<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" version="2.0"><channel><title>News and articles UOJ</title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/</link><description>Articles and news about Orthodoxy, UOC and Christianity</description><language>en</language><lastBuildDate>Mon, 14 Sep 2026 14:19:52 +0300</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://test.spzh.eu/en/rss" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><item><title><![CDATA[Metropolitan Anthony criticizes DESS order on Boryspil Eparchy]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95786-metropolitan-anthony-criticizes-dess-order-on-boryspil-eparchy</link><description><![CDATA[The UOC chancellor rejected officials’ findings, pointing to procedural violations in the DESS review.]]></description><pubDate>Mon, 14 Sep 2026 10:18:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Metropolitan Anthony of Boryspil and Brovary, chancellor of the UOC, addressed the faithful following DESS’s conclusion that the Boryspil Eparchy is affiliated with a foreign religious organization whose activities are banned in Ukraine. Metropolitan Anthony pointed to what he described as arbitrary actions and distorted facts in the agency’s findings.The hierarch stressed that agency officials had not requested official documents from the eparchy’s leadership or sought clarification of its current position. Instead, he said, officials based their conclusions on materials published a decade ago without verifying whether they were still valid. “How can a government agency formulate an official position based on assumptions and in the absence of official documents?” the bishop asked.“The findings of the review contain no facts indicating that the Boryspil Eparchy violated Ukrainian law,” Metropolitan Anthony stressed. “Nor is there any legally substantiated finding that the law on freedom of conscience was violated.”
    
        
            
        
    
    
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“The mere fact that a government agency has issued an order does not mean that the conclusions it contains are beyond dispute,” the bishop said. “After all, even DESS itself acknowledges that its decision is the result of an administrative review, not a court ruling terminating the activities of a religious organization.” The hierarch also recalled that the activities of a religious organization can be terminated only by a court ruling.Metropolitan Anthony drew the faithful’s attention to the fact that the authorities cannot ban the true Church of Christ. “The Church, as the mystical Body of Christ, does not derive its existence from a government institution. A person does not need an official’s permission to believe in God; nor does one need the authorization of a government agency to pray to Christ,” Metropolitan Anthony stressed.“I call on the faithful children of the Boryspil Eparchy to make three prostrations every day, praying for the softening of the evil hearts of those who are hostile toward the Church,” the hierarch urged. “Unlawful decrees are eventually reassessed, officials pass into history, ideological trends disappear, but Christ remains.”As the UOJ previously reported, the Zaporizhzhia Eparchy responded to DESS’s statement about alleged ties to the Russian Orthodox Church.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95786-metropolitan-anthony-criticizes-dess-order-on-boryspil-eparchy</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/86_main.jpg" length="72039" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Two more parishes in Sloviansk reregistered under OCU]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95783-two-more-parishes-in-sloviansk-re-registered-under-ocu</link><description><![CDATA[The organizer behind the transfer of UOC communities in Sloviansk said the reregistration of churches would continue.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 17:00:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Authorities in Sloviansk have reregistered two churches under the OCU. Oleksandr Onyshchenko, who initiated the transfers, told Karachun about the change in affiliation and said he had no intention of stopping the reregistration of communities.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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Officials reregistered the parish of St. Seraphim of Sarov in the Cherevkivka district and the parish dedicated to the Icon of the Mother of God “Unexpected Joy” in the Molodizhnyi neighborhood on General Batiuk Street. The corresponding entries appeared on the YouControl portal.“We have been conducting outreach among parishioners since 2023,” Onyshchenko said. “We want to convince people that in the state of Ukraine there should be a Ukrainian Church.”The organizer of the transfers also pointed to the results of parish reregistrations in the region.“So we have a result: in 2026, three churches in Donetsk Region transferred to the OCU,” Onyshchenko said. “I’ll say right away: we are not taking a break. We are continuing in this direction. We believe that soon there will be more spiritual centers in Donetsk Region freed from the Muscovites.”As the UOJ previously reported, with Onyshchenko’s involvement, authorities transferred Sloviansk’s St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral to the OCU.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95783-two-more-parishes-in-sloviansk-re-registered-under-ocu</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/83_main.jpg" length="26472" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Hasidic pilgrims leave mountains of trash in Uman after Rosh Hashanah]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95782-hasidic-pilgrims-leave-mountains-of-trash-in-uman-after-rosh-hashanah</link><description><![CDATA[Uman’s municipal services are struggling to clear residential neighborhoods after the Hasidic pilgrimage.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 16:30:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[On September 13, 2026, pilgrims in Uman, Cherkasy Region, concluded the three-day celebration of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. After the festivities, streets across the city were left covered in trash, overwhelming municipal cleanup crews, according to Novyny.LIVE.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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More than 50,000 Hasidic pilgrims came to the city. Visitors left makeshift piles of plastic dishes, boxes and bags of leftover food in residential courtyards around garbage containers. Household waste blocked parked cars and formed massive piles directly on the streets.Uman’s municipal crews are working nonstop, but they lack enough equipment and personnel to clear the neighborhoods quickly. Heavy crowds on central roads are also making it difficult for garbage trucks to get through. The condition of public spaces has sparked strong outrage among local residents.As the UOJ reported, Chișinău Airport restricted access amid the influx of Hasidic pilgrims.