Amsterdam: There's no religious freedom in Ukraine, Pat Bartholomew deceived

Photo: Meeting of Patriarch Bartholomew with the Ukrainian delegation. Source: Office of the President

Robert Amsterdam, the head of the international law firm Amsterdam & Partners LLP and a defender of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), claimed that Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew was deceived by Ukrainian authorities and prevented from learning the truth about religious freedom in Ukraine.

This was how the American lawyer responded to the statement made by the Office of the President of Ukraine regarding the results of the urgent visit by the Ukrainian delegation to the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

Amsterdam doubted that Patriarch Bartholomew could support the "spiritual independence" announced by Zelensky, a "euphemism for the state-ordered destruction of a one-thousand-year-old religious denomination". He noted that "it is inconceivable that the bishop who ranks 'first among equals' in Eastern Orthodoxy condones what is taking place in Ukraine."

He listed the consequences of Zelensky's and Viktor Yelensky's policies: UOC priests have been arrested on false charges and are being held without due process; UOC churches have been seized by the state and the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), and after these seizures, the churches are left closed, with parishioners being denied entry. The lawyer also reminded that the controversial law 8371 is to be passed next week, which, according to him, is a blatant violation of international law regarding freedom of religion.

"I fail to believe His All-Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew supports this torrid state of affairs. I can only conclude that His All-Holiness has fallen prey to the intrigues of the Ukrainian authorities and has been prevented from learning the truth about religious freedom in Ukraine. Given his signal role in the attack on the UOC, Viktor Yelensky is likely to blame. He has proved to be a biased and injudicious figure, who desires nothing less than the total destruction of the UOC," Amsterdam concluded, noting that even within the President's administration, some describe Yelensky's working style as outright indulgence in the interests of the OCU and manipulation of facts.

"His All-Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew is of advanced age, and I have grave fears that he is being held hostage to plans that have spiralled out of control. His decision to grant the OCU a tomos of autocephaly created divisions not just in Ukraine, but in global Orthodoxy too. These splits have since only grown and are far from being healed. If it is true that His All-Holiness intends to provide cover for the Ukrainian government’s attack on the UOC, then he is in grave danger of becoming an accessory to the violation of the freedom of religion in Ukraine. Should he pursue this course, His All-Holiness will sacrifice not just his reputation, but the future unity of Eastern Orthodoxy," Amsterdam concluded.

He added: "The statement issued this morning in Kyiv is a fabrication, pure and simple." 

As reported by the UOJ, during his meeting with the delegation of Ukrainian officials and representatives of the OCU, Patriarch Bartholomew expressed his support for President Volodymyr Zelensky's initiatives regarding the "spiritual independence" of Ukraine.

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