Krasnoselye village, the Ukraine, January 19, 2016
The police officers forced representatives of the self-proclaimed “Kyiv Patriarchate” to leave the Orthodox church in Krasnoselye village of the Hoshcha district in the western Ukraine’s Rivne region which they had seized, reports Interfax-Religion.
Photo by Pravlife.org
The law-enforcement officers have closed the church building until its ecclesiastical jurisdiction is ascertained. A lawsuit has been filed against those who participated in the church takeover, reports the Ukraine’s Union of Orthodox Journalists.
The policemen have also installed an alarm system on the church building. The head of administration of the Hoshcha district is due to meet with representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate and the schismatics next Monday to decide the church’s future.
Members of the newly-established community of the “Kyiv Patriarchate” took over the church on January 17 during a service. The local priest called the police. While the law-enforcement officers stood near the church, the community could continue the service. However, as soon as the police left, the schismatics took over the church.
The church in Krasnoselye is an architectural monument and is in continued use by the UOC MP’s community.