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95782-hasidic-pilgrims-leave-mountains-of-trash-in-uman-after-rosh-hashanah</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/82_main.jpg" length="120524" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Ostapenko: Dormition Cathedral is one of the pantheons of Ukrainian history]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95781-ostapenko-dormition-cathedral-is-one-of-the-pantheons-of-ukrainian-history</link><description><![CDATA[Reserve director Maksym Ostapenko lamented that there are no graves of Ukrainian princes or hetmans around the Dormition Cathedral.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 15:35:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Maksym Ostapenko, director general of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve, called the Dormition Cathedral one of the largest pantheons of Ukrainian history in an interview with Shelter, describing the monastery’s main cathedral as the burial place of prominent state and church figures.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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“The Dormition Cathedral is one of the largest historical pantheons of Ukrainian history,” Ostapenko said. “Many great figures found their final resting place within these walls.” The reserve director expressed dissatisfaction that Field Marshal Pyotr Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky, who was involved in the abolition of the Zaporizhian Sich, is buried in the cathedral, while there is no tomb of Ostafiy Dashkovych, whom he described as the founder of the Sich.Ostapenko also spoke of what he called “imperial monuments” near the Far Caves, describing the area as “a pantheon of the Russian aristocracy, generals, governors and various landowners.” He lamented that there are no Cossack graves, Ukrainian hetmans or princes buried around the Dormition Cathedral.Asked by the interviewer about the reserve’s plans regarding the possible reburial of Stolypin, Ostapenko only replied that Stolypin represented “the pinnacle of the Russian pantheon in the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra” and added: “We must reclaim our names, we must know them, and we must show what Ukrainians did before the imperial period and how they shaped various spheres.”As the UOJ previously reported, Maksym Ostapenko said the Lavra should become a “Ukrainian Vatican.”
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95781-ostapenko-dormition-cathedral-is-one-of-the-pantheons-of-ukrainian-history</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/81_main.jpg" length="76678" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Montenegrin priest condemns Ukrainian authorities for persecution of UOC]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95780-montenegrin-priest-condemns-ukrainian-authorities-for-persecution-of-uoc</link><description><![CDATA[Archpriest Slobodan Zeković said the Ukrainian authorities are persecuting the UOC.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 15:12:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[In the Montenegrin city of Bar, Serbian Orthodox Archpriest Slobodan Zeković said that the UOC is facing persecution in Ukraine. He made the remarks on September 12 following the Liturgy in the crypt of the Cathedral of St. Jovan Vladimir marking the Translation of the Relics of St. Alexander Nevsky, UOJ-Serbia reports.Fr. Slobodan described the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as a martyred Church, saying it is suffering both from the war and from pressure by the Ukrainian authorities.“The UOC was the first to suffer from the war that has been raging there since 2014, and on top of that, the Church has endured years of persecution by Ukraine’s godless regime. Many churches have been seized and desecrated, and many priests and bishops are in prison or being prosecuted in the courts. May the Lord grant them patience, faith and strength to endure this brutal persecution, for we know that after every persecution, the Church has emerged even stronger, more powerful and more numerous. So it will be this time as well,” the priest said.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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As the UOJ reported, a Serbian priest previously called the expulsion of the UOC from the Lavra “a disgrace.”
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95780-montenegrin-priest-condemns-ukrainian-authorities-for-persecution-of-uoc</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/80_main.jpg" length="81383" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Metropolitan Pimen of Rivne concelebrates with Jerusalem Church hierarch]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95779-metropolitan-pimen-of-rivne-concelebrates-with-jerusalem-church-hierarch</link><description><![CDATA[Pilgrims from Ukraine prayed for peace at the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 14:24:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[With the blessing of the Primate of the UOC, Metropolitan Pimen of Rivne and Ostroh concelebrated the nighttime Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem with Metropolitan Joachim of Helenoupolis, a hierarch of the Jerusalem Patriarchate, according to the Rivne Eparchy.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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The hierarchs were joined by clergy of the Serbian Orthodox Church and priests from several eparchies of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Numerous faithful and several groups of pilgrims from Ukraine prayed at the Church of the Resurrection of Christ.Those attending the Liturgy offered prayers for peace in Ukraine, an end to the war, the Ukrainian people and the country’s defenders. Ukrainian pilgrims recited the Lord’s Prayer at the site of Christ’s Resurrection. The joint service filled the hearts of the faithful with spiritual joy and hope.As the UOJ previously reported, Patriarch Theophilos received Metropolitan Pimen of Rivne and pilgrims from his eparchy.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95779-metropolitan-pimen-of-rivne-concelebrates-with-jerusalem-church-hierarch</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/79_main.jpg" length="113910" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Zelensky named among world’s most influential Jews]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95778-zelensky-named-among-worlds-most-influential-jews</link><description><![CDATA[The Ukrainian president ranked 21st in The Jerusalem Post’s annual list, topped this year by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 13:54:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ranked 21st on The Jerusalem Post’s list of the “50 Most Influential Jews of 2026,” published on September 10.