The Russian invaders in Crimea continue to push the Orthodox Church of Ukraine out of the lives of Ukrainians. A total of seven parishes of the OCU and four priests with the Ukrainian Church remain in the Russian-occupied Crimea at the moment.
This was stated by Mykola Kikkas, a lawyer with the Regional Center for Human Rights, who addressed the glaring situation, presenting the results of a study of the negative influence of the occupying power on Ukraine’s Ukrainian national identity and cultural heritage in Crimea, qirim.news reports.
Mykola Kikkas said that the invaders continue to expel the clergy and the faithful from the peninsula, persecuting them and seizing church property. The reason behind the oppression is their condemnation of Russian aggression.
“In 2014, from the very beginning, the church (OCU, – ed.) categorically condemned Russian aggression and publicly stated it would not accept the Russian government in any way other than as an interim occupation authority. And that’s how it all started,” Kikkas explained.
“In 2014, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine ran 45 parishes on the territory of the Crimean Peninsula, as well as 26 churches, while the Crimean diocese had 14 priests. Today, according to various estimates, there are only seven parishes, eight temples, and only four priests left,” the lawyer said.
At the same time, according to Kikkas, there is a case where an OCU priest is being forced to travel to the occupied peninsula and back because he cannot stay there permanently due to pressure from the occupying Russian authorities.
“The priest serves on a shift basis as he cannot just stay in Crimea because he does not hold an occupation (Russian – ed.) passport. He is forced to travel to Crimea from mainland Ukraine to perform his services,” said the lawyer.
Persecution of the OCU in Crimea
The occupiers in Crimea have been forcing an OCU archbishop to demolish temples. Meanwhile, Russia has been making effort to get rid of any “outsiders” in Crimea in favor of the Moscow Patriarchate.
The U.S. envoy to the OSCE criticized the decision of the occupying authorities in Crimea to dismantle the OCU temple. Also, a number of human rights organizations have issued a statement on the persecution of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in Crimea. OCU Primate Metropolitan Epifaniy condemned the actions of the occupying Russian authorities in Crimea, while Metropolitan Oleksandr (Drabinko) called for an adequate response to “spiritual terrorism” in Crimea.
The Ministry of Reintegration of Ukraine stated that Russia’s oppression of believers in Crimea was a sufficient reason to expand sanctions.
On March 15, 2021, the occupying power in Crimea handed down a resolution on the demolition of the OCU church in Yevpatoria. The OCU said they would not destroy the temple.
