Khmelnytskyi Eparchy comments on seizure in Kuzmyn

The Church of the Nativity of the Holy Theotokos in Kuzmyn. Photo: FB page of the church

The press service of the Khmelnytskyi Eparchy of the UOC commented on the seizure of the Nativity of the Theotokos Church in the village of Kuzmyn, which occurred on February 9, 2026.

As reported by the eparchy, the church was seized based on forged documents. In these documents, it was allegedly reported on behalf of the religious community that it was transfered from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. Changes were also made to the statute, and the head was replaced — instead of Archpriest Heorhii Sykaliuk, Bohdan Biliavets was listed.

The press service noted that on December 21, 2025, a meeting of the territorial community took place in the House of Culture of the village of Kuzmi=yn. At this meeting, representatives of the territorial community decided to transfer the UOC parish to the OCU, which violates Ukrainian legislation.

At the same time, the rector of the church, Archpriest Heorhii Sykaliuk, and the actual members of the religious community unanimously expressed their desire to remain in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church headed by Metropolitan Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine.

The eparchy emphasized that, under the law, actions by individuals who are not members of the religious community but attempt to act on its behalf constitute a serious violation and entail legal liability.

The religious community does not agree with the lawlessness and will defend its rights at the national and international levels. The press service noted that the situation surrounding the church in Kuzmin has already drawn attention in the U.S. Congress — Republican Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna stated that she is taking this issue under her personal control.

The UOC religious community will continue to serve, hold services, and seek the return of the seized church through the courts.

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that raiders cut the locks on the UOC church in Kuzmyn.

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