Washington, DC, December 17, 2025
Photo: uoj.news
A pan-Orthodox group of nearly 200 hierarchs, clergy, monastics, and faithful gathered in Washington, DC, yesterday to support and raise awareness about the plight of the persecuted Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
The group, organized by the Society of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco, included three hierarchs: His Grace Bishop Theodosios of Seattle (ROCOR), His Grace Bishop John of Worcester (Antiochian), and His Grace Bishop Serafim of Kostajnica (Serbian), reports the Union of Orthodox Journalists.
The concerned Christians met with 80 members of Congress and their staff, in addition to canvassing every office in the House and Senate. The event concluded with a meeting and press conference on the steps of the Capitol building, which saw a number of Congressmen standing in solidarity with the persecuted UOC.
The pan-Orthodox group called for the repeal of Ukraine’s Law 3894-IX, adopted by the Rada and signed by President Zelensky in order to shut down the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The first court case stemming from the law, to ban the Kiev Metropolis, is currently underway.
The group also called for the release of His Eminence Metropolitan Arseny of Svyatogorsk, who has been held in detention for nearly two years on phony charges, and an end to the conscription of UOC clergy into military service.
Rep. Luna. Photo: uoj.news
The press conference began with remarks from Rep. Luna, who has spoken up in defense of the UOC many times already. She emphasized that “American tax dollars should never support a government that is actively persecuting our brothers and sisters in Christ.”
“If Christians can be persecuted by our Western allies and countries fully reliant on us for funding, there is nothing to stop that persecution from coming home,” she said.
Whiteford then took the podium, explaining that the group’s concern is not geopolitical, but rather rooted in human dignity and religious freedom. She emphasized that as Orthodox Christians, they have been praying for the people of Ukraine since the war began, and that, in fact, many Ukrainian Orthodox Christians were present at the event.
“We are here for one reason only,” she said, “to defend the universal principle of religious liberty and to speak plainly when that principle is abandoned, even by governments we otherwise support.”
Photo: uoj.news
Whiteford also spoke of the law that aims to ban Ukraine’s oldest and largest Church and about the plight of UOC hierarchs and clergy who face indefinite detention and military deployment. His Eminence Metropolitan Arseny of Svyatogorksk has been languishing in detention for 18 months, being denied urgent medical care, and the UOC primate, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine, had his citizenship revoked by President Zelensky. Further, American citizens are alarmed to see the bloody seizure of churches that are carried almost daily in Ukraine.
“I want to remind you that we are not speaking of North Korea or China here – this is happening in a country the United States considers an ally,” Whiteford said.
The St. John Society’s specific requests, she explained, are for the American government to call for the suspension and repeal of Law 3894, to demand the immediate release of Met. Arseny, to end the forced mobilization of UOC clergy, and for Ukraine to uphold its constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.
Rep. Crane. Photo: uoj.news
Rep. Crane noted that there have been “troubling authoritarian tendencies” in Ukraine since the war began that “stand in stark contrast to the core pillars of Western civilization.”
“It’s clear that the situation on the ground is far different from what is portrayed by the mainstream media,” he said. “Alongside these concerns is the mistreatment of Christians, which is especially concerning.”
“Let’s continue to trust in God, stand firm in our convictions, and spread the Gospel worldwide,” he said, expressing the hope that a resolution to the war will bring the return of religious freedom to Ukraine.
Stefano Forte. Photo: uoj.news
Then Stefano Forte spoke, noting that while he is president of the New York Young Republicans Club, more importantly, he was there as an Orthodox Christian.
“When you have the Church of England, when you have Pope Francis, and when you have Orthodox Christians all around saying this is wrong, only one issue could bring those three groups together. It is wrong to see the imprisonment of clergy, it is wrong to see our tax dollars going to the persecution of Christians in a land that is not ours,” he said. “We need to stand together as Americans to say the persecution of any Christians anywhere is wrong and we will refuse to put our tax dollars behind it.”
Rep. Van Orden. Photo: uoj.news
Rep. Van Orden, who comes from an Orthodox family, wasn’t scheduled to speak but took the opportunity to say a few words in defense of religious freedom:
“Communism is based on atheistic conditions, and we have to understand that… in America, if we turn our back on God, we will fail,” he said. “If we don’t support other nations that are striving for religious freedom, we will also fail. You have my unwavering support, and I just hope that next Christmas will be happier for everybody. With that, God bless you and your families, and Merry Christmas.”
The press conference was closed by Subdeacon Gregory Levitsky, a constituent of Rep. Joe Wilson—who launched an attack against the pan-Orthodox delegation that held similar meetings in Washington last month, calling for them to be investigated as Kremlin spies.
Subdcn. Gregory Levitsky. Photo: uoj.news
Levitsky recounted how Rep. Joe Wilson “singled out and attacked my church as an extension of the Russian state” and dismissed their advocacy for the persecuted Ukrainian Orthodox Church as “an intelligence operation” when Orthodox Christians met with Washington representatives last month. As a constituent, he said he was “dismayed and hurt” by Wilson’s sentiment.
Levitsky noted that Wilson refused to meet the visiting bishops and hasn’t visited the ROCOR parish in his own district. Wilson “even criticized President Trump’s administration for wanting to meet with American citizens about their concerns,” despite ROCOR being “founded expressly to safeguard the Orthodox faith during years of communist rule” with “a strong history of independence.”
With deep ties to Ukraine and witnessing churches seized and clergy beaten by “agents of President Zelenskyy’s government,” ROCOR has raised over half a million dollars for Ukrainian war victims and refugees. Levitsky emphasized: “We’re not merely American citizens; not one of the bishops of ROCOR is Russian born.” He noted that their clergy and parishioners include military veterans, U.S. Armed Forces chaplains, and Ukrainian refugees.
Calling Wilson’s comments irresponsible and dangerous, Levitsky requested a formal apology: “Congressman Wilson, I say again: There’s a ROCOR parish in your district… you’re invited to come and visit us” and “to repent of the false witness that you have borne against your own constituents and against loyal American citizens.”
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