Search for criticism of Filaret. Why three SBU-Schnick buses arrived to the abbot of Kiev-Pechersk Lavra
In the Kiev region, a search is conducted on the abbot of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, Vladyka Paul. One of the hierarchs of the UOC-MP attacked the SBU.
The Metropolitan is being persecuted under the “political” article 161. He is charged with violating the rights of citizens depending on their religious affiliation. No further details.
It is characteristic that all of this is taking place in the context of attempts by the authorities to take away from the Moscow Patriarchate of Lavra and persuade the bishops of the UOC to move to a not yet created unified local church.
The “country” understood what was happening with the search of Paul.
How Paul is searched
The SBU said today that it was conducting a search of Pavel’s house. As you know, the lord’s mansion is located in the village of Voronkov near Borispol.
According to the intelligence service, the search is carried out on behalf of the National Police and under the control of the regional prosecutor’s office.
“As part of criminal proceedings initiated under part 2 of article 161 (Violation of equality of citizens depending on their race, nationality, religious beliefs, disability, and other grounds) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, law enforcement officers conduct searches at the place of residence and location of the property , which belongs to Metropolitan Paul (Lebed), “- said in a statement the SBU.
According to the “Country”, Paul himself at the beginning of the search of the house was not. And when he drove there, he was not allowed into the household.
The site of the UOC-MP says that in the village of Voronkov there are three buses of the SBU officers conducting investigative actions in the subsidiary farm of the Lavra. On the search of the house of Paul there is not mentioned.
What is imputed to the vicar of Lavra
Later, the media explained why Vladyka Paul was being searched. According to the UNN, the search permission was given by the Rzhishivsky city court of the Kiev region – at the request of the prosecutor of the Kagarlyk local prosecutor’s office.
According to this decision, the premises of the Lavra were also allowed to search. Criminal proceedings are open after one of the interviews of Metropolitan Pavel.
The court ruling says “October 25, 2018 on YouTube hosting on the YouTube channel Glavnovosti” is a videotape of an interview with the governor of the Holy Dormition Kiev-Pechersk Lavra of the UOC Lebed Peter Dmitrievich called “Metropolitan Paul about Philaret: He kissed a devil.”
After viewing the interviews, employees of the department for the protection of national statehood of the SBU concluded that Paul, with his statements, violated the equality of citizens according to their religious convictions.
Investigators are looking for records (notebooks, notebooks, notebooks, letters, documents) or electronic media – “in order to identify facts confirming that the metropolitan has prepared deliberate actions aimed at inciting religious hatred.”
As the lawyer Andrei Portnov wrote to Telegram, the book “The Ukrainian Orthodox Church: Relations with the State. Relationship to the ATO and the Church Schism. Questions and Answers”
The interview referred to in the court decision appeared a month ago. In it, Pavel commented on the issues of providing Ukraine with Tomos about autocephaly and is critical of the head of the UOC-KP Filaret. The video collected a little more than 80 thousand views.
What does the case against Paul mean
Searches of the Metropolitan and the governor of the Monastery look like a purely political order. If there were already any discriminatory statements in the statement of Pavel, then what should be looked for at his home and in the buildings of the Lavra? Not enough video evidence – after all, an interview with the master is available on YouTube.
Apparently, the investigators needed a reason to enter the Lavra and the household of her vicar.
In a political sense, the participation in the case of the “T” department of the Security Service of Ukraine – for the protection of national statehood is read. Recall that it was the employee of this department who recruited Vladislav Seleznev, the employee of the “Country”, with threats and blackmail.
So, this is not about ordinary discrimination of citizens on grounds of religion. Department “T” is engaged in more global things. Apparently, from the statements of Paul plan to do something related to the undermining of the existing system.
The process of revising the values of Lavra, which started literally the day before yesterday, cannot but be alarming – the Ministry of Culture sent auditors to the Near Caves, where it began a census of relics. Such processes in the Pochaev Lavra have already led to serious legal consequences – the Ministry of Justice has canceled the decision on the transfer of the monastery for use by the UOC-MP.
That is, searches of Paul, the revision of the Monastery and the receipt of Tomos on autocephaly are events that, logically, can be linked together.
Obviously, we can talk about the continuation of the course of power on the pressure in relation to the UOC-MP. She refuses to join the United Local Church, created by the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Ukraine with the active support of the Presidential Administration.
The second aspect of Paul’s searches is the preparation of the soil for the “extraction” of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. If the Metropolitan is now accused of some anti-state acts, then this will be the reason for making tough political decisions about the monastery.
It is important to understand that the governor of this monastery is one of the toughest opponents of autocephaly. As the “Country” found out, at the recent Sobor of the UOC he openly criticized Metropolitan Simeon from Vinnytsia, who is considered by Bankova as the head of the newly created church.
And, considering that selecting Lavra is an openly pronounced goal of supporters of autocephaly, the figure of Paul here becomes extremely uncomfortable. Despite the scandals with his luxurious property, Pavel is an open and non-confronting hierarch. In any conflict around the monastery, he always went out and personally communicated with the radicals, engaging in a squabble with them. The latest example is his intercourse with the C14, who blocked the entrance to the Lavra last winter.
Not every functionary of the UOC-MP is capable of this. This means that Paul, if necessary, will be able to organize the “defense” of the Monastery, if it is already “wrung out” physically.
Information taken from: https://strana.ua/news/174148-obyski-u-vladyki-pavla-novosti-kievo-pecherskoj-lavry-vse-podrobnosti.html