Authorized ROCOR: Orthodox in the US against the anti-Russian sanctions

Milena Faustova. The clergy and laity of the Russian Orthodox Church outside of Russia (ROCOR) do not support anti-Russian punishment of the US authorities in connection With the events in Ukraine, and the Crisis of political power in this country will become one of the topics of the hierarchical Council of ROCOR, opened on 24 June in San Francisco. About It is told in an interview Last news rector of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in the capital of the USA Archpriest Victor Potapov.

the Commissioner of the ROCA said that the Ukrainian crisis, may be made a separate message of the bishops of the Russian Diaspora.


" We mourn that the two brotherly people are in such a confrontation, which have come to bloodshed. From the beginning of the fall We have introduced in our worship services special prayers, where he asked the Lord to soften the hearts of the people and help the politicians to find a way out of this situation, to prevent bloodshed, " said Orthodox priest.

He added that after the call of the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia Kirill to pray for the victims of the political fall, first adopted prayers have changed." Now We ask the Lord not only to calm the situation in Ukraine, but also praying for the slain ", - added Victor Potapov.

the head of Department has told that in North America very keenly watching the developments in Ukraine." A good part of my parishioners From Ukraine. They have relatives there, and they are distressed for them. We all hope that the joint prayer will be heard, and the crisis will End successfully, " said Potapov.


The priest noticed that the faithful of the Russian Orthodox Church abroad, staying on the square of the USA and Canada, not only do not support those punishments which offer relatively Russia to enter the Western countries and America, but also extremely surprised to see how is the situation in Ukraine in the local media.

" Here is very one-sided coverage of events. It is believed that all the fault of Russia. The West and Ukraine, they say, you want to democracy, and poor Russia stops them, supplying weapons, supports " terrorists ", - explained the Commissioner of ROCOR.

certain North American parishes of ROCOR began collecting humanitarian aid for those who have received the detriment of the civilian population and Ukrainian immigrants." Holy Trinity parish in Toronto gathered insulin for Donetsk. The medicine has already been forwarded to those who are currently in dire need of medical treatment, " continued Victor Potapov. His own parish also decides how and how they can help those in need so that help was not in vain and that they achieved aim ".


at the same time, speaking about today's Church provisions in ROCOR, the Minister said that the spiritual life of the Russian Diaspora In the present time can be described as stable. No schism predicted in 2007 opponents of the reunification of the Russian Orthodox Church abroad and the Moscow Patriarchate, not a speech. Moreover, some of those who once left ROCOR began to return to the fold of the canonical Church.

" citizens are convinced that We still retained its wide autonomy ", - noticed father Victor. He added that the restoration of the canonical communion between the churches was " tremendous phenomenon and result in a 2 wisest hierarchs - his Holiness Patriarch Alexy II and Metropolitan Laurus. God has inspired by this great step. This is just a very big plus for our whole Church ", - explained the head of the Department.

in His vision, of course, there is still a lot of administrative work, for example, on issues of parallel dioceses and parishes, but in General, now all they normally interact and cooperate, while in spiritual unity.


in addition to the Ukrainian fall, the main themes of the Cathedral will be the fifth all-Diaspora Congress of Russian Orthodox youth, who in the days of the Assembly of bishops will be held in San Francisco, as well as the 20th anniversary since the time of chargeability canonized Archbishop John of Shanghai and San Francisco.

" This is probably the most great Saint in the Russian Church abroad. My parish was founded in 1949, when the Saint John arrived in Washington to petition for his flock, stuck on the Philippine island of Tubabao. He, for some time he lived and founded our community ", - explained Victor Potapov.


sections: Politics