Chernivtsi authorities to transfer UOC Romanian community's church to OCU

The tomb of the Bukovynian Metropolitans. Photo: Suspilne

The Chernivtsi City Council, through a court ruling, has returned the chapel of the Bukovynian Metropolitans, previously used by the Romanian-speaking religious community of the UOC, to its ownership. This was reported by the Chernivtsi City Council, according to Espreso.Zakhid.

The legal battle over the chapel on the cemetery on Zelena Street lasted nearly a year, and now the property is once again under the control of the municipal community. The authorities have approved a draft cooperation agreement with the OCU and plan to transfer the burial chapel of the Bukovynian Metropolitans to the structure of the OCU, led by Dumenko.

When asked about the possibility of holding services in the chapel, Deputy Head of the Legal Department of the City Council, Yan Ostafiichuk, told Suspilne that the tomb, where the metropolitans are buried, was never a church, as it is a historical monument. It belongs to the municipal property of the Chernivtsi community and is under the management of the municipal enterprise "Historical and Cultural Reserve 'Cemetery on Zelena Street.'"

Ostafiichuk emphasized that the issue requires further study, as the tomb is a historical monument. "If the cultural heritage protection authority grants permission, it may be allowed to hold occasional events. The peculiarity of the tomb is that it is a burial site, not a church, and there is a crypt below. It is not a religious building in the traditional sense where rituals can be performed, so there are certain restrictions at the cemetery," Ostafiichuk noted.

As previously reported by UOJ, authorities in Chernivtsi banned the first Romanian-speaking parish in Ukraine.

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