Elpidophoros voices solidarity with Ukraine

Archbishop Elpidophoros of America has met with Ukraine ambassador to the United States, Oksana Markarova, in what he described as a sign of solidarity against “Russian imperialism.”

“I visited the Embassy of Ukraine to express to Ambassador Oksana Markarova our support, as Christians, as Greeks, and as Americans, for the people of Ukraine, who are suffering from a Russian imperialism that is manifesting itself at every level: military, economy, energy resources, and the Church as well,” Elpidophoros said.

“It is an injustice to the history and tradition of Orthodoxy, that instead of supporting the sisters and brothers of Ukraine, the Moscow Patriarchate obediently follows the Kremlin’s commands and toes its line, dividing Orthodoxy world over and scandalizing the People of God from Ukraine to Africa, and even as far away as Korea,” he said.

“We welcome the US government’s stance and the recent statement by a State Department spokesman condemning the Kremlin’s ‘malign efforts to instrumentalize Orthodox identity’,” he said.

I visited the Ambassador of Ukraine @omarkarova in Washington, D.C., and expressed our full support for the Ukrainian people. We decry the Kremlin's political and ecclesiastical imperialism and laud the stance of the American government. pic.twitter.com/FDTqJEM8kv

— Elpidophoros (@Elpidophoros) January 21, 2022