I wholeheartedly congratulate you, dear brothers and sisters, on the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos – the first of the Twelve Great Feasts in the new church year!

Feasts in honour of the Most Holy Theotokos sparkle with special joy. In them, the joy that we are loved by God is combined with the joy that we ourselves can respond to His love with all sincerity.

An ideal example and unattainable height of such divine-human relations is the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Her love for the Creator was so holy, great, unconditional and selfless. Her soul was so reverent, pure and beautiful that only She could become the Mother of God.

Today we are celebrating Her Birthday.

She came to this world as a gift from God to righteous elderly parents – Saints Joachim and Anne – who had already despaired of ever having children. She was born as the crown of the spiritual labours of many generations: men and women, saints and sinners – all those who dedicated themselves to the centuries-old struggle for the happiness of being free from the bondage of sin and death.

There are figures in history who left a memory that is indestructible by time. Prince Alexander Yaroslavich, who went down in history as Alexander Nevsky, became one of such personalities who appeared at a challenging time, in the bloody years of trials that fell to the lot of Rus’. One of the iconic figures in medieval history, the scale of which went beyond the borders of Rus’. Four times elected Prince of Novgorod, Grand Prince of Vladimir, for 14 years – Grand Prince of Kyiv, a commander who did not lose a single battle, a skilful diplomat who maintained relations with European monarchs and with Khan of the Golden Horde, a man who saved Rus’ from the final ruin caused by the Mongol-Tatars, and from enslavement by the crusaders, a sincerely religious person who proved his allegiance to the Church. And all this is during 42 years that the Lord gave him for earthly life! For his merits, Alexander was canonized in the 16^th century and our Church glorified him as a Saint. Today the Orthodox Church celebrates the memory of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky. It is especially important that 2021 is the year of the 800^th anniversary of the Prince’s birthday.

Dear friends, dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

I congratulate you on the great feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos!

This is the day our people love especially. From time immemorial, our main temples and monasteries were consecrated precisely in honour of this magnificent event. All three of our Lavras are the Dormition Lavras, the oldest of which is Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. The mistress of this place is the God’s Mother. According to the legend, She herself asked for it from Her Son and God for Her own inheritance. The Mother of God is our common Heavenly patroness. Our model, our joy, protection and consolation.

We, ordinary sinful people, so much want to live according to understandable rules, according to verified algorithms and plans, when everything seems extremely clear, when it is not dangerous, and not scary.

However, if one person or all of humanity is faced with an action of the plan of God Himself, our “sophisticated” constructions immediately begin to look like funny children’s crib notes, like drawings in the sand, which are easily erased by the wave of the surf.

Confused by such a change, some people loose balance and fall, and others find an opportunity revealed in the new reality, revealed to them or to the whole people, or even to all humankind. An opportunity to go forward, grow and develop in accordance with God’s Providence.

Today, the entire Ukrainian Orthodox Church is prayerfully celebrating the seventh anniversary of the enthronement of His Beatitude Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine Onufriy.

On this day, I want to extend my most cordial congratulations to our dear Primate, the Archpastor, our Grace and Father!

This is how His Beatitude is called by millions of faithful children of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. These words are backed by life experiences of people.

Our Primate is always at the head, always in sight. He is the spiritual leader of his people who humbly accepted full responsibility for them before God and who stands, like a firm rock, in the midst of the ocean of this world raging with passions.

As the Archpastor, he confidently and fearlessly leads his flock to salvation, keeping them faithful to Christ’s teachings and church canons.

Thanks to his archpastoral prayers, his firmness and persistent standing for the Truth, our holy Ukrainian Orthodox Church has never strayed from the patristic heritage despite all desperate attempts to seduce it from the true path.

I sincerely congratulate all of you, dear friends, on the Day of Remembrance of the Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Volodymyr, on the Day of the Baptism of Rus!

Traditionally, this bright celebration attended by many people begins the day before, with a thanksgiving prayer service at the foot of the monument to the Holy Baptizer of our people on Volodymyrska Hill, over the waters of the Dnieper River – our common baptismal font.

The pinnacle event in the framework of the Feast is the Great All-Ukrainian Religious Procession (the Procession of the Cross) to the spiritual heart of our Motherland – the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra to participate in the festive conciliar divine service.

It is always a great joy of common prayer, in which the faithful of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church from all parts of our country take part.

According to preliminary estimates, more than 350,000 people took part in the Procession of the Cross this year.

By the tablets carried by the believers one could trace the entire geography of Ukraine, could see the true face of our people – beautiful, spiritualized, and kind.

Dear friends!

Metallurgists’ Day in Ukraine is not just a professional holiday for those involved in ore mining or metal melting. For a country in the economy of which metallurgy or steel-making occupies an important place, Metallurgists’ Day has become a truly favourite holiday. Indeed, thanks to metallurgists’ hard work, the country is developing, as well as its army and finances, and its cities are growing.

We can talk a lot about the role of metallurgists’ labour – naturally, there will be many greeting speeches on this topic today. But it is so important that we all understand and feel: behind every ton of steel and cast iron there are real people, with their joys and problems, and with their life stories. People who professionally do their job and deserve attention, care and maximum respect from society.

