Russian Orthodox Church Absorbs 1,600 Ukrainian Parishes During Ongoing Occupation

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry condemned Russia for its ongoing religious persecution in the occupied Ukrainian territories, accusing Moscow of killing dozens of clergy members and causing significant damage to places of worship.

According to the Foreign Ministry on April 10, 67 clergy members from various faiths have been killed since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, with the deaths of many occurring in occupied territories.

These figures were provided by the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance.

In addition to the killings, Russia’s occupation forces have illegally detained over 30 religious figures. More than 640 religious buildings, including 596 Christian churches, have been damaged or destroyed, the ministry reported.

“The Russian state, together with the Russian Orthodox Church, has implemented a systematic repression of religious communities in the occupied Ukrainian lands, aimed at eradicating religious diversity and Ukrainian spiritual identity,” the Foreign Ministry stated.

The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) has reportedly absorbed eight dioceses of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, incorporating over 1,600 parishes and 23 monasteries.

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This move comes amid a broader effort by Moscow to suppress independent Ukrainian churches and other religious communities, including the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the Roman Catholic Church, Protestant and Muslim groups, and Jehovah’s Witnesses.

According to Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry, these groups have been subjected to criminal charges, raids, threats, and physical pressure by Russian occupation authorities.

The Orthodox Church of Ukraine has almost entirely ceased to exist in occupied Crimea, with its last church on the peninsula destroyed in June 2024.

In its statement, the Foreign Ministry called on all churches, religious organizations, and individuals worldwide to take notice of Russia’s persecution of religious communities in Ukraine, emphasizing that the Russian actions violate the basic human right to religious freedom.

This persecution, according to Ukrainian officials, dates back to 2014, following Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and occupation of parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

Muslim Crimean Tatar communities and various Christian denominations in the Donbas region have been primary targets of Russia’s repressive actions.

The Ministry stated, “Representatives of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Protestant communities, Roman and Greek Catholic churches, Muslim organizations, and all those representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church who disagree with the occupation regime suffer from repression. Criminal cases are fabricated against them, searches are conducted, and they face threats and physical pressure.”

Ukraine has adopted a law potentially banning the Moscow-linked Ukrainian Orthodox Church due to its ties to the ROC, which is seen as closely aligned with the Russian government and its invasion of Ukraine.

In related news, Vladimir Putin requested his initials be engraved on the chains of crosses to be distributed to Russian soldiers, TASS reported on January 7. During his visit to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia blessed crosses and icons intended for soldiers fighting in Ukraine.