Translated by Ollie Richardson & Angelina Siard
20:12:03
13/02/2019
spzh.news
The Abbot of the Tithe monastery who reported to the US Congress about the persecution of the Canonical Church [Moscow Patriarchate – ed] and the oppression of believers in Ukraine was detained at Boryspol airport [in Kiev – ed].
The deputy of the Tithe monastery of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church [Moscow Patriarchate – ed] and Bishop of Makarovsky Gedeon (Kharon) was detained at Boryspol airport and is going to be deported, reported the secretary of Gedeon, Protodeacon Antony, on Facebook.
“Where he will be deported to is unknown, since he is a citizen of Ukraine. He was born in Ukraine. And at the moment he is deprived of nationality and its unclear where he will be deported to”
reported Protodeacon Antony
He asked for the believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church [Moscow Patriarchate – ed] to pray for bishop Gedeon.
The secretary of the hierarch of the Canonical Church reported to the Union of Orthodox Journalists that the employees of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine had no questions for the deputy of the Tithe monastery.
The detention of the hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church [Moscow Patriarchate – ed] was issued by the SBU, which confiscated from him his international passport and declared it as “lost”, said Protodeacon Antony. Representatives of the Security Service said that Bishop Gedeon lost his Ukrainian citizenship and the issue of his deportation was being sorted out.
On February 5th 2019 the Vicar of the Kiev Metropolitanate and deputy of the Tithe monastery of the Nativity of the Theotokos, Bishop of Makarovsky Gedeon (Kharon), informed the US Congress about the facts of discrimination against the Canonical Church coming from the authorities of Ukraine. Bishop Gedeon also gave the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and American congressmen the official appeal of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church [Moscow Patriarchate – ed] in which the Church asks to consider the cases of violation of the rights and freedoms of believers.
Then, when asked by the journalists whether the Ukrainian authorities would put more pressure on the Church and on the bishop himself after his speech in the US Congress, the Bishop replied by saying that anything could happen. But he added that he hoped that with the help of the Government of America the situation would stabilise.
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