TRC comments on mobilization of UOC priest in Skovorodky
The Khmelnytskyi TRC confirmed the mobilization of UOC priest Mykhailo Odarych, saying he has already been assigned to a military unit.
The Khmelnytskyi Regional Territorial Recruitment Center (TRC) has commented on the mobilization of Archpriest Mykhailo Odarych, rector of the UOC Church of the Intercession in the village of Skovorodky, confirming that he has already been assigned to a military unit, Zaxid.net reports.
Police detained the priest on the morning of November 2, 2026, in Starokostiantyniv, after which TRC officials sent him for a medical examination. According to Angelina Oliferuk, head of communications at the Khmelnytskyi Regional TRC, the priest had neither a formal deferment nor an exemption from mobilization, and the military medical commission found him fit for service.
Oliferuk also said the mobilized priest "could serve as a military chaplain."
However, under a resolution of Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers, UOC clergy are officially barred from serving as chaplains in the Armed Forces of Ukraine or receiving the necessary authorization.
As the UOJ previously reported, the secretary of the Khmelnytskyi Eparchy criticized the mobilization of UOC clergy as unfair, pointing to exemptions granted to clergy of other denominations.
