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². AUTONOMY
1. Each nation has the rright to have its Autocephallous Church (34 Apostle rule) .
Each Church should be adapted to folk character and nationality of that region in which it, this Church exists (17th rule of the IV Ecumenical Synod, 38th rule of the VI Ecumenical Synod).
2. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church from the time of its foundation in 988 till the year of 1686 was independent. It had its own church structure, its control system, that is it was actually autocephallous though it didn't have its Patriarchy and Metropolitans, for it they were consecrated by Constantinople Patriarchies in accordance with the 28th rule of the IVth Ecumenical Synod.
3 In the Orthodox east of Europe the Ukrainian Church is Church-Mother because It brought Christ's faith to Moscow region, Belarus and Lithuania and founded Churches for them and influenced them voluntarily for a long time.
4. During the whole time of its independent existence the Ukrainian Orthodox Church being by its inner essense the part of the United Soborna Orthodox Church was independent by its outer form.
It lived on the basis of Holy Writ and Canons as the other Orthodox Churches, by its national life, its traditions, its ideology which were formed during these ages.
5. By Holy Writ and common truth of Apostle rules and rules of Ecumenical Synods and in accordance with the demands of historic-national life of its people the Ukrainian Church during seven hundred years of its independent existence created a lot of such peculiarities which do not exist in neighbouring Orthodox Churches. At the beginning of its development it had Holy Writ in well understable language as Ostromyrov Gospel written in Kyiv in 1056, Kyiv Gospel written in 1092 and others. Since the XVI century it had a lot of translations of Holy Writ into a true Ukrainian language, for example a well-known Peresopnytske Gospel of 1556, New Testament of Nevalevsky of 1581, Krekhivsky Apostle of 1560 and others. There were many the so-called Teaching Gospels which were read at the churches during the masses by alive Ukrainian language. The Holy Writ in an anderstandable language . christinized our nation, strengthened it spiritually and by this it allowed to reject the views later on, when a foreign hostile force passed to the offensive on its religious - national ideology, its spiritual originality.
6. The violence of high society (Moscow and Turkish governments) and foreign church power the Ukrainian Church was joined in 1686 to Moscow Church against the will of clergy and people of Ukraine and canons.
7. After enslavement the Ukrainian Church kept for a long time its religious-national ideology, struggled for it and only in the XVIII century began to quickly lose it inder pressure of the Russian government through the so-called Holy Synod. .
8. The Ukrainian Church never agreed to lose its independence and when liberation days of its people came in the events of 1917 it freed from Moscow domination. Holy Spirit and general strike pf the Ukrainian people showed the way to it how to free from formal forms of the church life that had as its content not the alive understanding of Orthodoxy but a dead letter . In the Russian chuch which completely served to the high society power having turned into the state institution and had by its Head the tsar (rule 43 of Laws of Russian empire)- there was no place to the alive spirit.
9. In 1917-1919 in Ukraine in all village and governor Church Synods and military meetings the united will of the Ukrainian people had a place aimed at the atocephallous structure of the Ukrainian people.
On the 5th of May 1920 The All-Ukrainian Orthodox Church Council in Klyiv at their Grand Council being guided by the Holy Spirit and the will of the whole people solemnly and unanimously declared the Autonomy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
10. In the October of 1921 the First All-Ukrainian Orthodox Church Synod in Kyiv in an old sacred place - St. Sophia's Cathedral declared that "the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as Autocephallous is a free member of All- world United (Soborna) Orthodox Church and remains in a stable brotherhood with all Orthodox Churches"..
11. By these acts a new era in the history of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church begins, the era of its getting rid of the influence of Moscow, the renewal of its religious - Christian and national ideology which is lost by it in the time of its forced existence after 1686.
