OCU cleric describes how UOC church was “politely seized” in Cherkasy region
OCU cleric admits to “politely seizing” church in Stetsivka. Photo: Cherkasy Eparchy of the OCU
A video circulating on social media shows OCU cleric Mykola Sakundiak describing how his organization took control of the UOC’s St. Demetrius Church in the village of Stetsivka, Cherkasy region. The video was posted on Instagram by Mariia Stepchuk, who appears from her posts to be the wife of an OCU cleric.
In the footage, Stepchuk and “Father Bohdan” arrive at St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki Church and admire its appearance, well-kept grounds, and the village’s “excellent” road. The visitors admit to the local cleric that they initially wondered whether they had come to the right place.
Asked whether the church had originally been “Ukrainian,” Sakundiak replies that it “was Russian,” meaning it belonged to the UOC. When asked how it came into the OCU’s possession, the rector gives an evasive answer: “Let's just say we politely took it over.”
According to Sakundiak, the church had stood closed for some time before someone decided, “How long is it going to stay closed?” He continued, “We opened it, started praying, and that was that,” adding that the church had been under OCU control for “almost two years.” He did not explain how the church was “opened” or on what legal grounds.
In the video's caption, Stepchuk wrote that the church was so “beautiful and majestic” that Father Bohdan initially mistook it for a church of the “Moscow Patriarchate.”
“And it turned out that it once was, but today the church belongs to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine!” she wrote, adding that they had come to celebrate the church's patronal feast.
The posts do not explain the circumstances under which the church was transferred to the OCU or what happened to its UOC parish community. Stetsivka lies within the canonical territory of the Uman Eparchy.
As the UOJ previously reported, the OCU is seeking to register St. Michael's Cathedral in Cherkasy under its ownership through court proceedings.
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