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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Zelensky was described as “the Jewish president who became the face of Ukrainian resistance.” He was the only representative of Ukraine included in the ranking.The publication gave the top spot to U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and daughter, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ranked second, followed by former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot in third place. The top 10 also included Naftali Bennett, World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder, Miriam Adelson, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and OpenAI and Meta founders Sam Altman and Mark Zuckerberg.A group of rabbis – Sholom Duchman, Dov Landau, Ephraim Mirvis, Rick Jacobs and Mendy Kotlarsky – was ranked separately in 28th place. Israeli President Isaac Herzog placed 14th, while Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum ranked 25th.This is not Zelensky’s first appearance on The Jerusalem Post list, though he has not been included every year. In 2022, the publication named him the world’s most influential Jew and featured him on its cover, but he dropped out of the top 50 the following year. In 2024, Zelensky returned to the ranking in 22nd place, described as a “wartime president and democratic role model,” while his name was absent again from the 2025 list.The UOJ previously reported that, according to Ukraine’s chief rabbi, Jews in Ukraine feel safer and more comfortable than they do even in the United States.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95778-zelensky-named-among-worlds-most-influential-jews</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/78_main.webp" length="50360" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Metropolitan Nikodim of Zhytomyr consecrates new UOC church in Datsky]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95777-metropolitan-nikodim-of-zhytomyr-consecrates-new-uoc-church-in-datsky</link><description><![CDATA[The UOC hierarch consecrated St. Nicholas Church of the Zhytomyr Eparchy.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 12:58:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[On September 12, 2026, the feast day of the Holy Right-Believing Prince Alexander Nevsky, Metropolitan Nikodim of Zhytomyr and Novohrad-Volynskyi led the consecration of a UOC church and celebrated the Divine Liturgy at St. Nicholas Church in the village of Datsky, Zhytomyr Region, according to a post on the hierarch’s Facebook page.The church, which will now serve as a spiritual center for the local community, was consecrated before the start of the Liturgy.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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After the service, Metropolitan Nikodim addressed the faithful with an archpastoral message, congratulating the community on the milestone and wishing them spiritual growth, unity and God’s blessing.As UOJ reported, Metropolitan Anthony previously consecrated a church dedicated to St. Nicholas in Rusaniv.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95777-metropolitan-nikodim-of-zhytomyr-consecrates-new-uoc-church-in-datsky</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/77_main.jpg" length="114422" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[UOC believers in Rivne region hold procession to Derman monastery]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95775-uoc-believers-in-rivne-region-hold-procession-to-derman-monastery</link><description><![CDATA[About 500 pilgrims walked to the Holy Trinity Monastery in the Rivne region on the feast day of St. Hierotheus of Ostroh.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 12:22:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[On September 12, 2026, the feast day of St. Hierotheus of Ostroh, the Derman Wonderworker, believers from the Rivne Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church held a procession to the Holy Trinity Derman Monastery, according to the eparchy.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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The procession was held with the blessing of Metropolitan Pimen in the Zdolbuniv Deanery. About 500 believers chose to make the journey to the monastery on foot that day to honor St. Hierotheus in common prayer.A cross and icons were carried at the head of the procession, followed by a long column of pilgrims. The hour-and-a-half journey was filled with prayer and church hymns. At the entrance to the convent, the pilgrims were welcomed by the convent’s abbess, Mother Veronika, and the sisters of the community.A festive service was also held at the monastery that day in honor of the saint’s feast. Clergy and believers from the Rivne, Volyn and Ternopil eparchies gathered at the monastery for the Divine Liturgy.After the Liturgy, a prayer service was held, during which the saint’s holy relics were solemnly carried in procession around the convent’s Holy Trinity Church.As the UOJ reported, Bishop Hierotheus was glorified as a saint four years ago. Since then, thousands of people have come to the Derman Monastery to pray before his relics, and every Thursday clergy of the Zdolbuniv Deanery serve an akathist to the saint.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95775-uoc-believers-in-rivne-region-hold-procession-to-derman-monastery</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/75_main.jpg" length="157351" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Pilgrims from UOC’s Khust Eparchy meet Patriarch Theophilos in Jerusalem]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95774-pilgrims-from-uocs-khust-eparchy-meet-patriarch-theophilos-in-jerusalem</link><description><![CDATA[A group of UOC faithful from Zakarpattia visited the holy sites of the Holy Land and received the archpastoral blessing of the Primate of the Jerusalem Church.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 12:12:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Pilgrims from the Khust Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church visited the Patriarch of Jerusalem during a pilgrimage to the holy sites of Jerusalem and other places associated with the earthly life of the Savior, the press service of the Khust Eparchy reported on Facebook.The pilgrimage to the Holy Land was undertaken with the blessing of the ruling hierarch of the Khust Eparchy, Metropolitan Mark. The group was led by Archimandrite Pimen (Matsola), head of the eparchy’s pilgrimage department.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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According to the believers, a highlight of the trip was their meeting with Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, during which the pilgrims received his archpastoral blessing and had an opportunity to speak with the Primate of the Orthodox Church of Jerusalem.“The pilgrimage to the Holy Land became a time of prayer and spiritual strengthening for its participants. Visiting the holy sites of Jerusalem allowed the pilgrims to encounter places that preserve the memory of the most important events of Sacred History,” the statement said.As the UOJ previously reported, Patriarch Theophilos received the Metropolitan of Rivne and pilgrims from his eparchy.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95774-pilgrims-from-uocs-khust-eparchy-meet-patriarch-theophilos-in-jerusalem</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/74_main.jpg" length="111166" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[UOC parishioners at Kyiv’s Demiivka church defend their rights in court]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95773-uoc-parishioners-at-kyivs-demiivka-church-defend-their-rights-in-court</link><description><![CDATA[The rector of the Demiivka parish said documents relating to the church had been falsified and asked for prayers ahead of the second court hearing.