12. Getting freed from 235 - year slavery the Ukrainian Church chose its own historical way by which it went during 7 centuries. Remaining on dogmatic bases of the Orthodox Faith It began a new life on the grounds of autonomy, full independence of other Churches, all-nation-wide Sobornist (Catholicism, Unification), brotherhood, and equality of all believers in the affairs of church life and leadership. The prerequisites of the development of these bases only the national ground became because the Ukrainian Church began to renew for the nation and through the nation.
13. In its restored Orthodox Autocephallous Church the Ukrainian people again saw Christ- the Sun of Truth who brough Eternal Truth , brotherhood and love on the Earth. "I was born and came tot he world to witness about the truth, everybody who is from Truth , - listens to My voice" (Ioann 18.37).
14. A great offence- untruth made to the Ukrainian Church in 1686 was acknowledged , though it was late but it was done. Constantinople Patriarchy Gregores VII in his Thomas of 13rd November , 1924 (which was given to the Orthodox Church on the lands of Ukraine under Poland's occupation) as a main argument from the view of illegal joining the Ukrainian Church to Moscow one, wrote:
"In the history it was written that separation from our Altar of Kyiv Metropoly and Orthodox Metropolies of Lithuania and Poland which depended on iIt , (2) and their joining St Moscow Church took place completely illegally not according to canonical rules".
15. In accordance with the practice of its 700 -year (X-XVII centuries) independent life and accordance with the will of the Ukrainian people, shown by church-historic acts of 1917-1921 and on the grounds of Apostle rules and riules of Ecumenical Synods the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is the Autocephallous Church any interference into its life is violence.
16. The interference that the Ukrainian Church suffered after 1686 costs it such a number of victims whom doesn't know any Ukrainian Church in this millenium in the world: 29 bishops . about two thousands and hundred thousands of believers.
We believe that for such interference and those victims the oppressors sooner or later will be revenged by God's Justice because violence over the spirit done to the Ukrainian people is the hardest evil. The blood of victims for Saint Orthodox Ukrainian Church will fall on the torturers (Methew 23, 35, 36).
II. SOBORNIST (CATHOLICISM, UNIFICATION)
"Where there were two or three in my name , there I also am, among them". (Mathew 18.20)
The symbol of Orthodox faith: "I believe ... in Holy Catholic (Soborna, United) Apostle Church"
17. The Ukrainian people accepting in the Xth century Christ's Orthodox Faith in order to gather the whole people of Rus-Ukraine into one strong united family introduced Sobornist (Catholicism, Unification) in its Church bequeathed to the people by Holy Writ and Holy Testament from the beginning of II century.
18. The unification as the system of management and church life where the right of management and solution of affairs have all the members of the Church - bishop, clergy and people that will protect the Church from corruption. The unification being such close for a long time to the democratic principle of our people was one of the main prerequisites of the development, inner strength and magnificence of the Ukrainian Church during the whole time of its independent existence.
19. The highest control body of the Ukrainian Church always was the Ecumenical Synod which consisted of three parts:1. Bishop, 2. Clergy, 3. Representatives from believers. The Ecumenical Synod without any of these component parts of the Church was not considered legal.
20. The Chronicles wrote about the Ukrainian Ecumenical Synods a long time ago. It is known about the Synod of 1147 under the reign of Kyiv prince Izyaslav II (at which Klym Smolyatych the outstanding scientist and public figure by free votes was elected and consecrated by relics of St Kliment as Metropolitan of Ukraine ) and about other Synods.
21. Synods were gathered as far as it was necessary, regional - for the most important affairs as election of Metropolitan and others, bishop - for election of bishops for eparchy , etc.
The bishops were always chosen by the clergy with the believers.
The election of bishops always had good results because between bishops and people there was a strong living connection.
22. In eparchies Eparchial Synods ruled out at which in the majority with the right of decisive vote believers from parishes took part.
Through Bishop Synods bishops learnt out their clergy and belivers.
In eparchies nobody from bishops ruled out independently, nobody from the clergy came to the parishers uninvited.
