DESS demanded that Holosiivskyi Monastery leave the Kyiv Metropolis of the UOC

Holosiivskyi Monastery. Photo: open sources

The State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) has issued an official directive to the Holy Protection Holosiivska Hermitage regarding the "elimination of violations" of freedom of conscience legislation. Officials accused the monastery of being affiliated with a foreign religious organization whose activities are prohibited in Ukraine according to the law on protection of the constitutional order.

DESS conducted a special investigation regarding the monastery's connections from January 26 to March 19, 2026. Based on the inspection results, the head of the department Viktor Yelensky signed a document that obliges the monastery to fulfill a number of strict requirements by April 27, 2026.

In particular, the abbot of the Holosiivska Hermitage is required to provide a decision from the Spiritual Council – the monastery's governing body – regarding the monastery's withdrawal from the Kyiv Metropolia of the UOC. Additionally, the monastery's leadership must officially declare its disagreement with appointments to the governing bodies of the ROC. The abbot was obliged to prepare a statement about terminating powers and severing ties with the Moscow Patriarchate.

DESS claims to have found in the monastery's charter and internal documents signs of "inclusion in the structure" of an organization that is part of a prohibited center of influence. In case of non-compliance with the directive within the established timeframe, the department may initiate further sanctions against the religious organization.

Earlier, SPJ wrote that DESS found connections with Moscow at the Holosiivsky monastery.

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