The ROC is afraid of the abuse of the relics of saints in the Kiev Pechersk Lavra

As stated in Department of External Church Relations (DECR) Of the Moscow Patriarchate, in Soviet times similar surveys were accompanied by desecration of shrines.

"Considering that the Minister of Culture of Ukraine Tkachenko called the incorruptible relics of the holy Fathers of Kiev-Pechersk as "cultural values" and "museum exhibits", the method of determining the safety of these shrines is of concern", - RIA Novosti quotes the DECR appeal.

According to representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church, "in totalitarian Soviet times, atheistic authorities widely conducted campaigns to open relics to show their state of preservation".

The removal of veils from the relics of saints and their display in museum showcases in the ROC is considered an "outrage". In addition, the dissatisfaction of the clergy was caused by the fact that in order to conduct a survey of the safety of the shrines, the caves of the lavra, where the relics of the deceased rest, were closed to the faithful. Such actions of the Ukrainian authorities in the ROC were called "an unprecedented manifestation of the restriction of the rights of Ukrainian believers".

The conflict over the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra broke out in December 2022, when the Ukrainian authorities announced that representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) should leave the premises rented from the national reserve "Kiev-Pechersk Lavra". They were leased to the UOC, the term of which expired at the end of 2022. After a series of searches in the lavra and accusations of smuggling church valuables against the abbot of the lavra, the agreement between the reserve and the UOC was decided not to be extended, and the monks of the UOC were ordered to leave the territory of the lavra by March 29. The brethren, in turn, expressed disagreement with the eviction. The monks of the UOC were supported in Moscow. A separate video message on the situation in the lavra was recorded by the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill.