On the Independence Day of Greece, the UOC Primate, His Beatitude Onuphry, wished the fraternal Greek nation peace, prosperity, development and God’s blessing.

In light of the celebration of a landmark date for Greece – the 200th anniversary of the beginning of the national liberation struggle of the Greek people for their independence, the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine, sent congratulations to the President of the Hellenic Republic, Katerina Sakellaropoulou.

The UOJ cites the full text of the congratulatory letter published on the website of the UOC DECR.

“On behalf of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the entire Ukrainian Orthodox people, I cordially congratulate you and in your person all the Greek people of the same faith with us on the 200th anniversary of the beginning of the national liberation struggle for independence.

During the four centuries of the Greek people’s captivity, it was the Church of Christ and the Orthodox faith that were the life-giving light enabling your people to survive the darkness of the foreign and heterodox domination and preserve their identity. It is symbolic that it was the uprising of 1821 that began on the day of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos with the blessing of Germanos, Metropolitan of Old Patras.

I am also pleased to state that Ukraine is directly related to this significant date, in whose territory a sizable Greek Diaspora has lived from time immemorial, and still lives today. The Greeks of Odessa, Mariupol, Kherson, Nizhyn and other Ukrainian cities for many years lived by faith in the independence of their homeland and formed the preconditions for the Greek uprising of 1821.

I believe that the memory of these events will always remain in the hearts of our nations. I am confident in the need to continue the interaction, support, cooperation between our Orthodox peoples and states.

I wish the fraternal Greek people peace, prosperity, development and God’s blessing!

+ Onuphry
Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine
Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church”

Recall that on March 25, 2021, Greece celebrates the 200th anniversary of the beginning of the national liberation revolution against the four-century yoke of the Ottoman Empire. The struggle for independence, which began on March 25, 1821, on the day of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos, lasted almost 10 years.

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, sent his congratulations to the President and the people of Greece on the Independence Day.