In Irpin, mayor’s associate initiates the "transfer" of UOC temple to OCU

Anton Holovenko near St. George's Church of the UOC in Irpin. Photo: MP's Facebook page

A deputy of the Irpin City Council from the "New Faces" party, Anton Holovenko, who is an associate of Mayor Oleksandr Markushyn, is initiating the "transfer" of the St. George's Church of the UOC located in the Romanivka district to the OCU. He announced this on his Facebook page.

In the group chats of his supporters on messaging apps, Holovenko organized a vote to gather local residents and "transfer" the church to the "Ukrainian Patriarchate." Citing the "results" and "dozens of appeals from voters," the deputy claims the "desire of the community" is to join the OCU.

"The city's residents are waiting for the church to transition to our OCU," states Holovenko. "This initiative also received support in the chats of the second district, where over 90% voted for the transition. I am also on the side of the community. I would like to add that the current church administrator does not share our aspiration. But this is not an argument for us. We are moving forward and will definitely see it through. This is the community's desire!"

In the comments to his post, Holovenko also added that "the same story" awaits the Holy Trinity Church of the UOC in the center of Irpin. According to the mayor's associate, "the process is moving forward."

As reported by the UOJ, on July 17, 2022, the mayor of Irpin, Oleksandr Markushyn, held a meeting in the village of Mykhailivka-Rubizhivka of the Irpin territorial community. During the meeting, a group of villagers voted for the transfer of the Mykhailivka Church of the UOC to the OCU. The opinions of the UOC believers who came to the meeting were ignored.

On December 13, 2022, the local territorial defense under the leadership of Oleksandr Markushyn and a "priest" of the OCU seized the church in Mykhailivka-Rubizhivka.

On April 27, 2023, the deputies of the Irpin City Council decided to send an appeal to the President, the Verkhovna Rada, the Cabinet of Ministers, and the National Security and Defense Council, calling for the ban of the UOC. In this regard, the city mayor stated that "there cannot be any Russian trace in Ukraine and in the hero city of Irpin."

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