The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine has prohibited teachers, students, and staff of the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary from being present in the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra

The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine has officially prohibited teachers and students of the Kyiv Theological Seminary and Academy from entering and staying on the territory of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, where the educational buildings are located.

This information was reported on the website of the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary.

Such a directive was sent in a letter signed by the acting Minister of Culture, Rostyslav Karandeiev.

Since the unilateral termination of the agreement between the state and the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in March 2023, the rector of the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary, Archbishop Sylvester, has repeatedly appealed to various authorities, urging them not to close the Kyiv theological schools.

However, on August 11, 2023, when the reserve (Lavra) closed the entrance to the territory of the Lower Lavra for all visitors, access to the buildings of the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary was also blocked for all teachers, students, and staff.

The press service of the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary reported that on the same day, the rector “sent a letter to the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, and the State Service for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, with a historical justification of the legal relationship between the Kyiv City Administration and the Reserve (Lavra), as well as a request to consider the possibility of unhindered access to the buildings of the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary for students, teachers, and staff.”

The Ministry of Culture responded that teachers, students, and staff of the Kyiv theological schools are considered visitors to the Lavra, and therefore access to the monastery’s territory and the academy’s buildings is prohibited.

On August 19, 2023, the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary sent another letter to the same recipients, indicating the illegitimacy of categorizing teachers, students, and staff as Lavra visitors, and included a new request for them to be granted unobstructed access to the Kyiv theological schools’ buildings.

“However, the response from the Ministry of Culture indicated that their position remained unchanged – teachers, students, and staff of the Kyiv theological schools are defined as visitors to the Lavra, and therefore access to the monastery’s territory and the academy’s buildings is prohibited.”