23. On the basis of St. Letter (The Acts 1.2,15;.22,25; Rym 1.1; Petro 1.10 and others), Holy Canons and Legends all priests and church servants and all members of bishop and other institutions elected in Ukrainian Church . All parishing church power was chosen by the parish itself- it chose the candidate for the senior priest an the bishop blessed him or consecrated. When the church community didn't have their candidate for the senior priest he was appointed by the bishop at the consent of the church community.
24. "The election of church holy orders made the clergy very close with the people and this happened when the Ukrainian church suffered difficult times , especially when it was in the catholic Poland helped it extremely. Without any exaggeration one may say that if the Ukrainian Church had not accepted a wide system of unification legality and election of church holy orders with a great participation of high-society element, it wouldn't have survived catholic attacks in the times of Polish power",- says Archbishop Ilarion (Ohiyenko) ("Ukrainian Church", v.1, p.113).
25. The unification of the Ukrainian Church introduced already in prince's times is legalized by Canons which give the obligatory importance to local church traditions (I Ecumenical Synod 6,7,18; II Ecumenical Synod 2, III Ecumenical Synod 8; IV Ecumenical Synod 30, VI Ecumenical Synod 39 and others). The Symbol of faith teaches:" I believe ... in Single , Holy, United and Apostle Church."
The system of unification existed in the Ukrainian Church till its enslavement by Moscow Church. The domination of one person or a group was not allowed.
26. The practice of the life of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church both from remote and recent times teaches us that participation of the people through their best people in the church direction is the first prerequisite of strength and magnificence of the Church.
27. The Moscow power having got control over the Ukrainian Church in the XVII century coarsely cancelled its unification -legality structure. The "synodal" structure was introduced in which the clergy and people didn't have the vote.
By enslavement of the Ukrainian Church the Moscow government finished the action of full abolition of all democratic rights and freedoms of the Ukrainian people, the action which was begun after cancellation of Pereyaslavsky agreement what was a habitual phenomenon in Moscow's policy.
28. In 1917 when Moscow "church-grave" broke up, the Ukrainian Church arising from it began its new life on the grounds of its past and together with this - on the grounds of unification.
29. The unification legality of the Ukrainian Autocephallous Church showed Its church life ability before God and Ukraine during the guidance of Metropolitans Vasyl Lypkivsky and Mykola Boretsky. In very difficult conditions unknown by the history of the last millenium this Church lived and acted under cruel attacks, similarly to the first Apostle Church , grew and when its sons went as in the first days of Christianity - to death. It existed and brighted with imperishable light of Christ's Truth and with it went to Calvary but didn't die as Vasyl Lypkivsky says: "It is as Christ, Its Head, resurrected from dead, doesn't die more, the death doesn't have the power over it". It resurrected for the second time in the difficult times for Ukraine during the II World War and inspired its people by patriotism. It resurrected for the third time in 1990 before the declaration of independent Ukraine. It will resurrect again for the benefit of Ukraine when we will be all together as Christ's Apostles, (Acts II), clergy and people.
30. The sense of fulfilling a high duty of serving God to conduct services to their people inspired elected by the people archbishops and priests for the Gospel self-sacrifice.
31. The Unification is dear to the Ukrainian people as one of the main parts of its church's ideology. It, this church, cost them victims in the past and numerous victims in recent times. It is consecrated by the blood of bishops, priests and believers as the Church of first centuries of Christianity.
32. The task of every priest and every believer of St. Ukrainian Autocephallous Orthodox Church is to keep its unification as one of its main grounds in order to unite Christ's Church in Ukraine.
It is necessary to remember that we don't prove anything new but create the deed which our ancestors did during centuries in accordance with Holy Gospel (Mathew. 5,17)., 8 rule of III Ecumenical Synod and others, which order to respect and take care for its native thing.
III. NATINALITY
"Better go to lost sheep of Israel's home ".
(Mathew. 10.6)
33. All Orthodox Churches together are the Single- Soborna (Catholic, United)- All-world Church because they are united by the Single Highest Pastor Jesus Christ and have single dogmata of faith based on Holy Writ and guided by Canons of Ecumenical Church Synods ( in that part which does not contradict Holy Writ and preserves spiritual- life expediency till now).