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 11:58:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[The rector of the Ascension Church in Kyiv’s Demiivka district has spoken about an ongoing court case involving the parish amid an attempted church seizure by representatives of the OCU. Archpriest Pavel Kirillov reported this on the Kyiv Metropolia’s Telegram channel.According to the priest, litigation over the church is continuing over the alleged falsification of documents concerning the parish. Despite this, the community continues its normal parish life: regular services are held, a social ministry and assistance center for displaced people and those in need are operating, and work with Orthodox youth continues. Fr. Pavel also highlighted the activities of the Parasolka youth movement.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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The rector stressed that parishioners remain firm in their Orthodox position and intend to remain within the Ukrainian Orthodox Church while defending their church through legal means. The second court hearing in the Ascension Church case is scheduled for September 14.The parish and its rector asked believers for prayerful support – both for the community itself and for the lawyers representing its interests in court.As the UOJ previously reported, it earlier emerged that information about the head of the religious community had been unlawfully changed. Instead of the lawful rector of the Ascension Church, Archpriest Pavel Kirillov, the register now lists Taras Ivanovych Pikus as the new head. According to available information, he is a student at the OCU’s Kyiv Orthodox Theological Academy and is not ordained.On July 28, state registrars made changes to the Unified State Register concerning the religious community of the church in Demiivka. Officials changed the parish’s affiliation from the UOC to the OCU, altered information about its governing bodies and registered address, and registered a new version of its charter.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95773-uoc-parishioners-at-kyivs-demiivka-church-defend-their-rights-in-court</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/73_main.jpg" length="109856" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Prosecutor in Metropolitan Theodosiy case named in NABU tapes]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95772-prosecutor-in-metropolitan-theodosiy-case-named-in-nabu-tapes</link><description><![CDATA[A deputy head of the Cherkasy Regional Prosecutor’s Office who was involved in the case against Metropolitan Theodosiy has been named in an anti-corruption investigation.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 11:07:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[On September 8, 2026, Maksym Shtompel – a prosecutor involved in the first criminal case against UOC Metropolitan Theodosiy of Cherkasy and Kaniv who also appears in NABU and SAPO materials from the special operation “Carthage” – was dismissed from the Cherkasy Regional Prosecutor’s Office. This was reported by Dozor on Pershyi Kozatskyi.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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Before his dismissal, Shtompel served as deputy head of the Cherkasy Regional Prosecutor’s Office. He also appears in recordings released by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) as part of the special operation “Carthage.” According to the authors of the report, the recordings include discussions about the circumstances surrounding his appointment and an alleged monthly payment of $1,000.According to Dozor, Shtompel headed the first case against Metropolitan Theodosiy. He was present during the first searches of the hierarch’s premises, personally served him with a notice of suspicion and took part in interrogations. The outlet notes that the prosecutor who was directly involved in the prosecution of the UOC hierarch later became a subject of an anti-corruption investigation himself.Court proceedings against Metropolitan Theodosiy have been ongoing since 2023. Hearings are held roughly every two weeks, while the court extends the hierarch’s pretrial restrictions every two months. At the beginning of the proceedings, prosecutors sought to have him placed under round-the-clock house arrest and required to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet.Earlier, the UOJ reported that Metropolitan Theodosiy said the Ukrainian authorities’ actions against the UOC fall under the Rome Statute’s definition of genocide.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95772-prosecutor-in-metropolitan-theodosiy-case-named-in-nabu-tapes</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/72_main.jpeg" length="44043" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Six bronze figures on the road to their Gethsemane]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/istorija-i-kulytrua/95770-six-bronze-figures-on-the-way-to-their-gethsemane</link><description><![CDATA[We are used to heroic monuments celebrating triumph. Auguste Rodin shows us a different kind of heroism – the courage of a person walking toward death to save others.]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2026 08:08:00 +0300</pubDate><category>History and Culture</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Looking at Auguste Rodin’s sculptural group The Burghers of Calais, we see six gaunt figures standing barefoot in tattered shirts, with loops of coarse rope around their necks.The story behind the work unfolded in August 1347. After a brutal siege, King Edward III of England agreed to spare the starving French city of Calais – but imposed a merciless condition. Six of the city’s most prominent and wealthy citizens were to walk into the enemy camp dressed only in their undergarments, carrying the keys to the city gates and wearing ropes around their necks, ready to be publicly executed. Sir Eustache de Saint-Pierre was the first to volunteer for this public humiliation. He was followed by Jean d’Aire, the brothers Jacques and Pierre de Wissant, Jean de Fiennes and Andrieu d’Andres.The French chronicler Jean Froissart preserved the words of Eustache de Saint-Pierre, who expressed his trust in the Lord’s mercy as he sought to save his fellow citizens from death. Rodin shows us these men at the very moment when they believe they are taking their final steps on this earth.A revolt against heroic grandeurThe story of the monument’s creation is one of conflict between the sculptor and those who commissioned it. In 1886, the Calais municipal committee flatly rejected Rodin’s model. Officials were outraged by its lack of conventional grandeur. In the official minutes, committee members complained that the dejected poses of the emaciated townsmen and the absence of an elegant silhouette “offended their religion.” But theirs was the secular religion of nationalistic grandeur and heroic exaltation – far removed from genuine spirituality.Rodin’s letter in response to the mayor of Calais became a manifesto against false art. The sculptor categorically refused to shape the figures according to academic conventions. Even at a glance, it is clear that the monument lacks the hierarchy typical of its time. All six craftsmen and merchants stand on the same level.
