New York, September 22, 2026
Photo: synod.com
The Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia is calling on the faithful to intensify their prayers as a church of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America plans to honor President Vladimir Zelensky of Ukraine, who openly persecutes the Orthodox Church, the ROCOR press service reports.
The Synod met online on Tuesday, September 15, under the chairmanship of Metropolitan Nicholas of Eastern America and New York, First Hierarch of ROCOR. During the session, the bishops discussed inter-Orthodox relations and noted the discontent among Orthodox Christians in the U.S. over the planned honoring of “a government official who has actively persecuted Christ’s Church and its faithful.”
In response, the Synod is asking the faithful to intensify their prayers for the strengthening of the faith of Orthodox Christians, as prescribed to be prayed at the end of Matins.
Referring to the persecutors of the Church, the bishops cited the words of the Psalmist: I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree. Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found (Ps. 37:35-36). The memory of the lawless will be erased from people’s hearts this way, the bishops said, while the Church of Christ will stand forever.
Though the Synod’s statement doesn’t name the official, it follows St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine’s announcement that it will present its 2026 Beacon of Hope Award to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky. The church, part of the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, will present the award at its second annual Beacon of Hope Dinner on September 26 at Casa Cipriani during United Nations General Assembly Week.
The planned award has drawn pan-Orthodox opposition, including a petition addressed to the church’s Board of Trustees calling on it to rescind the honor and choose a different recipient.
It’s widely documented that the Ukrainian government under President Zelensky has persecuted individual hierarchs and clergy of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, along with the Church as an institution, in an effort aimed at liquidating it entirely. International human rights organizations, including the United Nations, have repeatedly acknowledged this persecution.
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