34. By forms of their life, their ideology all Orthodox Churches are national. Each of them has its language of divine services, their traditions and ceremonies, their calendar of Saints and their features in masses, their style of building temples and their art of church painting, their management control, on the whole their own religious-national world, because only in it man can easier learn the true God.
35. Each Orthodox Church respects and keeps its national features of serving to its people according to the teaching of Holy Gospel (Mathew 10.6, 15.24, 23,37; Mark 7.27; Luka 2.32 and others).
36. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church by its inner person is the member of All-world Orthodox Church. But its outer form which is conditioned by the spiritual originality of the Ukrainian people, It is National Church.
37. During more than 7 centuries the Ukrainian Church led its people by the way of Christian-national life. It protected people from a spiritual decay in difficult times of its own state system, thanks to which the people kept themselves nationally in the days of the most violent pressure.
38. The Ukrainian Church taught the Ukrainian people to respect their Orthodox Faith, their traditions, their native language, their culture, love their region, because who doesn't love truly his/her nearest relation, friend, neighbour he is not a true Christian.
In Holy Writ there are many instructive examples of Love to their relations (Neemiya 13.24,25, Mathew 10.14, 15, Luka 24, 21 and others).
39. Till the end of the XVIIIth century the Ukrainian Orthodox Church created the culture to its people. It gave them the education and first written language with wonderful " Word on Law and Grace". of Metropolitan Ilarion and brilliant "Word about Ihor's regiment". The Church created a magnificent church- architectural art and wonderful church song. It helped the people to possess rich national sacred treasures.
40. The clergy of the Ukrainian people till its full enslavement was determined by a high and sincere national patritism, sacrificially served to the native country and in their happy days and days of misfortune. This spirit of Love to the native country and people remained in separate priest families till nowadays despite all pressure of the Rusian government in Ukraine.
41. The Ukrainian monasteries were cultural fires in Ukraine, they served God by the service to their people, but not as in today's times of Moscow breed. Then in the calmness of monasteries , under monk's frocks the hearts of patriots were filled with love to the native Christian region. There, in monasteries our first national legends and our history were written , from where men of great ideas of religious-national and general human ideas came out. No one monastery of Orthodox East gave so many church and cultural figures as a well-known Kyevo-Pecherska Lavra gave till the time of enslavement of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church by Moscow.
42. The national spirit of the Ukrainian Church resurrected in liberation days of the Ukrainian people in 1917. At once there appeared "Pastors who their soul will give for sheep" - (Ioann, 10, 11). Their number multiplied when after three years a horrible danger of decay and abolition hung over the Ukrainian Nation. Preservation of spiritually-national essense of the native people with its cementation on the ground of Christian religion became the first task of the restored UAOC. The realization of that task inspired priests to sacrify in the name of serving the people.
MISSION OF ORTHODOX CHURCH OF UKRAINE
In those days many of those whose hearts suffered for the fortune of the native region and people became pastors. The believers took the participation in the church life . The majority of their part became martyrs for Christ's Truth.
43. "No one Ukrainian organization did so much for national consciousness of the Ukrainian People as The Ukrainian Autocephallous Orthodox Church did",- says Archbishop Ilarion Ohiyenko ("Ukrainian Church and our culture",- The report at Kholmsky Eparchial Synod in 1942", estimating the church and cultural life in Ukraine of that time. And especially the service of the UAOC for Ukraine is high because in 1924 being under the occupation of Poland the Orthodox Church got Thomas about autonomy from the Ecumenical Pastriarchy, Thomas to which a direct, herited relation has our canonical hiearchical branch in order to serve today the Ukrainian people without accusation in non -canonicity and others.
44. Today's state of the life of the Ukrainian people depends very much on the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church responsible for their future. To be on guards of its people, pronounce aloud about their past and modern life, about their right of human being on the presented land by God before all Christian world - is one of the most important task of our Church.
