By Kostas Onisenko
The behavior of the former head of the Kiev Patriarchate, Filaret, is causing problems in the newly formed Autocephalus Church of Ukraine.
In an interview published today on the well-known Ukrainian website Apostrophe, Filaret said he would appeal to the Ecumenical Patriarch to request a new Tomos of Autocephaly since the existing one -according to the Honorary Patriarch of the Ukrainian Church- creates dependencies on the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
The hierarch, despite agreeing at first to annul the so-called Kiev Patriarchate and being in favor of receiving the Tomos of Autocephaly, later changed his mind and began subversive proceedings against the newly formed Church, mainly with statements in the Media, even in Russian ones.
In today’s interview, Filaret states that he wants to ask for a different Tomos of Autocephaly, with which -as he says- a Ukrainian Patriarchate will be established instead of a Diocese. He points out that in its current form, the Church of Ukraine cannot have parishes in other Ukrainian-inhabited countries, nor it can sanctify the Holy Myrrh on its own.
The first reactions of the Ukrainian public to the interview are mainly condemnatory regarding the role that Filaret has chosen to play, however, several media, and especially those that are indirectly close to Moscow, reproduce his statements.