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Kiev-Pechersk Lavra vicar says he was offered freedom in exchange for defection to PCU

On Monday, the Solomensky District Court of Kiev extended Metropolitan Pavel's house arrest by 60 days

MOSCOW, May 29. /TASS/. The Metropolitan of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) Pavel, the head of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, has said that Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople called him and suggested that he and the monastery’s brethren join the schismatic Orthodox Church of Ukraine (PCU).

According to the Ukrainian online media resource Strana during Monday’s court session on extending Metropolitan Pavel's preventive house arrest, he said that Patriarch Bartholomew promised that all charges against him would be dropped, if he agreed to direct subordination to the head of the PCU, Epiphanius.

The media outlet notes that the schismatic organization has not yet confirmed this.

On Monday, the Solomensky District Court of Kiev extended the house arrest of the Metropolitan of Kiev-Pechersk Lavra by 60 days. Metropolitan Pavel's defense team has already announced that it will appeal the decision.

At the end of March, the authorities broke the lease of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra with the UOC and demanded that the monks leave the monastery. The monks of the UOC refused to obey the illegal demands. Both sides appealed to court. On April 1, the Security Service of Ukraine charged Metropolitan Pavel with inciting religious hatred and justifying Russia’s actions. A search was conducted in the rooms on the territory of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra where he resided. On the evening of April 1, the court sentenced the monastery’s vicar to house arrest for 60 days.

Metropolitan Pavel was obliged to serve his arrest with an electronic bracelet far from the monastery at his place of residence in the village of Voronkov, the Borispol district of the Kiev Region (42 kilometers away from the monastery). Metropolitan Pavel had asked the judge to let him stay in the monastery or allow him to attend religious services in Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. The court refused to sustain the defense's request for letting Metropolitan Pavel to attend the services.