In Rivne, Dumenko holds commemorations for the “hierarch” called his father

Commemorations at the Rivne Theater. Photo: OCU

On December 10, 2025, in Rivne, Serhii Dumenko led the events marking the 20th anniversary of the death of Daniil Chokaliuk, a “metropolitan” of the Kyiv Patriarchate. He first conducted a “liturgy” at the Resurrection Cathedral and then organized a memorial evening for Chokaliuk at the Musical Drama Theater, attended by city and regional officials.

In his address, Dumenko said that Chokaliuk was originally from the Chernivtsi region and “became a mentor for many of us.”

According to him, the key step in the activity of the “hierarch” was his decision to learn Greek, thanks to which “his knowledge of the language and of the Hellenistic church tradition became a strong bridge between Kyiv and our Mother Church in Constantinople.” Dumenko did not clarify what kind of “bridge” he meant, given that during Chokaliuk’s active years the Ecumenical Patriarchate did not recognize the UOC-KP as a canonical church.

The head of the OCU also said he had been a “disciple and student” of Daniil Chokaliuk.

Daniil Chokaliuk’s brother, “Archpriest” Ivan Chokaliuk – who in June 2025 organized an attempted violent assault on the UOC cathedral in Chernivtsi – also addressed the gathering remotely.

As a reminder, in 2020 Filaret Denysenko stated that Serhii Dumenko is the illegitimate son of Daniil Chokaliuk, though “he is not to blame for it.”

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