Pochaev, Ternopil Province, Ukraine, October 14, 2025
Photo: Facebook
The leadership of the Holy Dormition-Pochaev Lavra in western Ukraine, one of the holiest sites of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, is calling on faithful Orthodox Christians to offer three days of prayer and strict fasting on the eve of the state’s lawsuit to shut down the Church.
In particular, a hearing will be held on October 30 to consider banning the Kiev Metropolia of the UOC, which would deprive the entire Church of its central administration and all institutions attached to it. The state’s crusade against Orthodoxy began in earnest in August of last year when Parliament passed and President Zelensky signed into a law a bill on banning religious organizations connected to Russia, which lawmakers openly proclaimed was actually aimed at banning the Kiev-centered Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
In May of this year, based on this law, the Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) began formally investigating UOC structures, beginning with the Kiev Metropolia. In August, DESS formally declared that the UOC is still connected to the Moscow Patriarchate, taking Russian Church documents as its guide, thereby investing them with legislative authority in Ukraine. On this basis, DESS filed a lawsuit against the Kiev Metropolia, which will open on October 30.
Against this background, the Pochaev Lavra posted the following message on Sunday:
BROTHERS AND SISTERS!
In these days, when the holy Church is facing trials, the Spiritual Council of the Holy Dormition-Pochaev Lavra rejoices to hold a strict fast and intensified prayer on October 28, 29, and 30.
The reason for this is a court hearing that will take place on October 30 regarding the cessation of activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which may affect the fate of our holy site as well.
We call upon all—brothers, pilgrims, and faithful children of the Church—to offer sincere prayer to the Lord, entreating His mercy and intercession.
May our common spiritual labor be a sacrifice that the Lord may strengthen and preserve His holy Church and our holy sites.
The Pochaev Lavra is also a major target for the nationalist authorities and the schismatics of the “Orthodox Church of Ukraine.” Last week, a “search” was conducted in the monastery, while unknown perpetrators attempted to seize the holy habitation’s administration building on the site, though they were repelled by seminarians.
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