Ivano-Frankivsk mayor awarded by Dumenko in the cathedral seized from UOC

"Hierarch" of the OCU awards the mayor of Ivano-Frankivsk Ruslan Martsynkiv. Photo: page R. Martsynkiv in Facebook

The medal, titled "For Sacrifice and Love for Ukraine," was awarded to the Ivano-Frankivsk mayor Martsynkiv for his active involvement in the closure of the remaining Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) temples in the city. The ceremony took place at the Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ, which was forcefully taken over from the UOC community on March 28, 2023.

"On the third day of the Easter holidays had the opportunity to pray in the garrison church of the Nativity of Christ of the OCU," said the mayor on his Facebook page. "Here for the first time there was an archdiocesan liturgy with the participation of bishops of the OCU because not so long ago there were representatives of the UOC-MP. We are glad that there is no more Moscow in our shrines".

As the UOJ previously reported, Martsynkiv had hailed the takeover of the sanctuary as a "historic event", reporting that the Ivano-Frankivsk region was the first in Ukraine to be "completely cleansed" of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

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