To protect religious-national essence of its believers , to fill the soul of the young generation by belief in God, in full sense of its honesties, to free them from foreign, harmful "ideas", to unite all in United (Soborna) Church as sons of Ukraine, in their consciousness of their purpose before it and readiness to work for good of its people now and during the turn from this great "descend" is the duty of the Ukrainian clergy.
45. To fulfil its high and responsible task the UAOC will be able when It is a creative, advancing and inseparatedly linked with the people. Steadily standing on dogmatic and general-canonical grounds of orthodoxy the Ukrainian Church must clear its church life from foreign influences which happened as a result of a long staying under foreign State and church power.
46. The living native language is the basis of ideology of the Ukrainian Church. It is the closest way to God, Faith and spiritual-national originality. The native language in the Church was cosecrated by descending Holy Spirit on Apostles and blessed by Holy Writ (Acts 2.8,9,10.11; I to Corynt. 14.1-19; Mathew. 28.19; Mark 16.15,17 and others).
"In the Church it is better to pronounce five words clearly that ten thousands words in a foreign language" - says St. Ap. Pavel (to Corynt. 1.14,19). The Church Slavonic language with the Russian pronunciation which was introduced in the Ukrainian Church after 1886 is only the means of denationalization of our people and could be used for the history to be kept in the museum ufter the table (5).
47. In all church divine services, in sermons, in printed word, in all spheres of the church life only native language should dominate - this is the most important point of the existence of the Ukrainian people as a separate nation. Without their native people there are no independent people. This is the truth which does not need any proofs.
48. The language of all church published editions - god-service books, prayer-books, periodics, etc should be literary soborna, easily understandable and simple. The textbooks on religion should be written in an examplary - pure Ukrainian language, in order to teach the language the youth. Everybody who writes should know the Ukrainian literary soborna language perfectly.
49. The clergy of the Ukrainian Church as the educator of the soul of the people should respect their native language and by this educate the respect to it and among believers. In the family and in the church one must use only native language, the priest who uses in his family or in the conservation with the believers the foreign language sins against the Ukrainian people and Church because he undermines the bases of his nation.
50. But it is not enough of native language in the Church in order it was national and spiritual and those are mistaken who consider the Ukrainian Church that one where only divine services are held in Ukrainian and all the rest remains of Russian breed. The Ukrainian Church is the church which turned away from Moscow- pharisee ways to its own historic way which renews its ideal- proper only to the Ukrainian people - the spirit of God's truth, Christian looks, its understanding of orthodoxy in its living content but not in the letter ( according to teaching of St Apostle Pavlo - "A letter kills but spirit brings back to life"). The church which renews its national features and properties , its calendar of Saints ( each Orthodox Church has its own calendar) , its local prayers introduced by epochal "Prayer-book" of Metropolitan Petro Mohyla - 37 holy orders, its customs in divine services ( the Gospel is read in front of the people), Eucharist communions are read aloud, before "Believe" the address to the believers with the words " Christ is among us" and so on) , its ancient magnificent song, its ceremonies. It is necessary to remember that old Ukrainian religious ceremonies are full of content and beauty, they always had an educating importance , that is why they must be renewed it is necessary to restore all that during seven centuries (from X till XVIII) formed the religious consciousness of our people, made them godlike and strengthened their spiritually and nationally.
51. Nationality of the Ukrainian Church as we see is not "Ukrainization", such understanding of the historical view would be quite untrue but the return to its sound root. "The fortune of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is connected not with guiding its energy to scornful, sometimes very materialistic by its tendencies 'ukrainization' but with inside spiritual religious rise. And this religious rise will undoubtedly bring great benefit for Ukraine, because it will be called by its people who will be Ukrainians not only by their material tendencies but by their inner ideal and spiritual strength"
(V. Lypynsky "Religion and Church in the history of Ukraine", p. 98).
