Kiev, September 1, 2026
uoc-news.church
The primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church distributed school supplies to hundreds of children from displaced families this weekend.
His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine handed out backpacks filled with school supplies to more than 200 children on Sunday, marking the Backpack of Mercy charitable initiative held each year ahead of the start of the school year, reports the Information-Education Department of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
The distribution took place at the Church of St. Agapit of the Kiev Caves Lavra, right after Metropolitan Onuphry celebrated the Divine Liturgy and led a moleben for the start of the school year.
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During the service, special prayers were offered for God’s blessing and help for students and teachers in the coming school year, and Metropolitan Onuphry sprinkled the children and everyone present with holy water.
The Backpack of Mercy campaign follows the moleben each year with the blessing and support of Metropolitan Onuphry, organized by the UOC’s Synodal Department for Social and Humanitarian Affairs.
Archpriest Sergei Ekshiyan, head of the department, thanked the primate and everyone who took part in supporting the department’s charitable initiatives.
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