US supports Ukraine's will to have united local church, Envoy Volker says Kurt Volker, the U.S. state department's special envoy on Ukraine says the American government completely supports Ukraine's aspirations to have its own united local church.Volker told a briefing in Brussels on Thursday, Censor.NET reports citing UNIAN. Commenting on the decision of the Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to grant Ukraine autocephaly, the U.S. diplomat said that the Ukrainian people should be respected for their religious freedom and it is a shame that other countries would have a view on trying to stop that. Watch more: Constantinople makes benchmark decision to grant autocephaly to Ukraines Church. VIDEO Volker also said he hoped there would be no protests and violence orchestrated as a result of this decision. I think it would be tragic to see that, Volker said. As reported, hierarchs on Sept. 2 held meetings (Synaxis) of the Hierarchy of the Ecumenical Throne Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey) to confirm that the Church of Constantinople is authorized, without the consent of other churches, to grant autonomy, or autocephaly, to a church that has requested it. This paves the way for autocephality of Ukraines church. Further measures, such as the adoption of documents at the Synod, are expected to be taken in October. Subsequently, on Sept. 7, Ecumenical Patriarchate has appointed two Exarchs in Kyiv as part of preparations for granting autocephaly to Ukraines Orthodox church. "Within the framework of the preparations for the granting of autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine, the Ecumenical Patriarchate has appointed as its Exarchs in Kyiv His Excellency Archbishop Daniel of Pamphilon from the United States, and His Grace Bishop Hilarion of Edmonton from Canada, both of whom are serving the Ukrainian Orthodox faithful in their respective countries under the Ecumenical Patriarchate," the Ecumenical Patriarchate said in an announcement. On April 17, 2018, President Poroshenko said Ukraine was closer than ever before to creating an autocephalous united local church. Read more: Ecumenical Patriarchate restores Ukraine’s Patriarch Filaret, Archbishop Makarii to canonical status Pursuant to the instruction of Poroshenko, on April 20, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine Rostyslav Pavlenko visited Istanbul and handed over to His All-Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew the Appeal of the President of Ukraine on granting the Tomos of Autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine. He also handed over the Verkhovna Rada’s resolution on the support for the President’s Appeal to the Ecumenical Patriarch. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew also received the appeals of the hierarchs of the Ukrainian Orthodox churches on granting the Tomos of Autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.Источник: https://en.censor.net.ua/n3091011