52. The Ukrainian Church by its inside content, its understanding of Christ's teaching always radiated into all sides and the beuty of its national forms - architecture, splendour of icons, wonderful songs, godlike and modest behaviour of believers during divine services surprised all foreigners by its ceremonies , as we know this from historical documents.
Love of the Ukrainian people to Church, their reliigiosity were known all over the whole Europe. Everybody from prince or hetman to commoners on Sunday and Holiday were in Churches.
53. To renew beneficial Christian traditions of the Ukrainian people, rise them to the former level of magnificence and beuty the UAOC will be able only on the national ground. Because these traditions grew from the bases of natioanl essense of the people in the spirit of Christianity , therefore by this spirit they have to be renewed. This renewal will begin as sooner as quicker the conductors will act filled by their own spiritual value and understanding of the sense of these traditions.
54. To renew the Ukrainian Orthodoxy , that is created by centuries (X-XVIII) on the national ground the world of Christian life of the Ukrainian people in accordance with modern life demands is one of the most important tasks of the Ukrainian Autocephallous Church.
IV. INDEPENDENCE OF HIGH-SOCIETY POWER
55. The Church is the the institution of God, Creator of Universe in the eternity. God's temple is for man a quiet place among "worldy sea, agitated by the storrn of misfortune".
Only in the temple in the hours of sorrow man finds calming and joy of the soul that means that Heavenly Kingdom is inside us. The Church blesses man's life from the day of his/her birth till the act of transition into the beyond and for the eternity of the soul prays to God.
56. The Church must be neither state nor under the influence of the state. It is higher over material earthy affairs. However the Church can't be torn away on the Earth but has to occupy such its piece of land which any other organization can't occupy. Taking care of saving the souls, the Church should think about the happiness of the people on the earth on the grounds of Christ's truths.
57. By its high authority the Church has to unite its believers , guide them by the way of spiritual perfection, protect them from the Spirit of decay and strengthen the Spirit of Christian and national honesties. Òhat is why the Church in these its tasks helps to the high-society power if the activity of the latter is aimed at the way of Christian ideas and takes the activity of the Church positively, by the way of symphony and harmony of interrelations with It. Such harmony is possible only when the state power is in God's hands of wise men who respect the authority of the Church and are its true sons themselves.
58. The history teaches us that it is not enough to have only state high-society laws to get evil instincts of human nature. We know that created by people (political) deeds are easily ruined by the people themselves. The highest over all is God's Law that equally binds all the people, and only the authoruty of the Church - (power not from this world) which this God's Law of Life preserves and watches after its execution in the state of harmonic control of human life in prosperity and symphony with God.
59. The Church must be the highest authority which saves the obligatory for all people "God's Law of public and family morality", (6) the authority which restrains evil human instincts but cherishes good instincts. The Church is only when It is independent of high-society power. This independence however must not lead the Church for the state of somehow closed institution in itself because then It will loose its usefulness because it will not have a complete organizing influence on the public life. The Church also looses its authority when it becomes an instrument for service in the hands of those who rule in the State because when the latter abuse their power , it means that the Church promotes their abuse of power. .
60. To hold its saving action and authority of "Divine power, not from this world" the Church can only when It being under its full independence of the high-society power influences as an organizing element upon the society in the sphere of religious and spiritual-national life. And under the terms of political-national being of its people and in difficult times of loosing its state system, for them the Church is a great life-giving uniting force which stands on its spiritual- God's grounds. The history of the Ukrainian people teaches us this.
61. The Ukrainian Church during its free life (X-XVIIIc.) was independent from the high-society power. By its high authority It influenced the latter differentiating deeply God's and high-society's based on Christ's science: "Give King's to King and God's to God". The Ukrainian Church never disturbed orders of Holy Writ to please the high-society power because by this It wpuld violate its spiritual authority which is its essence and proves its existence , that is why during all the times Christ's Church was persecuted by God - struggling power.
