OCU cleric again urges believers to eat sausage during fast
OCU cleric Oleksii Filiuk said that fasting is about prayer, not abstaining from boiled sausage, "which contains nothing but soy."
On August 5, 2026, Oleksii Filiuk, a cleric of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) and a popular blogger, published a video on his YouTube channel in which he once again urged believers not to place too much emphasis on the Church's dietary rules for fasting. He recorded the video while preparing to eat breakfast with boiled sausage – during the Dormition Fast, which in the OCU, following the Revised Julian calendar, runs from August 1 to 14.
According to the Church's Typikon, the Dormition Fast is as strict as Great Lent. Fish is permitted only once – on the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Moreover, the Wednesday on which Filiuk recorded his video is traditionally observed as a day of xerophagy (dry eating).
According to the OCU cleric, those criticizing him for breaking the fast should focus instead on prayer and works of mercy.
"People tell me, 'You're eating sausage during the fast...' But fasting is about prayer, it's about works of mercy – not boiled sausage, which contains nothing but soy. Suddenly all these great fasters have appeared," Filiuk said.
In support of his argument, he pointed to Ukrainian servicemen.
"And our defenders – who knows if they even get breakfast? If they're on the front lines, they may go two or three days without eating. Maybe that's a fast too. Everyone should eat," the blogger said.
Concluding the video, Filiuk repeated his appeal.
"Have breakfast, eat boiled sausage. Just don't eat each other's livers," the OCU cleric said.
Earlier, Filiuk described the traditional dietary restrictions of the Nativity Fast as an invention of the Russians – whom he refers to as "Mokshans" – and encouraged believers to drink milk during the fast.
As previously reported by the UOJ, Filiuk had also defended eating sausage during Great Lent, urging believers "not to become fanatics."
