DESS demands that Holosiiv Monastery break ties with Moscow
DESS obligated the monastery to withdraw from the Kyiv Metropolis of the UOC and provide written evidence of "breaking relations" with the ROC.
The State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) has issued an official directive to the Holy Protection Holosiiv Hermitage regarding the "elimination of violations" of freedom of conscience legislation. Officials accused the monastery of affiliation with a foreign religious organization whose activities are banned in Ukraine according to the law on protection of the constitutional order.
DESS conducted a special investigation regarding the monastery's ties from January 26 to March 19, 2026. Based on the inspection results, the head of the department Viktor Yelensky signed a document that obliges the monastery to fulfill a number of strict requirements by April 27, 2026.
In particular, the abbot of the Holosiiv Hermitage is required to provide a decision from the Spiritual Council - the monastery's governing body - regarding the monastery's withdrawal from the Kyiv Metropolis of the UOC. Additionally, the monastery's leadership must officially declare its disagreement with appointments to the governing bodies of the ROC. The abbot was obliged to prepare a statement about terminating powers and breaking ties with the Moscow Patriarchate.
DESS claims to have found in the monastery's statute and internal documents signs of "inclusion in the structure" of an organization that is part of a banned center of influence. In case of non-compliance with the directive within the established timeframe, the department may initiate further sanctions against the religious organization.
Earlier, the UOJ wrote that DESS found ties with Moscow at the Holosiiv Monastery.
