Outrage online after OCU cleric holds memorial service for missing soldiers

OCU chaplain held a memorial prayer for missing soldiers. Photo: Glavcom

In Kremenchuk, relatives of missing Ukrainian servicemen expressed deep outrage over the actions of an OCU military chaplain. During a ceremonial event at the Kremenchuk Museum of Local History, the cleric offered prayers for the dead and proclaimed “Memory Eternal” for soldiers who are still listed as missing, Glavcom reports.

The official opening of an exhibit honoring Military Unit No. 3059 of the National Guard of Ukraine took place on August 21, 2026. The organizers unveiled a display titled “Heroes of the Military Unit.” The memorial stand featured photographs of five fallen soldiers and 40 servicemen whom the command considers missing in action.

At the end of the event, the chaplain served a memorial litia and sang “Memory Eternal” in front of the portraits of the missing soldiers. His actions sparked a sharp reaction from the National Guardsmen’s families. Relatives viewed the chaplain’s actions as a sacrilegious funeral service in absentia for people who may still be alive.

“Every Sunday I go to church and light a candle ‘for the health’ of my husband, who may still be alive, and here a priest is holding a funeral service for him with the prayer ‘Memory Eternal,’” said Ksenia, wife of missing soldier Oleksandr Hrechanyi. “That was what hit me hardest. When I first saw the video, I thought they had found my husband’s body.”

Ksenia Hrechanova also stressed the complete lack of coordination on the part of the military unit’s leadership. The command had not informed the families that the memorial was being created or asked for their consent. “So it turns out they listed my husband among the dead in advance,” Ksenia said indignantly.

Daria, wife of another missing guardsman, Yevhen Lebid, confirmed the same. “When I saw the video, I couldn’t understand what was going on: Yevhen’s portrait was hanging there among those of the other servicemen. No one had told us anything about it,” Daria Lebid said.

Following widespread outrage on social media, the military removed the controversial display featuring portraits of the missing soldiers on August 22. By August 23, museum staff had left only the photographs of the five fallen National Guardsmen on the stand. Col. Serhii Uniiatov, acting head of the Eastern Territorial Directorate of the National Guard of Ukraine, apologized to the servicemen’s families. There has been no word of any apology from the OCU.

The military leadership now plans to unveil a themed display titled “Branch of Hope” on October 1. The military says the new exhibit will be fully coordinated with the relatives of the missing guardsmen.

As the UOJ reported, an OCU chaplain at a funeral said he wished no one would know prayers in Russian.

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