Ministry of Culture Threatens Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
Thursday, January 23, 2014 at 07:04PM
Wade Kusack

The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine has threatened the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) with a lawsuit and loss of its status as a religious organization if it continues its participation in the Euromaidan protests. The participation in question is the participation of some of the church's priests in peaceful anti-government protests in Kiev's main square. 


"We always were, are, and will be with the people," stated Svyatoslav, the head of the UGCC. "We never encouraged or blessed any unlawful acts. We always encouraged citizens to obey the laws of their land, Ukraine, in accordance with God's law, and therefore, the doctrine of the Church.The Church is not a member of the political life, but it is an integral part of civil society. We believe that praying for peace together with those who peacefully demonstrate a desire to live in a state of law is appropriate. It does not require a special permission from the government," Svyatoslav concluded. 
You can read the original story in Ukrainian here.

 

Article originally appeared on (http://www.a18a.org/).
See website for complete article licensing information.