Community reclaims church in Ust-Putyla and expels raiders
As of now, the faithful remain inside the church, maintaining a round-the-clock watch to prevent another takeover.
On May 22, 2025, around 2:00 a.m., parishioners of St. Paraskeva Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the village of Ust-Putyla, Putyla Deanery, managed to re-enter their church and held an overnight Divine Liturgy.
At present, the faithful are staying inside the church and maintaining continuous vigilance to prevent another attempt at seizure.
The day before, on May 21, 2025 – the feast of the Holy Apostle John the Theologian – militants from the OCU forcibly seized the UOC's St. Paraskeva Church in the village of Ust-Putyla, Bukovyna.
Locks were broken, the intruders barricaded themselves inside, and the police prevented the parishioners from entering the church for approximately 13 hours.
As previously reported by the UOJ, parishioners stated that the church was seized by outsiders from the Ivano-Frankivsk region, led by OCU chaplain Roman Hryshchuk.
