Zadubrovka, Ukraine, May 13, 2020
Photo: spzh.news
The faithful of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox community in Zadubrovka, Chernivtsi, Province, that was brutally attacked by schismatic nationalists on the same day that their beloved rector reposed in the Lord has issued a heartfelt plea to President Vladimir Zelensky to protect believers.
The community of the Church of the Archangel Michael, whose rector Archpriest Leonid Delikatny reposed in the morning on May 4, published its plea to the President on the Facebook page of the Chernivtsi-Bukovina Diocese.
In the video address, the faithful drew the head of state’s attention to the fact that they have been asking him to resolve the conflict around their parish for more than a year already. The problem arose when the parish was illegally and forcefully transferred to the schismatic “Orthodox Church of Ukraine.”
The conflict dramatically escalated when OCU supporters violently attacked the canonical faithful last week, stabbing one parishioner in the head, sending several to the hospital, and using tear gas to try to drive old women out of the church.
“How long will you turn a blind eye to such lawlessness?” the faithful ask the President.
“Are you waiting for them to start killing the faithful of the UOC in Zadubrovka? Believers are not afraid to die for Christ, but is that normal in a democratic Ukraine that seeks to join the EU?” the community asks.
A number of hierarchs of the UOC have spoken out against the continuing violence against the Church and have noted the glaring silence of the schismatic OCU’s “Metropolitan” Epiphany Dumenko following the recent attack in Zadubrovka.
