OCU members clash with UOC faithful during attempted church raid in Stadnyky

Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos in Stadnyky sealed. Photo: rivne.church.ua

On May 15, 2022, a group of local residents who declared themselves OCU supporters arrived at the church at 7 a.m. and blocked Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) believers from entering for the Divine Liturgy, according to the Rivne Eparchy’s press service.

According to parishioners, some of the attackers were not from the village. “Many people showed up, and quite a few of them were not locals,” said Taras Shostak, a UOC parishioner from Stadnyky. He added that many of the activists seemed to be “closer to the bottle than to the church.”

OCU activists demanded that the UOC faithful join their structure in order to be allowed into the church. The UOC parishioners refused.

“My parishioners immediately rejected that condition. Then they demanded the keys from us. We refused, a confrontation ensued, and the OCU activists took out an angle grinder and tried to cut the locks. The police arrived promptly after our call and put a stop to the desecration of the holy place,” said the parish priest, Fr. Serhiy Chuchkevych.

The radicals attempted to use force, and a fight broke out. Several UOC believers were injured, mostly women. Parishioner Kseniya Bazhanova was struck multiple times and had her face scratched. She filed a police report.

To put an end to the conflict, the police suggested sealing the church. This proposal was supported by the village elder, who drew up a document signed by representatives of both the UOC and OCU communities. Afterward, the supporters of Metropolitan Epiphanius left the church grounds, and the UOC parishioners held Sunday services.

Back in 2019, OCU supporters re-registered the Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos under their jurisdiction. However, some of the documents involved were allegedly forged, and the case is still under judicial review.

As previously reported by the UOJ, OCU supporters also sealed a UOC church in Miliatyn, and in Dubno, authorities demanded that UOC parishes switch to the OCU within a month. In response, the Myriane movement called on Rivne regional officials to end persecution against the Church.

Read also