Divine Liturgy is celebrated at Dormition Cathedral of the Kiev-Caves Lavra on the day of 30th anniversary of His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry’s consecration

On 9^th December 2020, the day of episcopal consecration of His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and All Ukraine, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the Cathedral of Dormition of the Lavra of the Caves in Kiev.

Concelebrating with His Beatitude were Metropolitan Agafangel of Odessa and Izmail; Metropolitan Mark of Khust and Vinogradov; Metropolitan Feodor of Kamenets-Podolsky and Gorodok, chairman of the ecclesiastical court of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC); Metropolitan Pavel of Vyshgorod and Chernobyl, abbot of the Lavra of the Caves; Metropolitan Mitrofan of Lugansk and Alchevsk, chairman of the UOC Department for external church relations; Metropolitan Antony of Borispol and Brovary, chancellor of the UOC; and the assembly of bishops and clerics.

Special prayers were lifted up for stopping the spread of coronavirus epidemic, for medical doctors and for ill persons.

After the Liturgy Metropolitan Antony read out congratulatory addresses from His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and from His Beatitude Metropolitan Rastislav of the Czech Lands and Slovakia.

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill acknowledged Metropolitan Onufry’s efforts undertaken for consolidation of canonical Orthodoxy in Ukraine and wished His Beatitude ‘enduring strength, abundant God’s aid and success in his future primatial labours.”

The address of the Primate of the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia read: ‘It is with humility and patience that you are carrying out your ministry, advocating and protecting the unity of the Church at the hard time in modern history.

On the day of your personal joy and joy of the whole Ukrainian Orthodox Church, I prayerfully wish Your Beatitude the inexhaustible God’s help in your primatial labours and prayerful support of your Ukrainian flock and of all the saints who have shown forth in the saved by God land of Ukraine!”

Metropolitan Agafangel greeted His Beatitude on behalf of all bishops of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, noting with appreciation Metropolitan Onufry’s contribution to the cause of the firm establishment of the Church.

The UOC Holy Synod awarded Metropolitan Onufry with the Order of Ss Antony and Theodosius of the Caves, 1^st class.

The Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church thanked bishops, clerics and all those present for congratulations and gave them his archpastoral blessing, saying: “I thank God for your today’s  prayers for me, a sinner, and I ask you to pray for me in future, asking  the Lord to help me fulfill the commandments of Christ and walk in His paths. May the Lord bestow his blessing on all of us.”