Pochaiv Lavra demands media outlet retract false claims about monastery

Holy Dormition Pochaiv Lavra. Photo: timetotravel.in.ua

Metropolitan Volodymyr, abbot of the Pochaiv Lavra, has sent a formal statement to the management of the online news outlet ZAXID.NET, demanding that it retract inaccurate information and publicly correct a September 17 article containing defamatory claims about the monastery.

The statement, signed by Metropolitan Volodymyr of Pochaiv, notes that the outlet’s journalists grossly distorted information from the original source, the online publication hromadske, and arbitrarily attributed statements made by outsiders to the monastery.

In particular, ZAXID.NET described a monk named Sevastian, who was interviewed by journalists, as a “monk of the Pochaiv Lavra,” although the original report clearly identified him as a pilgrim who had arrived in Pochaiv from Odesa. Similarly, the Lviv-based outlet described a woman from the Ternopil region as a “resident of Pochaiv” without any basis for doing so.

“This wording is significant because it creates the impression that the individual belongs to the monastic brotherhood of the Pochaiv Lavra and that his statements may, to some extent, reflect the monastery’s position,” the Lavra emphasized in its official statement.

The monastery also objected to the systematic use of the manipulative abbreviation “UOC-MP” instead of its official and legally recognized name, the “Ukrainian Orthodox Church.” The Lavra recalled that Article 90 of Ukraine’s Civil Code guarantees legal entities the right to be identified by their official registered names in publications and legal relations.

The monastery demanded that ZAXID.NET publish an official correction notice on the page of the original article within the legally prescribed period. It also warned that, should the outlet refuse to comply, the Lavra is prepared to defend its reputation through legal action.

As the UOJ previously reported, the Pochaiv Lavra had refuted false media claims about its brotherhood and holy sites, providing a detailed explanation of the inventory process, construction work on the cathedral facade, and statements by individuals whose views had been misrepresented as the monastery’s official position.

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