According to Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko, the agreement with the UOC-MP was terminated due to a violation of the conditions for the use of state property. But priests argue that there are no legal grounds for eviction.
Until March 29, the religious society of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) is obliged to leave the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, whose premises it rented. The contract was terminated due to violation of the terms of use of state property. This was reported in the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy (MKIP).
“Today, 03/10/2023, the National Reserve “Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra” sent a warning to the Holy Dormition Kiev-Pechersk Lavra (Male Monastery) of the UOC about the termination of the Agreement on the free use of religious organizations of religious buildings and other property that is state property,”— says in the post MKIP.
A religious organization must leave all premises rented in the Lavra. From March 11, an inventory of property and a survey of the technical condition of buildings and structures will be carried out on the territory of the reserve.
The head of the MKIP Oleksandr Tkachenko explained that the contract was terminated due to the violation of the conditions for the use of state property by the UOC-MP.
“Such a warning is justified by the conclusions of the Interdepartmental Working Group, which during its work established a violation by the Monastery of the terms of the Treaty on the Use of State Property,” Tkachenko wrote.
Document published by the Minister of Culture
Photo: Alexander Tkachenko / Facebook
The ministry confirmed the position in a letter. The agreement was signed back in 2013, the UOC-MP used the premises of the Lavra for 10 years.
The reaction of the UOC-MP
On social media, the church reacted to the warning, calling the letter demanding eviction “another ultimatum.” The UOC-MP noted that they did not indicate the legal grounds for expelling monks from rented premises.
“As for the work of the group mentioned in the letter, the content of its conclusions was not reported anywhere, and they were drawn up, obviously, biasedly and in gross violation of legal norms. Therefore, the only reason for the eviction of monks from an Orthodox shrine is only a whim of officials from the Ministry of Culture, just as it was under Soviet rule in the 60s of the last century,” the UOC-MP said.
In a BBC commentary, the head of the outreach department, Metropolitan Kliment, called the reserve’s decision a “provocation”. According to him, the decision “has nothing to do with the legal field of the Ukrainian state.” The metropolitan accused the officials of creating sensations outside the laws.
Recall that the letter on the termination of the agreement on the use of the Lower Lavra from March 29, 2023 was published on the official website of the Lavra.
On February 15, Oleksandr Tkachenko announced that the Kyiv Economic Court ordered the religious community of the UOC-MP to demolish the chapel of the Tithe Monastery of the Most Holy Theotokos, located on the territory of the National Museum of the History of Ukraine. The official explained that the “temple-maf” was built illegally.
Earlier, on December 2, 2022, the Holy Dormition Kiev-Pechersk Lavra was registered as a monastery in the structure of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.