Vadym Novynskyi, People’s Deputy of Ukraine, makes an official statement that the negotiations regarding the purchase of Nash TV channel, which were held by representatives of Smart Holding group, have been halted, and Smart Holding is withdrawing from the negotiation process.

‘Indeed, we held negotiations and openly stated this, without making the process a secret. However, we did not reach an understanding with Yevgeniy Murayev. As I promised, we are publicly announcing the termination of the negotiations,’ said Vadym Novynskyi. He also stressed that he does not plan to negotiate the purchase of any other media outlet.

Eight decades – as long as a human life – are not able to heal the wounds of the greatest tragedy in the history of our people. During this time, the world managed to change far more than once, some states and rulers emerged and disappeared, several generations of people changed, but the date of 22 June still remains a reason for thought and reflexion. As Robert Rozhdestvensky wrote, ‘I remember everything that was not with me.’

It would seem that everyone should have learned their lessons from history. Germany repented and the descendants of the victims of World War II forgave it. However, there is still some restless feeling deep inside. Incessant calls for a revision of history, constant attempts to rehabilitate Nazi evil-doers, some special bravado – stripes or patches on the sleeves and swastika tattoos. And this is happening here, in Ukraine, where every fifth inhabitant died during the war...

22 June is not only the Day of Remembrance of those killed in the war (and I sincerely believe that the Day of Sorrow should be on 22 June, and not on those bright days when all normal people celebrate Victory Day). It is also the Day of Humaneness, the Day of special spirituality – after all, it was not by accident that on 22 June 1941, in the second week after Pentecost, the memory of all the saints who shone in the Russian land was celebrated. The Soviet leadership referred to their feats when admonishing the soldiers to the Patriotic War for the sake of defending the Motherland.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we congratulate you on the feast of the Holy Trinity!

Congratulations on the Day of Happy Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles!

The Day of Pentecost, so lightly and solemnly celebrated by us now, is a sacred event in the life of the Church of Christ. The sending of the Holy Life-giving Spirit to the earth, onto the apostles, served as the beginning of the Church of Christ on earth. Today is the birthday of our Holy Church, and she is our spiritual mother.

Since that great event our United Collegiate Apostolic Church, the keeper of Divine Revelation, immutably preserving the canons in Itself, has been carrying the true understanding of the Image of God and the Grace of the Holy Spirit. By the power and assistance of the Holy Spirit, the Church of Christ is the place where miracles of rebirth and salvation of human souls are performed.

And thus, the Church of Christ leads us along the eternal path of salvation. And only with our Mother Church we can find unity with God, gain the immortality of our souls, can overcome all adversity and withstand all the troubles and misfortunes of our days.

In the divine service of the third Sunday after Easter, the Holy Church encourages us to move mentally from Golgotha to the tomb of Christ and His glorious Resurrection, the news of which the myrrh-bearing wives were honoured to learn the first. Their example shows how much warmth, compassion and love the Lord put into a woman's soul. Thanks to this, women are capable of doing great deeds of love and self-sacrifice, if they live in Christ and with Christ, as the apostle commands, "with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit" (1 Pet. 3: 4).

And let us also remember that people call a family a small Church not in vain. And that mercy, forgiveness and mutual spiritual enrichment, as well as all possible manifestations of true love, should reign in a family. And by God's providence, the honourable role of arranging all this is entrusted to gentle women's shoulders, in many ways. An assistant, a faithful companion, a keeper of the hearth, a tender mother, a loving wife, and a caring daughter – all these wonderful qualities were bestowed on a woman since her appearance in the works of God.

Today is the Victory Day!

The day of our people's victory in the Great Patriotic War.

Not in the Second World War. The Second World War ended on 2 September 1945. Not in the Soviet-German War. The Red Army had to fight not only with German troops, but also with a number of armies and combat units of other countries allied with Nazi Germany.

Patriotic war is called a war that uses all available resources, the entire human potential of the country to repel the enemy's aggression. A war in which not only the regular army takes part, but the entire civilian population is involved in the fight for a common victory. This is a war in which the very fate of the Fatherland and its future are at stake.

Ukraine, which lost 6.8 million people, has the right to consider this war as the Patriotic War. After all, people gave their lives not for Stalin, not for communism – they were going into battle defending their wives, their elderly, their children and their homes. They were going for their Fatherland, for everything they had, everything that was dear and sacred to them.

On 9 May 2021, on the Day of Victory in the Great Patriotic War, People's Deputy of Ukraine Vadym Novynskyi took part in the prayer service of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) at the Eternal Flame, the monument to the Unknown Soldier, in the Park of Eternal Glory in Kyiv. During the prayer service, believers and clergymen of the UOC honoured the memory of Soviet soldiers who gave their lives for the Victory in the Great Patriotic War.

The prayer service was performed by the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufriy together with the clergy of the UOC. Other participants of the memorial event were members of veteran organizations, as well as residents of Kyiv.

