Community of UOC cathedral in Chernivtsi reaffirms its loyalty to UOC

Voting of the UOC community in the Chernivtsi Cathedral. Photo: Holy Spirit Cathedral Facebook page

On February 16, 2025, a meeting of the Holy Spirit Cathedral community of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) was held to determine its jurisdictional status. The event was broadcast on the cathedral’s Facebook page.

The cathedral was filled to capacity. Hundreds of believers voted to remain in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the leadership of Metropolitan Onuphry.

After the vote, Metropolitan Meletiy of Chernivtsi stated that the final documents from the meeting would be submitted to the Chernivtsi Regional Military Administration (OVA), the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), and the police.

Commenting on the gathering of unknown individuals outside the cathedral fence, who claimed to have transferred the cathedral to the OCU, the bishop stated that "impunity breeds lawlessness."

"Today, when there is much speculation, provocation, and outright lies surrounding church matters, please take note of the following. In our cathedral, services are conducted in Church Slavonic and partially in Romanian, but not in Russian, as some claim. Our cathedral has no connection to the Russian Federation, the aggressor country, and our faithful condemn Russia’s war against our Ukrainian people. We actively support our defenders, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), many of whom are parishioners of our church. We pray for them because they defend our homeland. Prayers for the repose of our heroes who gave their lives for our freedom and Ukraine’s victory are always offered here. In our cathedral, the Moscow Patriarch Kirill is never mentioned because we condemn his stance on the war waged by Russia. We are a Ukrainian Church of the Ukrainian people and prove it through our deeds," Metropolitan Meletiy emphasized.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that in Chernivtsi, amidst shouts of "Death to the enemies!", unknown individuals "transferred" three UOC churches to the OCU.

Read also