UKRAINE-RUSSIA The eviction of the Monastery of the Caves in kyiv began

On the day the Ukrainian government’s ultimatum expires, Orthodox monks loyal to the Moscow Patriarchate began removing material from the compound amid a large police deployment and crowds of praying believers. Soon, other facilities could suffer the same fate. The fear is that the entire Church, with nearly 12,000 parishes across Ukraine, will be outlawed.

kyiv () – According to the kyiv government, the monks of the Monastery of the Caves, under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate (UPZ Church), had to vacate the monastery premises before March 29. This morning the eviction operations began, with a large deployment of police forces, who try to control that objects and furniture belonging to the Monastery, considered State heritage, are not removed.

Since morning hours, a crowd of believers gathered in the courtyard located at the entrance to the monastery but with no intention of demonstrating or protesting. People sang songs and raised prayers in the corners of the courtyard, while the agents kept watch. Several monks began to evacuate the compound, taking some machines with them. When asked by journalists, the religious could not even explain in detail what they were used for: “They are machines, I cannot say what they are for,” replied a young monk while carrying large industrial equipment. It is worth mentioning that in recent years, in addition to the premises for religious services, some spaces were used in the monastery for the production of furniture and equipment, mostly for commercial purposes, as well as machines for printing books and magazines.

Regarding the new destiny of the monastic community, the transfer of the faithful monks to Moscow could be complex. The UPZ will also lose other state-owned facilities that have been raided in recent months. Failure to comply with the rules – and in particular, the use of monastic spaces for commercial purposes – led to the cancellation of the contracts. The autocephalous Church now claims the facilities and could replace the pro-Russian “brothers” in the monastic cells.

In this sense, Dmitry Gorevoj, director of the Center for Religious Security, a private institute for socio-religious analysis, expressed himself. Gorejov explained that two other monasteries dating from the period between the 12th and 17th centuries will soon be evicted: one is located in Chernihiv, and the other is in Počaev Lavra, in the Ternopol region, a 17th-century building; “Both are owned by the Ukrainian state,” he said. Culture Minister Aleksandr Tkačenko reported that “the contract is terminated,” referring to other buildings with similar characteristics, such as the Holy Trinity Monastery in the Rovensk region.

In this way, the UPZ would no longer have properties in the Ukraine. In addition to having lost the state spaces that it used up to now, a general decree could prohibit any form of legal and ecclesiastical link with the Moscow Patriarchate. In the case of the great ancient monasteries, it could be argued that the UPZ has violated the rules of use, together with the accusation of complicity with the enemy. This could culminate in the banning of the entire Church, which has some 12,000 parishes throughout Ukraine.