OCU, violating agreements to serve in turns, seizes the church in Bronnyky
Intercession Church of the UOC in Bronnyky. Photo: Rivne Eparchy
On April 19, 2024, supporters of the OCU breached agreements on alternating church services and seized the Intercession Church of the UOC in Bronnyky, Rivne Oblast. This was reported by the press service of the Rivne Eparchy.
Eyewitnesses report that the OCU community likely prepared for this development in advance and had keys to the locks made.
"Once again, I am convinced that agreements with supporters of the OCU do not work. On Sunday, we agreed on alternating services. On Monday, a working group, which would have to include parishioners from both sides, was supposed to discuss the schedule of alternating services," commented Archpriest Vasyl Nachev, adding that the planned meeting never took place.
According to him, the leader of the OCU community kept postponing the meeting. "It was clear after the first call that there would be no meeting," added the UOC priest.
As informed by the eparchy, the seizure of the Intercession Church occurred quietly because the religious community of the UOC did not have time to gather to defend their sanctuary. Few witnesses of the raid shared that everything was planned by the OCU supporters cunningly to avoid any resistance.
"The next thing we will do is filing a lawsuit to cancel the illegal re-registration and a statement to secure the claim. Imposing a ban on the use of disputed property so that our property is not damaged," Father Vasyl noted.
As the UOJ wrote, on April 14, 2024, supporters of the OCU attempted to seize the UOC church. The confrontation lasted throughout the Sunday. Later, it became known that parishioners agreed to alternate church services with the OCU community.
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