Uniates open a Catholic school in Zaporizhzhia
Catholic school in Zaporizhzhia. Photo: UGCC website
On September 1, 2025, the UGCC solemnly opened the first Catholic school in Zaporizhzhia. This event became historic for the region, where Catholic presence had previously been minimal.
The school was founded by the parish of Our Lady of Perpetual Help of the Donetsk Exarchate of the UGCC and is intended for primary school students. Construction lasted 14 months, and the building was completed in August 2025.
The ceremonial opening was attended by the Donetsk exarch of the Uniates, Maksym Riabukha, who emphasized the importance of this event for the history of Zaporizhzhia. School principal Vitaliia Vovk stated that this is “not just a building with classrooms, but a place where the future generation will be brought up on the basis of eternal values.”
Zaporizhzhia region is historically an Orthodox area, where Catholic influence was insignificant. The opening of a Catholic school can be seen as part of the UGCC’s strategy to expand its presence in eastern Ukraine, particularly in the frontline territories of Donbas.
Earlier, the UOJ cited Shevchuk’s words that claims about the emergence of Uniates as a result of the Union are “Moscow propaganda.”
Read also
OCU “hierarch” selling fake ID documents sent to pre-trial detention center
The Ivano-Frankivsk court has chosen a preventive measure for the OCU "bishop" suspected of issuing fictitious ordination certificates for the rank of deacon to evade mobilization.
Court postpones hearing in Upper Lavra case
The next hearing on the issue of allowing the brethren of the Kyiv-Pechersk Monastery of the UOC access to the churches of the Upper Lavra will take place on March 12, 2026.
In Chernihiv, Jehovah’s Witness believer sentenced to 5 years for AWOL
The Kozelets District Court of Chernihiv Region found the man guilty of unauthorized abandonment of a military unit and sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment.
DESS initiates lawsuit to liquidate Korets Monastery
The State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) is seeking the liquidation of the Holy Trinity Korets Convent of the UOC.
His Beatitude Onuphry serves litiya for fallen soldiers
On the fourth anniversary of the full-scale war, the Primate of the UOC led a memorial service and blessed church-wide prayers for peace and for Ukraine’s defenders.
Zelensky prays with Jews, Muslims, Catholics, OCU, and UGCC at Kyiv Sofia
At the event in St. Sofia of Kyiv, Sheikh Ahmed Tamim asked Allah for “victory over the enemy for the sake of Muhammad, Jesus, and Moses.”