Rodin deliberately sculpted their bodies as frail and emaciated by months of starvation, giving physical form to their suffering.
The sculptor exaggerated the proportions of their hands and feet. Their enormous hands and massive feet seem to anchor them to the earth, conveying the weight of the decision they have made. Andrieu d’Andres covers his face with his hands in despair. The young Jean de Fiennes stands with his palms spread helplessly and his mouth slightly open. Jean d’Aire grips the keys to the city tightly, his jaw clenched in silence.Rodin said he deliberately positioned the figures apart from one another because, at the moment of a terrible choice, every person ultimately stands alone with his conscience and his fear of death.An echo of GethsemaneLooking at the bare feet of the townsmen, seemingly reluctant to take another step, we begin to see the profound Christian meaning of the work. Rodin unexpectedly came close to the very heart of the Gospel story.Holy Scripture reveals the highest expression of human love: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). But the road to such a sacrifice is never easy or painless. Recall the Savior’s prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane on the eve of His Passion: “And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt” (Matt. 26:39).
Christ’s human nature trembles before death. The fear and anguish of His flesh do not diminish the voluntary nature of His sacrifice – on the contrary, they reveal the tremendous price of it.
The bronze burghers of Calais are also terrified of death. Their swollen feet seem to claw desperately at the earth. Their spirits urge them to fulfill their duty, while their flesh recoils in terror. Rodin portrayed living human beings overcoming their fear for the sake of saving the other inhabitants of their city. It is precisely this agonizing struggle between human frailty and the fervor of the spirit that makes their heroic act truly great.Statues brought down to the peopleRodin desperately wanted to dispense with the traditional high pedestal for his monument. He dreamed of placing the bronze figures directly on the cobblestones of the square in front of Calais City Hall, embedding them in the pavement so that passersby might brush against their bronze garments with their elbows and, through that physical contact, feel that even ordinary life leaves room for acts of self-sacrifice.In 1895, those who commissioned the monument failed to grasp the brilliance of this idea and placed the group atop a five-meter granite pedestal surrounded by a railing. It was not until 1924 that the sculpture was finally moved to the city hall and placed on a low base, fulfilling the artist’s wishes.The bronze burghers of Calais remind us that the human heart can be tormented and terrified of death – and still, despite everything, take the decisive step toward self-sacrifice.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/istorija-i-kulytrua/95770-six-bronze-figures-on-the-way-to-their-gethsemane</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/70_main.jpg" length="134176" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[The trap of a blinded heart]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/blogs/95769-the-trap-of-the-blinded-heart</link><description><![CDATA[A treacherous passion shuts the door to the Kingdom of Heaven. The Parable of the Wedding Feast reveals the hidden causes of spiritual blindness.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 22:34:00 +0300</pubDate><category>Blogs</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Recently, the Church invited us to reflect on the Gospel parable of the wicked tenants (see Matt. 21:33–42), and in the Parable of the Wedding Feast (see Matt. 22:1–14), our Lord Jesus Christ seeks to explain why most people do not make attaining the Kingdom of Heaven the goal of their lives. They do not want to belong to the Church or participate in her Sacraments, insisting instead that they have “God in their hearts.”According to modern statistics, such people account for 90 percent or more. And as we can see from the Parable of the Wedding Feast, even among those who seemingly desire to be with Christ, who come to Church and call themselves Christians – especially in times of danger, illness, or war – not everyone attains this lofty goal, because they have come without a wedding garment.What is this lack of a wedding garment? As the Holy Fathers explain, it represents the evil passions from which a person, even while belonging to the Church, makes no effort throughout his life to free himself through prayer, fasting, and repentance.As these parables show, the most destructive passion – the one that causes people to neglect the salvation of their souls and stay away from church – is anger. St. John Climacus, abbot of Sinai, makes the same point in his Ladder of Divine Ascent. He writes: “The lover of pleasure harms only himself, and perhaps one other who shares his ways; but an angry man, like a wolf, often throws the whole flock into turmoil and troubles and oppresses many souls.”More than any other passion, anger blinds the eye of the soul. In a state of anger, a person is incapable of prayer, repentance, or forgiveness. From it spring all the other passions – gluttony, including drunkenness and smoking; lust; love of money; despondency; melancholy; vainglory; and pride.It was a hardened heart and the envy it produced that led to the first murder – Cain’s killing of his brother Abel (see Gen. 4:1–13). And every war in human history, regardless of who attacked whom first, is ignited and sustained by this same passion of anger. As soon as the flames of this passion, along with other equally deadly sins, are subdued through repentance, wars come to an end.Anger usually finds its justification in the struggle for truth, human dignity, or justice. Yet as the Holy Apostle James explains, “the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God” (James 1:20). The Apostle Paul urges us not to let the sun go down on our anger (see Eph. 