Abbess Dorofea, Superior of Krupytsky Monastery, Has Reposed

On August 6, 2026, in the Nizhyn Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), the Superior of the Krupytsky St. Nicholas Women's Monastery, Abbess Dorofea (Khokhlova), reposed in the Lord. This was reported by the press service of the Nizhyn Diocese.

Abbess Dorofea, known in the world as Valentyna Khokhlova, was tonsured a rassophore nun with the name Varvara in January 1998, and in July of the same year she received the monastic mantle with the name Dorofea. On April 17, 2000, she received the blessing of the Holy Synod of the UOC for the revival of the Krupytsky St. Nicholas Monastery, where under her leadership the main church of the monastery, the sisters' quarters, and the monastery wall were restored from ruins.

In January 2026, the administration of the Hetman's Capital nature reserve under the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine forcibly evicted the nuns from the monastery they had revived. Abbess Dorofea attempted to challenge this decision in court; however, a serious illness she had endured for many years cut short her labors as superior. She reposed in the 77th year of her life.

Archbishop Iona of Obukhiv commented on the abbess's death with bitter irony: "An unheard-of religious freedom has driven to the grave an abbess whom the atheistic authorities expelled from her monastery."

As the Union of Orthodox Journalists (UOJ) reported, the authorities turned the Krupytsky UOC Monastery into a restricted facility. The conflict surrounding the monastery continued for several months and was accompanied by legal proceedings between the monastery's residents and the state nature reserve.

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