UOC community in Lviv appeals to President over its "transfer" to OCU

On July 28, 2022, the community of the UOC Church of St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Volodymyr in Lviv addressed the President of Ukraine with a request for assistance in getting the head of the Lviv RMA Maxym Kozytskyi to reverse the decision to transfer the community from the UOC to the OCU, reports a UOJ correspondent.

"Today is the day of St. Volodymyr, the Baptizer of Rus’, today is Statehood Day. And on this day, I would like to ask you, dear Volodymyr Oleksandrovych, with kindness, with fatherly love ask our governor of the Lviv region Maxym Kozytskyi to cancel his illegal decision, by which he transferred the community from UOC to OCU," said the rector of the church, Archpriest Volodymyr Kuzio, in an open appeal.  

"The officials claim that we do not exist, but we do," Father Volodymyr stressed.

On July 6, 2022, the head of the Lviv RMA, Maxim Kozitsky, changed the Statute of the UOC community of St. Volodymyr’s Church in the Sykhiv district of Lviv and transferred the community to the Lviv-Sokal Eparchy of the OCU by his decree.

The community learned about the "transfer" to the OCU from the media, while no official notices or documents have been provided to it so far, the rector of St Volodymyr's Church told the UOJ. There is also no response to an appeal to the Lviv RMA and to a lawyer's enquiry to the National Police as to who held the meeting about the "transfer" of the community, who attended it and what documents were presented.

"We have a statute, a certificate of registration, and we have not transferred anywhere. We have been and will be the Ukrainian Orthodox Church," Father Volodymyr commented.

The community of St. Volodymyr's Church gathered for a religious feast on this day. "Look, here is the congregation that is here, on this earth, working for the salvation of the immortal soul and, at the same time, working for the salvation of our state," said the rector.

"The governor's decision is illegal. And we ask you, Volodymyr Oleksandrovych, to help the governor make the right decision and correct the mistake he made," Archpriest Vladimir Kuzio concluded his appeal.

As reported, deputies of Lviv and Zolochiv districts of the Lviv region decided to ban the UOC.

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