4:26) – in other words, to seek reconciliation as quickly as possible.When a Christian hears this call to repentance, he strives to do everything he can to restrain his anger or rid himself of the passion altogether. But when these words are heard by an unbeliever, someone outside the Church, a schismatic, or a sectarian, the call to repentance may instead provoke even greater anger and even aggression.Thousands of martyrs and confessors who suffered for Christ in ancient times, and who continue to suffer to this day, endured persecution above all because of their preaching of repentance – a message they proclaimed not so much in words as through the holiness of their lives.At the same time, we must understand that the Church does not teach us never to resist evil, as one well-known Russian writer once advocated based on his own interpretation of the Gospel. Rather, following the words of the holy Prophet David, the Church teaches us: “Be angry, and do not sin” (see Ps. 4:4).Someone might say that this is impossible. But all things are possible to the one who believes (see Mark 9:23).Everyone knows that we can eat without falling into the sin of gluttony by observing the fasts established by the Church. In the same way, people can have children while remaining chaste – by being faithful in marriage and cultivating selfless, sincere love in their hearts.A person may possess wealth without falling into the sin of avarice by practicing mercy and generosity. We may even grieve and weep – but not because someone has offended us or because we have lost something precious, but over our own sins and our unsuccessful attempts to overcome them.We may even boast and take pride – but not in ourselves or our achievements. Instead, we can glorify God for His constant care for us. And so we may also become angry – but not at others. First and foremost, our anger should be directed at ourselves for our own weaknesses.As the Church emphasizes in one of its hymns, Christ through His Passion – that is, through His sufferings – conquered all our passions. Inspired by His example, we too can overcome the malice of this world by taking up the cross of voluntary suffering, intensifying our prayer and fasting, and waging an uncompromising struggle against our passions without sparing ourselves.Yet among a considerable number of Christians today, a very different tendency is spreading: to make the fasts as easy as possible, shorten prayers, and find clever excuses for their passions.To silence the reproaches of conscience, such people often dismiss the Lives of the Saints as pious legends and ridicule those who strive to imitate the saints by faithfully keeping God’s commandments and waging an uncompromising struggle against their own passions. They unjustly accuse such people of being politically motivated or of disregarding Church canons and rules – when in fact the opposite is true.If the majority of Christians continue making allowances for themselves and seek to please the rulers of this world more than God, then it will not be someone else who destroys us. We will destroy ourselves through our own passions – and above all, through anger.The Lord concludes His Parable of the Wedding Feast with the words: “Many are called, but few are chosen.”If we, dear brothers and sisters, wish to be among the chosen and partake of the wedding banquet in the Kingdom of Heaven, then let us strive to cleanse ourselves of every passion and acquire the wedding garment – a garment woven with the help of God’s grace from faith, hope, love, courage, chastity, mercy, humility, discernment, and all the other holy virtues.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/blogs/95769-the-trap-of-the-blinded-heart</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/69_main.jpeg" length="38248" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[​The true compass of the Christian life]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/vopros-svyashhenniku/95768-the-main-compass-of-the-christian-life</link><description><![CDATA[St. Anthony the Great called discernment the highest virtue. The experience of the Desert Fathers shows that the path to spiritual sobriety lies through humility, seeking counsel, and overcoming the passions.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 21:51:00 +0300</pubDate><category>Ask a Priest</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[A question from Iryna Tsvetkova: How can we learn the virtue of discernment?Answered by Archpriest Vasyl Kucher:That is a good question, and perhaps the best way to begin answering it is with a story.St. John Cassian recounts how the elders once gathered in the desert and began discussing which virtue was the greatest. Some said fasting, others vigil, still others poverty, mercy, or silence. St. Anthony the Great listened to them all and then said that the greatest virtue was discernment. Without it, he explained, any virtue can veer either to the right or to the left, and in the end a person may arrive somewhere very different from where he intended to go.To show what can happen when discernment is lacking, Abba Cassian gives the following example. A certain Abba Heron had lived as an ascetic in the desert for fifty years and fasted more strictly than anyone else. But he refused to seek anyone’s advice. In the end, a demon appeared to him in the form of an angel and told him to throw himself into a well, assuring him that nothing would happen to him because he was a holy man. So he jumped. He was pulled out barely alive, with his arms and legs broken, and died three days later.Yes, Abba Heron spent fifty years in the desert – but, as we can see, without benefit to himself, because he lacked discernment.So how do we learn this virtue? I will start with what most of us instinctively think: that discernment is mainly about intellect – reading more, learning more, becoming very clever. But the Fathers of the Church say something quite different.St. John Climacus, for example, says that discernment is born of humility. Not of erudition, not of vast