Varash authorities report visit of “inspection commission” to UOC cathedral
The UOC’s Transfiguration Cathedral in Varash is under threat of seizure.
Oleksandr Derevyanchuk, a member of the Varash City Council in Rivne Region, announced on Facebook that an “inspection commission” from the OCU plans to visit the UOC’s Transfiguration Cathedral on May 15, 2025.
According to Derevyanchuk, “former rectors from the Moscow church have been illegally occupying and using the complex of buildings and property belonging to the OCU religious community for over two years.”
“In these two years, not a single court has ruled in favor of the Moscow church on the contested matters. The Moscow priests are stirring up their brainwashed believers and want bloody confrontation for good footage on Russian TV,” the councilman claimed.
Currently, there are three OCU churches operating in Varash, none of which are filled during services. Meanwhile, according to UOJ, the Transfiguration Cathedral gathers hundreds of UOC faithful for Sunday Liturgies.
As a reminder, on April 5, 2023, a so-called “people’s assembly” held on Independence Square in Varash “transferred” the UOC church to the OCU. As the UOJ sources in the city reported, the crowd at the assembly was gathered through the efforts of the local Department of Education, which ordered teachers from across the Varash territorial community to attend.
At the same time, the religious community of the Transfiguration Cathedral held a lawful religious meeting, during which 1,528 parishioners confirmed their allegiance to the UOC.
