We stand here for our faith, a sermon at the prayer vigil near Lavra

The UOC clergy at a prayer vigil near the Lavra. Photo: screenshot t.me/save_Lavra

On January 31, 2026, during a prayer vigil at the walls of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, a priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church addressed the gathered faithful with a sermon. He emphasized that believers come out for joint prayer not for material goods but for the preservation of their faith and the right to pray in their native shrines.

"We only want our faith to be left alone," said the clergyman, telling about the fate of monks, nuns and believers who for decades revived and served in churches and monasteries, who are being deprived of their shrines.

He read the words of the 26th Psalm about the significance of God's temple for a believer: "One thing I have asked of the Lord, that I will seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple."

In his address, the pastor also spoke about the spiritual power of monastery temples, which for thousands of people become places of comfort and healing from sorrows and inner wounds. The priest noted that many pilgrims find support in monasteries precisely during the most difficult life circumstances, and therefore the loss of temples becomes a painful wound for believers.

As the UOJ wrote, prayer vigils near the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra take place constantly. Prayer at the Church of Saint Sergius of Radonezh near the monastery is heard practically every evening. Believers are invited to join in common prayer for the preservation of shrines, the monastery brotherhood and peace in Ukraine.

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