knowledge, but of humility. Why? Because a person who is convinced that he knows more than everyone else becomes self-confident and ends up seeing only what he wants to see.But a humble person does not fully trust his own judgment and begins asking others. That brings us to the second condition – seeking counsel.Abba Dorotheos insists on this and repeatedly cites the words of Scripture: “In the multitude of counselors there is safety.” Nothing is worse, he says, than being your own sole adviser.There is also a third point the Fathers emphasize. When we are ruled by a passion, we are unable to see the world around us as it really is. As long as irritation, resentment, or envy is at work within us, sober judgment is simply impossible. Not because a person is stupid, but because passion distorts his vision like cloudy glass.That is why the Fathers say: if you want discernment, struggle against the passions.Let me remind you that in the Epistle to the Hebrews, the Apostle Paul says that solid food belongs to the mature, “who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil” (Heb. 5:14). Notice the emphasis: “by reason of use.” Their senses have been trained.In other words, discernment is not simply a gift that drops from heaven. It is a skill that has to be developed.So, speaking very practically, it is best to begin learning discernment in small things: should I speak or remain silent? Reply now or tomorrow? Step in or stay out of it?And one rule is especially helpful: never make important decisions while irritated, agitated, or emotionally wound up.It is also important to ask others for advice – not to shift responsibility onto someone else, but to hear your own thoughts from the outside.And remember: discernment does not come to the cleverest person, but to the simplest – to the one who is capable of saying, “I don’t understand this.”
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/vopros-svyashhenniku/95768-the-main-compass-of-the-christian-life</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/68_main.jpg" length="37088" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[​The key to the mysteries of eternity]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/chelovek-i-cerkovy/95767-the-key-to-the-mysteries-of-eternity</link><description><![CDATA[Grievances and resentments turn a person’s inner world into a dark prison cell. The direction of our eternal destiny is determined by our ability to forgive.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 21:25:00 +0300</pubDate><category>Man and Church</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[In this Sunday’s Gospel reading, the Lord points us to the two greatest commandments – love for God and love for our neighbor. Why are they the greatest? Because they determine where our soul will find its eternity. We ourselves choose the standard by which God will judge us.It turns out that our life is not a long road that will someday end at the doors of a courtroom called the Last Judgment. In reality, there will be no “courtroom drama” with a stern judge in robes, lawyers, and a formal reading of charges. The judgment is already underway. It is happening right now – at the very moment you are reading these lines, when someone cuts you off in traffic, when you are behind the wheel, when someone close to you says something hurtful.There is no “later” in the spiritual life. Divine reality does not exist within our categories of past and future. For God, everything exists in an eternal “now.”The quiet process of spiritual judgmentThe Last Judgment is not a formal hearing. It is more like the sudden appearance of light.Imagine a dark room where dust has been accumulating for years. When a bright shaft of sunlight suddenly breaks in, it does not “judge” the dust or rebuke the darkness. It simply makes them visible.Our encounter with God is much the same. It is the moment when the light of true Love shines through our soul completely. And in that light it immediately becomes clear what we are made of – the capacity to love, or the dry, thorny remnants of old resentments.
God has already forgiven us. Our debt has been paid. The door is open. The pardon has already been signed. And yet here is the paradox: we are the ones who keep ourselves locked in prison. Every grievance is a heavy padlock we fasten onto the door of our own cell. Every time we refuse to forgive another person’s weakness, we hand away the keys to our own freedom.
All of world culture, from ancient tragedy to the modern novel, revolves around the same themes – debt, revenge, and forgiveness.From childhood, we are taught to think that the world rests on justice. It is an ancient law of exchange, the logic of the marketplace, where every last penny is counted.But salvation begins when a person breaks free from the closed circle of “an eye for an eye.”When someone hurts us, we instantly put on the prosecutor’s robe. We begin to believe that restoring justice is the highest possible goal. But the moment we demand that the guilty party be punished to the fullest extent of the law, we walk into a trap ourselves.Because if any one of us were judged by the strict law of justice – with no allowances, no compassion, no consideration for weakness – not a single person on earth would survive that judgment.The great victory of the Glinsk EldersThe Lord does not abolish our freedom.If we choose the language of judgment and retribution, He allows us to be judged by that same standard. But if we choose the language of mercy, mercy becomes the measure by which we ourselves are judged.Remember the monks of the Glinsk Hermitage. In the 1960s, when the machinery of the state arrived and literally threw elderly monks out into the street – without money and without warm clothing – they did not curse those who had wronged them. They did not strike the pose of wounded righteousness.They simply said, “God’s will be done,” and went on their way.
From an ordinary human point of view, this looks like weakness or defeat. But according to the law of God, it was an immense spiritual victory.
