You're reading: Thousands of Moscow Patriarchate pilgrims gather in Kyiv for tense celebration

More than 10,000 believers from all over Ukraine have come to Kyiv to celebrate the anniversary of Baptism of the Kyivan Rus on July 27.

The
representatives of Ukrainian and Russian branches of the Eastern Orthodox
Church had come to the capital by buses from eastern and western Ukraine to
hold a prayer in the place where the Kyivan Rus adopted Christianity 1028 years
ago.

The prayer
had to be conducted under the severe security measures maintained by the law
enforcers because the prayer and the cross walk that took place for weeks
before the Kyiv gathering, were organized by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of
Moscow Patriarchate.

The church
used to be the most popular one in Ukraine, but now it sparks negative
reactions. It is directly subordinated to the Kremlin-friendly Moscow
patriarch, which isn’t adding it points in Ukraine, which has been in conflict
with Russia for more than two years over Crimea annexation and invasion of the
country’s eastern regions.

The
church’s parishioners started their pilgrimage to Kyiv weeks ago from Ternopil,
400 kilometers west of Kyiv, and Svyatohirsk in Donetsk Oblast, 600 kilometers
east from Kyiv. They faced several attempts to stop them.

When the
procession that moved partly on foot and partly by buses was a few kilometers
away from Kyiv, police discovered several grenades and hoax explosive devices hidden
on the highway ahead of them.

Following
it and afraid of further provocations, police forbade the pilgrims to enter
Kyiv by foot.

“It was too
dangerous, considering the explosives we found,” Khatia Dekanoidze, the head of
the National Police of Ukraine, told the Kyiv Post.

The police
provided buses so the believers could safely get to the place of celebration,
and blocked streets in the city center for safety concerns.

High security

More than
4,000 police and National Guard officers, explosive ordnance disposal teams
with dogs, firefighting squads and
ambulances were placed around the center of Kyiv early in the morning on July
27, turning it into a bastion. Law enforcement officers had cordoned off the
European and Mykhailivska squares as well as the places of the celebration: the
Volodymyrska Girka Park and the Kyiv
Pechersk Lavra Monastery.

The
participants of the celebrations started gathering near the Ukrainian House on
European Square and then headed to Volodymyrska Girka,
or Volodymyr’s Hill, a sacred place for Ukrainian Orthodox Christians, where
a monument to the Prince Volodymyr of Kyivan Rus stands. It was Volodymyr who baptized
the Kyivan Rus in 988.

After
passing the metal detection arches believers started filling the space around
the monument. Men and women of all ages chatted with each other while the
bishops in dark robes were gathering people and forming groups. Some were
holding banners with names of Ukrainian cities and towns.

Not only
Moscow, but also Kyiv Patriarchate parishioners came to Kyiv to celebrate the
Baptism anniversary.

“We had no problems getting here. We launched a pilgrimage
across our native Ternopil Oblast and then took the buses to join the procession in Kyiv,” Bishop Georgiy from Ternopil Eparchy told the Kyiv
Post.

“The police
work very well,” added the bishop. “We’ve
been in touch with them through the whole trip. We had a procession of six buses convoyed by two police cars, and an
officer was inside each bus.”

Some
participants of the pilgrimage, which they call a cross walk, came to Kyiv by foot, but most of them used buses.

Archbishop
Sergiy Veygo told the Kyiv Post that the
participants of the walk to Kyiv had some serious problems on the road.

“You’ve heard about the grenades and different provocations.
We do not understand their
goal,” Veygo said. “People came here to pray for peace. There are no
mercenaries among them.”

According
to him, 10 buses with pilgrims were blocked as they tried to leave Odesa for
Kyiv, and the people had to return to their homes.

The tired
but happy pilgrims who walked to Kyiv by foot had joined the festive prayer in
the afternoon. They could be easily identified by their looks: They were
dressed in travel clothes and shoes and carried
large backpacks.

Yulia
Semchenko joined the walk in Zhytomyr. The pregnant woman walked more than 100
kilometers with her friend Maria. Both women looked happy and satisfied while
singing together during the service.

“I fill no fatigue. That’s good for me and for my baby. God
helped us on the way,” Semchenko told the Kyiv Post.

The celebrations passed peacefully. The believers were attacked only by the heat:
The temperature reached 87 degrees Fahrenheit. More than 100 participants of
the outdoor service sought help from the doctors on the site.

Bad reputation

The Moscow
Patriarchate Church has a controversial
reputation among Ukrainians for several reasons. Its leader, Russian Patriarch
Kirill is a vivid supporter of Vladimir Putin’s politics. He named the Ukrainian
government’s attempts to fight back the Kremlin-supported separatists in the
eastern Ukraine “a fratricidal war.”

The Moscow Patriarchate
bishops’ taste for luxury didn’t help the church’s reputation either.

Ukrainian
journalists reported that the Metropolitan Pavlo, head of Kyiv Pechersk Lavra
Monastery, has several luxury cars and a mansion near Kyiv. His S-class
Mercedes costs more than Hr 2 million, and according to the Interior Ministry,
the personalized number plate on the clergyman’s car costs Hr 20,000 to
register.

The priest reacted
by cursing journalists.

Kyiv Post staff writer Veronika Melkozerova can
be reached at [email protected]