Is it true that the crosses on the Refectory Church of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra turned black after the services of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine?

In the Russian-speaking segment of the Internet, the news about the blackened crosses spread very widely - both on social networks and in the media. We decided to check the authenticity of such messages.

The largest Russian media wrote about the suddenly blackened crosses above the Refectory Church of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra after the expulsion of representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate and the service of the “schismatic” Orthodox Church of Ukraine held there: “RIA Novosti", Lenta.ru, "Vesti.ru», "Moskovsky Komsomolets", "Evening Moscow" And etc.. Posts about this can be found on blog platforms (for example, “Zene" And "LiveJournal"). Many social network users wrote about this - in Facebook, "VKontakte» And Telegram. 

The first to talk about blackened crosses was back on March 13 wrote portal “Union of Orthodox Journalists” with reference to the words of the abbot of the monastery, Metropolitan Pavel of Vyshgorod and Chernobyl. A representative of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) told the publication: “Today even on the Refectory Church the crosses have darkened after the “divine services” of such “great” would-be Ukrainians.” 

Since 2016, the Assumption Cathedral and the Refectory Church have been for rent from the UOC-MP, however, its term ended on December 31, 2022 and the Ukrainian authorities decided not to renew the lease. January 5, 2023 Ministry of Culture of Ukraine statedthat the temples of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra are being transferred back to state ownership. Already on January 7, a Christmas celebration was held in the Assumption Cathedral worship, conducted by Metropolitan Epifaniy of Kyiv and All Ukraine, a representative of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), independent of the Moscow Patriarchate. It is with this event that Metropolitan Pavel of Vyshgorod and Chernobyl associates the supposedly sudden change in the color of the crosses above the domes of the temple. However, photographs from the press service of the Kyiv Metropolis of the OCU, posted after the service on January 7, show that the crosses above the Refectory Church were black even then. 

If you go to YouTube and watch videos of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra over different years, you can see that the crosses did not turn black at all “after the services of unfortunate Ukrainians.” Yes, on video 2021, taken from a copter, it is clear that the crosses above the Refectory Church are dark. The same thing - on video 2020. This is even better visible in photographs - for example, 2017 or even 2006. As you can see, the crosses darkened not at all “today,” as Metropolitan Pavel claimed on March 13, 2023, but long before the clergy of the OCU had the opportunity to perform divine services in the Assumption Cathedral.

Metropolitan Evstratiy Zorya, who is subordinate to the Kyiv Patriarchate, responded to the resonant messages with a post on Facebook, where he also attached several photos from different years, which show darkened crosses on the Refectory Church - “just from the time when Paul and the Moscow Patriarchate owned the Refectory.”

Deputy General Director for Scientific Work of the National Reserve "Kievo-Pechersk Lavra" Konstantin Krainy told Ukrainian news portal TSN that the crosses have looked like this for at least 20 years, since they have not been restored for a long time - the last time was in the 60s and 70s. Therefore, precipitation, including acid rain, damaged the gilding of the crosses. And, apparently, in the case of gold plating this is actually more than Maybe, since this material is unstable to external influences.

Thus, the crosses on the Refectory Church of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra darkened many years ago - this can be seen in photos and videos from different years. Of course, the abbot of the monastery could not have been unaware of this, so his words spoken in March 2023 that the crosses turned black “today” are a deliberate attempt to mislead people. In addition, there is a scientific explanation for this phenomenon, which is in no way connected with any religious services or supernatural forces in general. Over time, the gilding on the crosses was damaged due to external natural factors, and the last restoration was carried out about 50 years ago. 

Cover photo: @brunocoelho, canva.com

Fake

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