The head of the Polish Orthodox Church apologizes to the faithful for sending “brotherly greetings” to Patriarch Cyril

Sawa, the metropolitan of Warsaw and all of Poland, wrote in a letter that “the customary personal telegram with which the Heads of Local Orthodox Churches greet each other on the occasion of ingress anniversaries, name days or birthdays, addressed by me to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, caused a number of comments and aroused anxiety among some of the faithful of the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church.

“Wishing to finally cut off all interpretations of the wording used in the message,” he declared that “he condemned and condemns the criminal invasion of the Russian Federation on an independent Ukraine“I expressed this position in March 2022, appealing to the Russian Federation and personally to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill for its cessation,” he added.

In the letter of Metropolitan Sava we read that “I have repeatedly expressed my amazement and embarrassment with the words spoken by Patriarch Kirill about war in Ukraine“I did not and do not share these opinions and I believe that they do not serve to restore peace in Ukraine and negatively affect the perception of Orthodoxy,” he declared.

“Both I personally, as the Head of the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church, as well as the Episcopate, the clergy and the faithful, support the Ukrainian nation in its pursuit of regaining full freedom, sovereignty and integrity of the country,” he wrote.

“Since the very beginning of the war, as evidenced by both the statements of individual Bishops and all the official documents of the Holy Council of the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church, deliberating under my leadership, we have supported and continue to support the need for the Orthodox Church in Ukraine to become independent,” we read in the letter.

As Metropolitan Sava wrote, “We have repeatedly appealed to His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople to convene a Meeting of the Local Heads of Orthodox Churches in order to make a general Orthodox decision on this matter, resolving the difficult canonical situation, in order to avoid further splits in the pages of Saint Orthodoxy.”

“The Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church has been involved from the very beginning in providing material, pastoral and moral help to refugees from Ukraine, as evidenced by the activity of the Orthodox Charity Center ‘Eleos’ both at the church and diocesan level,” he added.

Metropolitan Sawa argues in the letter that his telegram “was sent only to meet the requirements of the protocol, without taking into account the difficult geopolitical situation.” “The perspective of the last few days and the interpretation of my intentions and words by many in a manner contrary to my intentions shows that I was wrong and the situation required more caution. Therefore, I express my regret that I caused such a big media fuss, exposing the community of the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church to – undeserved pain by her – he wrote.

“In the spirit of the Sunday of Forgiveness of Sins, which is approaching in our Church, I am addressing you, Brothers and Sisters in Christ, as well as all my countrymen: forgive me, a sinner,” he concluded his letter.

Sava sent a letter to Cyril on the occasion of the 14th anniversary of the enthronement of the Moscow patriarch. “The enemy of the faith does not like the stability of the Church – he tries to destroy it. What happened in Ukraine testifies to this,” he wrote in the letter.

“On the occasion of the fourteenth anniversary of Your Holiness’s enthronement on the throne of the Patriarchs of Moscow and all Russia, I send you my most cordial, brotherly greetings and wishes,” he writes in a letter quoted by the Catholic Information Agency.

“During the period of your Patriarchal service, thanks to the efforts of Your Holiness, the Russian Orthodox Church shines with spiritual revival and serves as an example for others. The enemy of faith does not like the stability of the Church – he tries to destroy it. God’s power is great – it is invincible.

Patriarch Kirill is closely associated with the Kremlin and openly manifests his support for the regime Vladimir Putin. He also supports aggression against Ukraine. In January, he warned that “failure Russiaunder current conditions, could lead to catastrophic consequences for all of humanity.”

On Wednesday, he thanked Vladimir Putin for creating favorable conditions for the functioning of the Russian church, which are incomparable to any period in Russian history.

According to Tomasz Terlikowski, a journalist dealing with, among others, on topics of faith and religion, including Orthodoxy, the letter of Metropolitan Sava to Kirill is “not only shameful, but also theologically absurd.” “His text should not only interest Polish services, but also exclude Sawa from meaningful ecumenical dialogue,” he wrote on social media.