When greeting the participants of the holiday of the Great Victory, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufriy said: ‘Today we bow our heads to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives on the battlefield so that we could live, so that we would not be slaves and people of the fourth or fifth grade, but could enjoy the beauty of life that God gave us. May the Lord send health, comfort and give all that is necessary for earthly life to those few of our soldiers who survived. Happy Victory Day! Christ has risen!’

Vadym Novynskyi, the People's Deputy of Ukraine (MP), a member of the Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights and Reintegration of Donbas, highlighted this on the occasion of the 35^th anniversary of the accident at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant. The MP stressed that article 16 of the Constitution of Ukraine obliges the State to overcome the consequences of the Chornobyl disaster as a catastrophe of a planetary scale, to ensure environmental safety and preserve the gene pool of the Ukrainian people.

‘Every Ukrainian citizen is grateful to the liquidators (clean-up workers) of the Chornobyl accident for their heroism and self-sacrifice, for the lives and health sacrificed in order to protect our country and the whole world from the terrible consequences of exposure to radiation. Many of the Chornobyl tragedy liquidators are no longer alive. That is why today we must remember everyone who sacrificed themselves for the sake of saving us from the worst human-induced catastrophe of the 20^th century, and fully restore the legal rights of our living heroes.’

Mariupol city is actively involved in the program of creating additional conditions for people with disabilities, which was developed and is being implemented under the auspices of Olena Zelenska. The office of Mariupol's mayor supported this program and was one of the first in Ukraine to start its implementation.

Many new fields of activity have become available for people with disabilities. Orthodoxy, which is the basis of our morality and ethics, has always appealed to love for one's neighbour, to compassion, willingness to help and protect. It is clear that in our pragmatic and selfish age, these are the qualities that help us remain human. In this case, we are talking about thousands of our fellow citizens who need to feel care from society. They have the right to enjoy all the benefits of civilization. By law, we are all equal, and everyone should have access to education, sports, cultural activities, healthcare and social services.

The new program implemented by the Mariupol mayor's office can become an example of a genuine human attitude to human problems. I hope that in the future pilot projects of the program implemented in Mariupol will find support at the national level and will be implemented everywhere as an example of caring for people with special needs.

Dear friends, congratulations on the Feast of the Triumph of Orthodoxy!

Today, together with the entire Orthodox world, we celebrate the victory of the Church over heresies and schisms that have existed at all times.

The tradition of praying in front of icons, known since apostolic age, was interrupted during a period of the great delusion that is iconoclasm.

In the 8^th century, the secular authorities intervened in church life and accused the true Orthodox Church, which defeated paganism, of idolatry.

Heretics, backed by political power, began to put pressure on the Church demanding to abandon the veneration of icons.

True Christians had to fight for the right to depict Jesus Christ, God’s Mother and pray in front of icons.

The staunchest guardians of the Orthodox faith suffered and were martyred.

This period lasted over a hundred years, but the time of a clear separation of truth and falsehood has come.

The latest decisions of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine to ban broadcasting of TV channels and impose sanctions against some citizens of Ukraine and the Russian Federation, as well as against a list of legal entities accused of financing terrorism, raise major concerns. The NSDC is an important collective body in the structure of the presidential power, and it is entitled to consider such questions and impose sanctions, within the framework stipulated by the Constitution and legislation. And sanctions indeed are a powerful and effective tool for protecting the national security of Ukraine. However, it is unacceptable that the NSDC is used as an instrument of pressure on journalists, public figures and leaders of political parties.

If the Ukrainian authorities have enough evidence of the illegal actions of Viktor Medvedchuk, members of his family and his team, this evidence should become public and a subject of judicial scrutiny. The NSDC is not the Supreme Court, not the highest judicial body. Any data of intelligence agencies, any analytical information is only an element of the evidence base, but cannot be a substitute for a judicial verdict. In a democratic society, the constitutionally stipulated presumption of innocence, and the rights and freedoms of citizens must function.

Today is the day of the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan. 32 years ago, it seemed that this was the last war in which our same-age peers had to take part. Moreover, it was not a war, but rather a mistake, misunderstanding, a crime of politicians. This war did not arouse a sense of justice, despite the fact that Soviet men demonstrated heroism and dedication. And it seemed to us that there would be no more wars within our living memory – the whole history of the Afghan "epic" led us to this conclusion. The Soviet Union just began to collapse, and thousands of "Afghans" – Afghan War veterans – found themselves without any social aid and protection from the state... But the Friendship Bridge and General Gromov walking across this bridge, the last to leave the Afghan land, remain in our memory forever...

Dear friends, congratulations on the Great Feast of the Presentation of Lord Jesus at the Temple!

The Presentation of the Lord at the Temple is one of the most joyful and long-awaited feasts. It is the forerunner of a new life, a spiritual spring.

On the fortieth day after his birth, Baby Jesus was greeted by Simeon the elder at the temple.

With the words "now lettest thou depart" the saint professed the joy on the occasion of the end of the waiting time.

The whole life of humankind before the coming of the Lord was a weary waiting for the joy from a long-awaited meeting. With the advent of the Saviour to this world, the fear of the unknown was defeated, and a new life began.