tensions in kyiv on the eve of Easter, monks accused of being close to Russia

This Easter, Ukrainian Orthodox Christians can get together much more easily than last year because the curfew applies only at night. I’Echurch is a reflection of the tensions between kyiv and Moscow. Some parishes follow the Moscow rite while others have long since taken on their autonomy. In recent weeks, many parishes have cut ties with the Moscow Rite, sometimes with violence. The Ukrainian president threatened with expulsion the monks accused of being too close to Moscow.

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The biggest tensions are in kyiv, at the Lavra of the Caves, a vast thousand-year-old sanctuary classified by Unesco. In a burst of voice, Irina, annoyed, turns on her heels. “It is the largest shrine in the Orthodox world”, launches the head of the heritage conservation center who has just been refused access to the monastery by a faithful. She had to, with her colleague Alexandre, check the inventory before the Easter crowds.

“I’m afraid of bloodshed”

“It surprises me that people react like that when it’s just our job to preserve monuments that are over a thousand years old, laments Irina. These clashes are artificial. All these clashes, tensions, prohibition of entry, blockages, this is not the right solution. The religious representative must be an example and not a hooligan.”

Each camp observes each other calmly. Police officers wear mediator armbands, opponents of the presence of monks hang caricatures of Metropolitan Pavlo pledging allegiance to Vladimir Putin. Makary, a priest of the Ukrainian church, approves the request for expulsion but regrets the tensions. “I’m afraid of bloodshed, he explains. There are fools everywhere, we saw people with knives and brass knuckles. But why come here with this when these are peaceful protests?

“We are awaiting the judgment of the court”

In the church, the faithful crowd around the Holy Shroud. Many accuse the media of false information. They will prevent any attempts at expulsion, says Archimandrite Pafnoti. “The tension does not fall. We have appealed the decision of the Ministry of Culture, we are awaiting the judgment of the court and then we will see. In these holy days, we know that Christian life has always experienced such cataclysms, and we are not surprised by what is happening today.” Exceptionally this year, the Easter Vigil will begin earlier and end at 5 a.m. at the end of the curfew.