62. The Ukrainian Metropolitans and bishops were always the closest advisers of Ukrainian princes and hetmans. The system of symphony or harmony between the Church and State in Ukraine-Rus especially developed Kyiv State in the 11-13th centuries , as the basis of which was the idea of union of the Church and State in the struggle with evil in the world and in saving people. The idea of such union is developed in Apostle epistles (Rym. XIII, 1-7; Tym.II, 13-17). The harmony of interrelations and cooperation of spiritual and high-society powers proceeded from the mutual understanding that the material strength can't be without the spiritual strength that the State can't exist without the Church. Fulfilling the duty of serving the people the church power never forgot that it can't fulfil the tasks of high-society power when it doesn't want to turn the Church from the eternal institution , God's into a temporary , prince's institution. By its halo of spirituality, its over high-society authority the Ukrainian Church was invincible till its enslavement in 1686 by the Moscow tsarpapism.
63. The high - society power in Ukraine in the times of its state life, highly respected the authority of Religion and Church , in all affairs of spiritual character it always obeyed before the Church, no one state affair without its blessing didn't do. The orders of the Church in the spiritual sphere for all - from the king or hetman to the last citizen were obligatory.
The authority of the Ukrainian Church was respected in the Lithuanian period of the Ukrainian history. Even Tatars didn't disturb it.
64. The iIndependence of a spiritual power in Ukraine from the high-society one , harmony of relations between them, extradiordinarily promoted the development of the Ukrainian Church. Its clergy were not only spiritual but national conductors of their people as it was in the Apostle Church. Serving God by divine services to their people the Ukrainian clergy christinized the people's life from the bottom to the top.
65. The high authority of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as overhigh -society power was after shameful 1686 coarsely broken by Moscow godless tsarpapism . By violent measures during the reign of Tsar Peter the First and tsarina Kateryna the Second everything which was church Ukrainian was taken away from Ukraine, oppressed, ruined. Church books of Ukrainian printing were burnt, many-aged local religious customs were prohibited. The spiritual legacy of the Ukrainian Church was buried under a hard overgrave plate of Tsar synod.
66. In liberation days (1917-1920) a spiritual authority of the Ukrainian Church rwas restored. But against it by all their mights Moscow bishopsin Ukraine and part of clergy rebelled - this "church inventory of the Russian government". (7) This clergy in the majority of Russian breed by origin and views, in lesser part by its slave psychology could not agree with the rebirth of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Accustomed to dead canonicity and mechanical "orthodoxy" it expected the loss of its supremacy and material interests over the church in the Ukrainian church movement.
67. After defeat of free independent life of the Ukrainian people which was built on Christian bases the conditions of the UAOC were difficult. But its spiritual authority was high because all its activity was built on the Gospel truth, on love , on the unity with the people. Later on in the times of triple violence before which the shades of Neron and Dioklitian become pale this authority was oppressed but not won.
68. In troubled days of hard tests of our nation in 1941-1944 the authority of canonical members of higher orders of clergy of the UAOC was many times abused and humiliated by a heartless conqueror, it was a single strength that gave life to the tired soul of the people and gave them the Spirit of self-restrain and endurance in the hope for the better future. In the struggle with oppressors-princes of darkness of this century the authority of the Ukrainian Autocephallous Orthodox Church based on Soborna (Catholic, United) equality renewed in our times.
69. A millenium experience of Ukrainian religious- Christian life teaches us that the Church is the highest a spiritual property for the nation and that Its power as God's establishment is only then "the power not from this world" when It is free from the influences of the high society power upon It, when It gives back "King's - to King's and God's - to God".
70. Understanding of its purpose and its responsibility before God and Nation and before its conscience, private spiritual self-perfection on the Gospel truths, labour and labour to fill the man's life by the content of Christian honesties are the principal bases of spiritual authority of our ecclesiastics and with that the whole Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church to unite all the Churches in Ukraine and outside its boundaries on the basis of Sobornist (Catholicism, Unification).
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