Following the Divine Liturgy at St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Cathedral on March 21, 2026, Metropolitan Epifaniy of Kyiv and All Ukraine officiated a memorial service before the coffin of the newly reposed former Metropolitan Filaret.
Metropolitan Epifaniy, in his address at the memorial service, spoke of Patriarch Filaret as a figure of historic importance for both the Church and Ukraine, noting that “his name and work have forever entered our history.”
He emphasized that the foremost duty of the faithful is prayer, asking that “the Lord receive his soul into the Kingdom of Heaven,” while recalling Filaret’s lifelong dedication to God and the Ukrainian people, shaped by hardship, war, and deep faith.
The Primate underlined the Patriarch’s decisive role in the struggle for an autocephalous Church and independence from the “Russian world,” stressing that attempts to discredit him would fail, as “truth will prevail, and love will prevail.”
Referring to their recent meetings, he highlighted Filaret’s enduring message of unity and Christian love, which “has the power to unite,” and called on the faithful to continue his mission, gathering in prayer to honor him and uphold the unity and freedom of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.
Concelebrating in prayer with His Beatitude were Metropolitan Yevstratiy of Bila Tserkva, Archbishop Agapit of Vyshhorod, Bishop Photius of Zaporizhzhia and Melitopol, Bishop Ephraim of Vasylkiv, the brotherhood of the monastery, clergy, and relatives of the ever-memorable Patriarch Filaret.
Kyiv welcomed former Metropolitan Filaret for final farewell at St. Michael’s Cathedral
On the evening of March 20, 2026, the body of the late former Metropolitan Filaret of Kyiv arrived at the Cathedral of St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Monastery in Kyiv.
At St. Michael’s Square, in front of the bell tower, the coffin was received by numerous clergy and carried into the cathedral, led by the Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Epifaniy.
The body of the late Patriarch will remain at the cathedral until the morning of Sunday, March 22, allowing the faithful to pay their respects. Thereafter, following the funeral service, the body will be transferred in solemn procession to St. Volodymyr’s Cathedral, where the burial will take place.
Source: pomisna
