Yelensky urges to protect UOC from Russia
The head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience shared how UOC clergy have suffered at the hands of Russian authorities and military forces.
The head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS), Viktor Yelensky, has called for the protection of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) from Russia. He made this statement during a DESS press conference titled "Freedom of Conscience in Ukraine: Its Enemies and Defenders."
"What is happening in the occupied territories does not fit any legal definition. These are killings, lawlessness, and torture. The martyrology of priests killed by Russian occupiers exceeds 40 individuals. Some were murdered while wearing liturgical vestments, making it impossible to confuse them with anyone else," Yelensky noted.
He emphasized that this issue affects virtually all religious organizations, including the UOC. "When the Russian state speaks of its intention to protect the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the first step should be to protect it from Russia. Fourteen priests of this Church have been killed, nearly 200 churches destroyed, and those unwilling to transfer to the direct jurisdiction of Patriarch Kirill face persecution," Yelensky added.
As an example, he mentioned a priest named Maksimov from the Zaporizhzhia region, who was sentenced to 15 years for espionage by a Russian occupation court.
As reported by the UOJ, the head of DESS stated on a radio program that not a single UOC church in Ukraine has been closed, nor have any clergy of this Church been persecuted.
