Believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church should avoid violence and lawlessness while protecting their rights, the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church says in its appeal.

"Due to the fact that the audacious and systematic violation of the rights of clergy, believers and institutions of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has been going on for a long time, the Holy Synod has published an Appeal to the episcopate, clergy, monasticism and all faithful children of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, in which ... stressed that violence and lawlessness should be avoided when protecting their rights," – informs the Information and Educational Department of the Ukrainian Church.

As noted in the Synod's address, today, "against the background of large-scale violations of state legislation and international norms on human rights and freedoms" in relation to the believers of the faithful of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the latter "often have a question: how should Orthodox Christians respond to these challenges?"
"Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself gave us the answer: "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who offend and persecute you" (Matthew 5:44)," the document says.

At the same time, as the members of the Synod of the Ukrainian Church noted, "entrusting their church life to God, a Christian should "not by word or language, but by deed and truth" (1 John 3, 18) show love and kindness to others in conditions of a continuous shortage of these qualities."

"In difficult historical periods of church history, Christian love and kindness in response to all forms of evil changed the world and lifted the Church to new levels of its heyday. Therefore, even now, in caring for the future of the Church, each of us should focus not on noisy confrontation with people who are hostile to us, but on an effective testimony about Christ and His Church, reflecting in his words and actions God Himself, Who is Love," the authors of the appeal emphasized.