomes the announcement of the Holy
Father’s meeting with Patriarch Kirill in Cuba this Friday, February 12. We
consider this an opportunity for Pope Francis to raise important issues that
have been of grave concern to Eastern Catholics and many others for more than
two decades. Among these issues, beginning with the most recent, are the
following:

1     
The support by representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate for the Kremlin’s
aggression in Eastern Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea.


The violation of
the territorial integrity of Ukraine is contrary to all international law, in
particular, the Budapest Memorandum of 1994 to which the Russian government was
a signatory. We believe that as a Christian institution the Moscow Patriarchate
is obliged to challenge the Russian government’s violent activity in Ukraine,
activity that has led to the death of thousands of innocent civilians.

2     
The Moscow Patriarchate’s promotion of the notion of a “Russian World”
(Russkii Mir).


This notion has provided an ideological foundation for the
Russian government’s aggression in Ukraine. The idea of a “protectorate” to be
exercised by Russia within Ukraine and other sovereign countries has hampered
inter-ethnic harmony and understanding. It evokes the Russification policies of
the USSR.

3     
The Moscow Patriarchate’s continued misrepresentation of ecclesiastical
events in Ukraine.


Frequently, the free and legitimate desire of Christians in
Ukraine to choose which Church they belong to, is portrayed by the Moscow
Patriarchate as the run counter to the separation of church and state in
Ukraine. In fact, it is the Moscow Patriarchate’s false or exaggerated
accusations of violence that engender hostility among Christians who might
otherwise resolve these issues of ecclesial allegiance with far less rancor.
The Moscow Patriarchate should be apprised of the fact that in Ukraine her
desire to maintain the kind of privileged status that it enjoyed under
Communism is harmful to its own interests – not to mention the proclamation of
the Gospel.

4     
The Moscow Patriarchate’s claims against the Ukrainian Greek Catholic
Church.


Since the emergence of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) from
the underground in 1989, the Moscow Patriarchate has consistently made
mendacious accusations against the UGCC. These began with claims of “violent
take-overs” of parishes in Western Ukraine and continued with false reports of
proselytism, which have never been substantiated. Meanwhile, the parishes that
chose to break with Moscow in the early 1990s were all parishes that had been
part of the UGCC until 1946. In that year the Soviet government, with the
complicity of representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate, forcibly liquidated
the UGCC throughout the USSR. The unwillingness of the Moscow Patriarchate to
honestly discuss these matters is another impediment to the healing of
memories, promoted so eloquently by Saint John Paul II. Moreover, every time
that the Moscow Patriarchate has been asked to provide a list of the victims of
violence – with medical reports etc – it has failed to do so.

5     
An unwillingness of institutions associated with the Moscow Patriarchate to
publicly study the events of March, 1946 in an objective manner.


Next month
marks the 70^th anniversary of the Pseudo-Synod of Lviv of 1946. It
was at that gathering that the Soviet government declared the Ukrainian Greek
Catholic Church illegal. This led to the forced deportation of tens of
thousands of Catholics and the countless deaths of those who refused to leave
the Catholic Church and join the Russian Orthodox Church. In view of the
constant misrepresentation of these events by representatives of the Moscow
Patriarchate, last year the Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern
Christian Studies invited an academic institution with ties to the Moscow
Patriarchate to cosponsor an international conference on the events of 1946.
The conference would have provided an excellent opportunity for both sides to
objectively and fairly study the facts. The request fell on deaf ears.
Consequently, we ask His Holiness, Pope Francis to propose such a conference to
Patriarch Kirill, and hereby assert our desire to cooperate in its realization.
We believe that such a conference could foster the “Dialogue of Truth”
suggested by the Balamand Statement of 1993. It would also provide an opportunity
for Eastern Catholics and Eastern Orthodox, more specifically, Ukrainian Greek
Catholics and Russian Orthodox, to move in the direction of a broader dialogue.
We hope that Patriarch Kirill’s willingness to overcome the reluctance to meet
the Pope – a reluctance that has inevitably led to the perception that the
Moscow Patriarchate fears the truth and avoids open dialogue – will also lead
to a willingness to confront the issues listed above in a fair and truly
Christian manner. The cause of the Gospel and the credibility of Christ’s
Church can only benefit from such dialogue – if the dialogue is indeed sincere
and open.

It is
reported that among the chief aims of the meeting of Pope Francis and Patriarch
Kirill will be to discuss support for the persecuted Christians of the Middle
East. The Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern Christian Studies
is truly gratified to hear this. We believe that the suffering of our Christian
brothers and sisters in the Middle East has been virtually ignored in some
circles, including certain Western governments. In conclusion, we shall indeed
be praying for God’s blessing on this historic meeting between the Pope and
Patriarch. We ask that the Spirit of Truth guide all those involved in this
meeting and those reporting on it. May that Heavenly King indeed come and dwell
within us and purify all our intentions and actions (cf. Byzantine-Rite Prayer
to the Holy Spirit).