Zelensky meets with church representatives ahead of Christmas and Hanukkah

President Volodymyr Zelensky met with church representatives. Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine

Alvina Kaminska

^{President Volodymyr Zelensky met with church representatives. Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine}

In addition, the President noted that the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations plays a vital role in reporting the truth about Ukraine abroad, especially in fighting Russian propaganda, which uses the church as a tool of influence.

Comments from representatives of religious organizations

• The primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), Metropolitan Epiphanius of Kyiv and All Ukraine, thanked Zelensky for his assistance in adopting the law protecting Ukraine's spiritual independence. He emphasized that representatives of the Council of Churches bring truthful information about the war to the world and counteract disinformation.
• His Beatitude Sviatoslav Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halych, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, noted that the Plan for Internal Stability of Ukraine separately stipulates the activities of religious organizations. He also called for active cooperation between diplomatic institutions and religious communities to support Ukrainians abroad.
• Other religious leaders, namely President of the Ukrainian Bible Society Hryhoriy Komendant, Chairman of the All-Ukrainian Union of Evangelical Baptist Churches Valerii Antoniuk, and Senior Bishop of the Ukrainian Church of Evangelical Christians Anatolii Kozachok emphasized that religious organizations' participation is also important for defending Ukraine's interests abroad.

^{President Volodymyr Zelensky met with church representatives. Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine}

The meeting was attended by:

• Metropolitan Epiphanius, Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU),
• Hierarchs of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC),
• Representatives of the Roman Catholic Church, Protestant denominations,
• Clergy of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

For reference:

It should be noted that the absolute majority of Ukrainians, namely 80%, support the recently approved law banning the activities of religious organizations affiliated with the Russian Orthodox Church.

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