In Kirovohrad region, procession held to venerate 20th-century holy martyr

A releigious procession dedicated to the feast day of Hieromartyr Mykolai of Iskrivka. Photo: Oleksandriia Eparchy

On October 2, 2025, in the Oleksandriia Eparchy of the UOC, hundreds of believers participated in the annual procession dedicated to the feast day of the Holy Martyr Mykolai of Iskrivka, as reported by the eparchial press service.

Hundreds of believers and priests with crosses, banners, and icons, with prayers and requests for the Lord's help, set out from the village of Hannivka to the Holy Cross Church in the village of Iskrivka, Kirovohrad region. The procession was traditionally led by Metropolitan Boholep of Oleksandriia and Svitlovodsk.

The length of the prayer procession was 8 kilometers.

"It is a small yet significant feat for a Christian. It is performed with joint prayer to God and in honor of the memory of the Holy Martyr Mykolai," the message states.

The prayer procession concluded with a festive Divine Liturgy at the Holy Cross Church.

Holy Martyr Mykolai Mykhailichenko, who suffered a martyr's death for the faith of Christ in 1919, was the rector of the church in the village of Iskrivka. The godless found the priest in the church bell tower where he was hiding, brutally killed him, and left the body, which was subsequently reburied three times. Thus, the prophecy was fulfilled: the Lord revealed to the priest that he would be killed and buried three times. To which the Holy Martyr said: "For You, Lord, I am ready to endure to the end". In 2000, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church canonized Father Mykolai and discovered the relics of the Holy Martyr. Since then, a large flow of people has been coming to the church, and the cross procession has been held for more than ten years.

As reported by the UOJ, in Pryyutivka, the court denied the OCU rights to the UOC community's church.

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