Unidentified masked men set fire to Ss Cyril and Methodius Church in Pavlograd (PHOTO)

"Police and firefighters arrived very quickly, – says the rector, Archpriest Andrei Demidas. – They found that 4 firebombs had been thrown into the church. One of them, which was targeted at the altar, thank God, did not work – the fuse fell out of it. But the other three caught fire, and the church suffered serious damage. Today I have to go to the police and write a report about what happened. "
The fire destroyed the choir with books, damaged walls and church utensils.
According to the priest, he had neither received any threats before nor encountered any hostility.
The Saints Cyril and Methodius Church was built 10 years ago on donations of parishioners. Believers are intending to restore it by join efforts. In spite of the fire, service in the church will continue.
The rector and parishioners of the church ask prayers of the faithful.
The UOJ is following the developments.
Read also

OCU and Adventists heads discuss how to strengthen Ukrainians' spiritual values
Dumenko and Prodaniuk were concerned about the secularization of Ukrainian society.

"Don’t die in the next 10 years": Immunologist promises to defeat aging
An immunology professor stated that in the coming years, doctors will be able to reverse aging processes.
Zelensky wants to rid Ukraine of independent Church, Amsterdam says
The Ukrainian authorities actually have no evidence that the UOC is tied to Russia, the human rights advocate believes.
Montenegrin cleric: The OCU is not canonical, it has no apostolic succession
Archpriest Slobodan Zeković emphasized that the absence of apostolic succession cannot be remedied by any decree.
Met. Irenaeus of Dnipropetrovsk consecrates chapel in Samar Monastery
The chapel was consecrated in honor of the Pochaiv Icon of the Mother of God.
Montenegrin priest: UOC today is the most persecuted Church in the world
According to Fr. Slobodan Zeković, it is especially painful for Orthodox believers to hear about the situation surrounding one of the greatest Orthodox shrines in the whole world – the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.