Poroshenko: There will not be a State Church in Ukraine

The state has fulfilled its mission in the religious issue and will not intervene in ecclesiastical affairs, said the President. President Petro Poroshenko, speaking before a prayer service on St. Sophia Square in Kyiv on October 14, stressed that there was not, is not and will not be a state church in Ukraine and no one will be forced to visit the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. “There was not, is not and will not be a state church in Ukraine. No one will be forced to visit the church consecrated by the Tomos. Once again I emphasize that this is a free choice for every believer. I guarantee that the authorities will respect the choice of those who decide to stay in the church structure, which preserves unity with the Russian Orthodox Church”, said Poroshenko. The President added that the state will protect the rights of those priests and believers of the UOC of Moscow Patriarchate who voluntarily decide to leave Moscow in order to create, together with other Orthodox, a unified Ukrainian Orthodox Autocephalous Church. “The development of the independent Ukrainian church cannot be a basis for discord, confrontation, and violence. Anyone urging the “capture” of a church or a temple would likely be an “agent of Moscow”. We will not allow the Kremlin to start a religious war in Ukraine” Poroshenko noted. The President stressed that in general, the state has fulfilled its mission in the religious issue and now, there are internal questions that the secular authorities cannot intervene in. “We received good news from Constantinople. Now, there are internal questions that the secular authorities cannot and will not intervene in”, Poroshenko said. Source: korrespondent.net