In the village of Vilne, UOC believers fear seizure of their church

Community of the UOC’s St. Panteleimon Parish in Vilne. Photo: eparhia.com.ua

Believers of the UOC community dedicated to the Holy Great Martyr and Healer Panteleimon in the village of Vilne, Kryvyi Rih district, Dnipropetrovsk region, fear the seizure of their church, reports the Dozor Telegram channel.

Two years after a meeting was held to "transfer" the UOC’s Kryvyi Rih parish to the OCU, the church was officially re-registered, after which supporters of Dumenko’s structure attempted to seize it.

The unlawful meeting was organized by a group of OCU activists in 2023. According to believers, the documents submitted to the regional administration were falsified. For a long time, officials refrained from making a decision, wary of clear legal violations. However, on April 3, 2025, two years later, the church was officially re-registered.

Dozor reports that on the eve of Pascha, OCU representatives tried to break into the church, but the UOC community prevented them. It is noted that police officers also intervened to stop the attempted forceful seizure, after which the church was closed pending resolution of the conflict.

Currently, OCU activists continue gathering near the village club and, according to local residents, remain determined to take full control of the church.

As the UOJ previously reported, on May 14, 2023, a meeting of local residents was held near the House of Culture in Vilne, during which a "decision" was made to transfer the UOC’s St. Panteleimon Parish to the OCU. The event, presented as a "parish meeting," was initiated by Maksym Krylach, a former UOC cleric banned from ministry. In addition to residents of Volne, people from neighboring villages – Radionivka and Lozuvatka – also participated in the voting.

UOC believers did not participate in this event and had, in advance, formally warned local authorities and police about the illegality of the planned meeting. Previously, at their own parish meeting, members of the community had reaffirmed their loyalty to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

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