Ukraine, March 26, 2026
Photo: spzh.eu
The overwhelming majority of criminal cases opened by the Security Service of Ukraine against clergy of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church are completely fabricated, says Protodeacon Vadim Novinsky of the UOC.
“When the leadership of the Security Service of Ukraine reports how many priests have been convicted, how many criminal cases have been opened, these are all fake criminal cases. I’m sure that perhaps 5% of them had any real basis,” Novinsky said in a recent interview.
The protodeacon described the standard method for constructing such cases: a priest’s phone is taken, and certain correspondence is allegedly discovered on it. On the basis of that alleged correspondence, a criminal case is opened under the charge of treason. The clergyman is then offered a deal: either face pre-trial detention or sign a plea agreement, receive a potentially suspended sentence, and be released. According to Novinsky, this is how conviction statistics are compiled.
He dismissed accusations against clergy of weapons possession, guiding missile strikes, and coordinating actions against Ukraine as false, saying that a priest lives a different life, one devoted to serving God.
Novinsky also spoke about the situation facing specific hierarchs. He recalled that His Eminence Metropolitan Theodosy of Cherkasy was beaten during the seizure of the Cherkasy cathedral and was poisoned several weeks ago, requiring hospitalization in intensive care, where doctors were reportedly unable to determine what substance had been used.
His Eminence Metropolitan Longin of Bancheny, who has adopted more than 500 children with disabilities, has had multiple criminal cases opened against him despite having suffered three strokes and two heart attacks, and attends court hearings on a near-constant basis.
Novinsky also recalled that the abbot of the Holy Dormition-Svyatogorsk Lavra, His Eminence Metropolitan Arseny, was held behind bars for nearly two years on fabricated charges.
“This is how our government fights Orthodoxy, attempts to fight the Church, without understanding one thing: it’s impossible to fight against God. You will lose everything from the outset. Only madmen could have that goal,” Novinsky concluded.
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