Ukrainian Government Transfers Control of Kiev Church to Constantinople [1]
Ukraine's parliament voted 237 votes to 30 to allow the Ecumenical Patriarchate to use Kiev's landmark Saint Andrew's Church for worship, religious rites, and ceremonies. LocatedĀ in the center of the Ukrainian capital, the church will be transferred to Constantinople for its permanent use free of charge.
Image alignment
Ukraine's parliament on Thursday voted to hand over a landmark Kiev church to the Istanbul-based Ecumenical Patriarchate after it agreed to recognize the independence of Ukraine's Orthodox Church.
The move is seen as a step towards the Constantinople Patriarchate granting independence to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church despite protests from Russia.
Ukraine's parliament voted 237 votes to 30 to allow the Ecumenical Patriarchate to use Kiev's landmark Saint Andrew's Church "for worship, religious rites (and) ceremonies."
Built in the 18th century on a picturesque hill in the center of the Ukrainian capital, the church will be transferred to Constantinople for its permanent use free of charge, but will still be the property of Ukraine.
The church operates as a museum and has not been used for services since 2015. It was previously rented by one of the branches of Ukraine's split Orthodox Church.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, who was the author of the bill, hailed the parliament's decision as bringing the independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church closer.
"Saint Andrew's Church is transferred to the Throne of Constantinople to use as a representative mission," Poroshenko wrote on Facebook, using the old name of Istanbul.
Source: Daily Sabah [2]