ROC hierarch tells Greek media about "ordinations" of Ukrainian schismatics

Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev). Photo: iz.ru

The head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) of Volokolamsk, in an interview with the Greek Romfea edition, spoke about the "ordinations" of Ukrainian schismatics, the website of the ROC DECR reports.

Commenting on the article by the professor of the University of Athens and the hierarch of Phanar, Bishop Kyrillos of Abydos, about the "line of apostolic succession in the consecration of Makariy Maletich", Metropolitan Hilarion noted that Maletich "has succession from the so-called Chekalin ‘ordinations’ and those of former bishop Ioann Bodnarchuk in Lviv region in 1990 ".

Metropolitan Hilarion emphasized that "His Grace of Abydos, in defense of the Chekalin ‘ordinations’, offers three contradicting versions at once."

“At first, he claims that three schismatic ‘hierarchs’ who ordained Makariy Maletich — Dmitry Yarema, Igor Isichenko and Methodius Kudryakov — had ordinations from Mstislav Skrypnik. It is not true. All three were ‘ordained’ after the death of Mstislav Skrypnik, who died in Canada on June 11, 1993. None of them has any succession from either Skrypnik or those ordained by Skrypnik. Of the three persons who "ordained" Makariy Maletich, only Methodius Kudryakov had a conditional ‘succession’ from Filaret. The other two, Yarema and Isichenko, received their ‘ordinations’ from the Chekalin's ‘hierarchy’,” recalled Metropolitan Hilarion.

He also noted that “the Bishop of Abydos admits that Makariy Maletich still has succession from Chekalin's ‘ordinations‘. But he claims that another canonical bishop took part in this consecration – Archbishop of Dnepropetrovsk and Zaporozhye, earlier of Simferopol and Crimea, Varlaam Ilyushchenko. And he refers to an undoubtedly fake document that was once presented by Bodnarchuk."

“This is a very weak version, which was convincingly refuted by the historian Sergei Shumilo. His article "Self-ordained ‘bishop’ Vikenty Chekalin and his participation in the first ordinations of the UAOC in 1990" is published on Romfea website. Moreover, the author sent the text of the article to Patriarch Bartholomew personally. No reply has been received so far,” Vladyka said.

Metropolitan Hilarion recalled that “Bodnarchuk, firstly, recognizes the ‘ordinations’ he performed in 1990 as invalid. And secondly, he confesses that he forged Varlaam's signature on the document with his own hand soon after the archbishop had died and wouldn't have able to refute the forgery."

“I think His Grace of Abydos understands perfectly well that it is impossible to prove the apostolic succession of the Chekalin ‘hierarchs’. Therefore, he puts forward a third line of reasoning – ecclesiological, and it looks even worse. He declares that the issue of apostolic succession is irrelevant when returning from schism. At the same time, he is extremely biased in interpreting a number of historical examples. For example, he mistakenly says that the Melitians were accepted by the First Ecumenical Council without ordination, while the Council’s Epistle explicitly states that they were ‘approved by a more mysterious ordination’ (μυστικωτέρᾳ χειροτονίᾳ βεβαιωθέντας),” stressed Metropolitan Hilarion.

He is sure that all the arguments of the Phanar hierarch allude to the old brochure of Metropolitan Basil of Ankhial, to which "the Synodal Biblical and Theological Commission of the Russian Church has already given an extended and detailed answer."

“We are being actually made to believe that any layman who has been in schism and does not even have apostolic succession can acquire the episcopal dignity with one stroke of the pen. At the same time, the Archbishop of Abydos, referring to hagiographic material of dubious theological value, asserts that the Eucharist can also be performed by a layman,” said the representative of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Met. Hilarion expressed regret that “the Patriarchate of Constantinople did not reveal the necessary interest in the issue of consecrations of the Ukrainian schism. There was no study of archival documents and canonical research: there are attempts to replace it with legends and fakes or hot air rhetoric."

He also said that “back in 1989, before creating a pseudo-hierarchy in Ukraine, the above mentioned Vikenty Chekalin traveled to New York and tried to join the ROCOR, positioning himself as a bishop. But the Synod of Bishops of the ROCOR refused to recognize not only his ‘episcopal’, but also his ‘presbyter's’ rank. After that, the opportunist tried to steal the antimension, the bishop's panagia and liturgical vessels from the altar of the ROCOR cathedral in New York, but he was expelled in disgrace."

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that Metropolitan Hilarion told why the Russian Orthodox Church did not participate in the Cretan Council.

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