10^th anniversary of the primatial ministry of Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine

10^th ANNIVERSARY OF THE PRIMATIAL MINISTRY OF METROPOLITAN VLADIMIR OF KIEV AND ALL UKRAINE

On June 19, 2002, celebrations on the 10th anniversary of the Kharkov Bishops’ Council of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the election of His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine to the primatial ministry took place.

On the occasion of the anniversary, His Beatitude Vladimir celebrated the Divine Liturgy together with 36 hierarchs of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, as well as bishops from Russia, Byelorussia and Moldova in the Cathedral of the Dormition, in the Laura of the Caves in Kiev.

After the liturgy, Archbishop Kliment of Kaluga and Borovsk, first vice-chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, read out a message of His Holiness Alexy of Moscow and All Russia and gave to Metropolitan Vladimir an icon of the Theotokos ‘Fyodorovskaya’.

Metropolitan Agafangel of Odessa and Izmail read out a greeting from the Holy Synod, monastics and theological schools of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

Then a solemn procession with the cross marched to the Far Caves of the Laura in Kiev. In the evening of the same day a ceremony took place, at which His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir and the Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma made their speeches. In his archpastoral address the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church described the anniversary of the Kharkov Council as a feast of universality and triumph of Orthodoxy. Speaking on the problem of the church schism in Ukraine, Metropolitan Vladimir said in particular: “The tragedy we see now is our common one. We love our lost brothers and pray for them to the All-Gracious God that He may turn them to the way of salvation. We wait for them to come back and are sad about them, but trust in the Divine power and believe that Orthodoxy in Ukraine will be united through our efforts with the help of God.”

Addressing the participants of the ceremony, the Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma stressed that the Kharkov Council became an important milestone in religious life of the country. This Council elected Metropolitan Vladimir as Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, whom he described as outstanding religious figure. Touching on the theme of the church schism, the Ukrainian President said that the state should not interfere in internal church affairs and it never sought to do it. The recent past brought out clearly that all attempts to achieve any changes in this issue by force and against the will of the faithful have failed.

The Ukrainian President presented Metropolitan Vladimir with a governmental award – the Order of Yaroslav the Wise, 3rd degree.

On the completion of the ceremony a festive concert took place.