It was a complete refusal to play by the rules of a world that lies in evil. Evil expected a reaction – hatred, curses, retaliation. But the Glinsk elders chose to live by a different logic.They saw history as a vast and complex loom, where even the darkest and dirtiest threads can be woven into the pattern of a person’s spiritual growth.The tiny poisonous flashes of angerWhere does that inner heaviness come from – the weight that eventually makes it hard for us even to breathe?It does not usually arise in moments of great catastrophe. It accumulates through small things.We live against a constant background hum of low-grade irritation. Someone changes lanes carelessly in front of us. Someone overcharges us at the checkout. Someone leaves a nasty comment on social media. Some politician says yet another foolish thing.And our first, automatic reaction is to release a small dose of poison into the world.“What a piece of trash.”“May you rot.”“When will you people finally...”We tell ourselves this is righteous anger. We even disguise it as concern for justice, saying with a poisonous smile, “Well, God will judge you.”But we should be honest with ourselves. In that moment, we are not invoking God as the source of Love. We are turning Him into our personal enforcer, someone we expect to punish the person we dislike.
These microscopic flashes of hatred accumulate and create the atmosphere in which we live.
A person who mentally “sends to hell” a dozen politicians, drivers, and officials every day gradually becomes a small branch office of hell himself. He carries around his list of “debts” and “receipts,” remembering who failed to give him what he deserved, who underestimated him, and where he was treated unfairly. His entire life eventually becomes an endless inventory of other people’s sins.And the tragedy is that while he is busy counting everyone else’s debts, his own life is passing him by.The destructive poison of someone else’s painWhen a child discovers that the world does not obey his wishes, he becomes offended, hoping that the person who hurt him will become frightened, feel guilty, and make everything right.But in adult life, this does not work.When we hold a grudge against someone – a traitor, a former partner, a harsh boss, or simply a rude stranger – something both strange and terrible happens.
We hand that person control over our life.
They may have forgotten we exist long ago and may be calmly drinking coffee on the other side of town, while we continue having endless imaginary conversations with them before falling asleep.We give them our time, our nerves, and our vital energy.We carry someone else’s garbage inside ourselves.Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.The poison destroys only the vessel that contains it.We lose the ability to rejoice. It is impossible to love the world sincerely while at the same time clutching old grievances in a clenched fist.Rewriting the script of our own destinySo what are we supposed to do?First of all, we must learn to change the focus through which we perceive reality.When you encounter evil or cruelty, do not immediately answer emotion with emotion. Pause. Try to look at the person who hurt you not as an all-powerful monster, but as someone foolish, confused, wounded, or deeply unhappy.A person who is genuinely happy and inwardly rich does not deliberately set out to harm others. Evil always grows out of some form of inner poverty and pain.Wish that person healing and peace. Not from a position of proud superiority, but out of simple human compassion. This kind of change does not happen in a day. Learning to wear what might be called the protective armor of forgiveness takes a lifetime of practice.But every time you manage not to answer aggression with aggression, every time you let go of some small debt, every time you sincerely wish good to someone who failed you, you are doing more than simply performing a “good deed.” You are rewriting the script of your own destiny.
In the end, all of us are writing one great book – the autobiography of our own soul.
And the main question in that book is not how much money we earned, how many fasts we kept, or how many arguments we won. The main question is far simpler: who did we become by the end of the road?Did we become dry, bitter “prosecutors,” building an entire library of grievances against the world, against God, against the government, against our neighbors and relatives? Or did we manage to remain alive inside – gentle, compassionate, capable of forgiving?Our final verdict is not written into some heavenly record by an outsider. We write it ourselves – every time we choose between an old grievance and the simple desire to breathe freely again.To let another person go is, in the end, to set yourself free.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/chelovek-i-cerkovy/95767-the-key-to-the-mysteries-of-eternity</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/67_main.jpg" length="124965" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Gay pride march held in Kharkiv metro]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95764-gay-pride-march-held-in-kharkiv-metro</link><description><![CDATA[Several dozen people held an LGBT event in the Kharkiv metro.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 16:40:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[On September 12, 2026, a gay pride march was held in the Kharkiv metro. Several dozen people carrying rainbow flags took part in the LGBT event under the protection of National Guard personnel.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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The event began underground at the Universitet and Derzhprom metro stations. Participants then came to the surface and remained for some time near the metro exit. Nearby, activists from Prava Molod held a protest against the gay pride march. The two groups were separated by substantial police cordons, with dozens of police buses deployed at the scene.The standoff ended without incident.As previously reported by the UOJ, LGBT activists in Kharkiv had announced plans to hold the march.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95764-gay-pride-march-held-in-kharkiv-metro</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/64_main.png" length="655762" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Serbian Patriarch offers condolences over murder of Sviatohirsk Lavra monk]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95763-serbian-patriarch-offers-condolences-over-murder-of-sviatohirsk-lavra-monk</link><description><![CDATA[The head of the Serbian Orthodox Church called Sviatohirsk Lavra a refuge for the displaced and urged that the monk’s violent death not be turned into anyone’s weapon.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 14:59:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Patriarch Porfirije of Serbia sent His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry a letter of condolence over the murder of Monk Varsonofiy (Turiansky) at Sviatohirsk Lavra. The text of the message was published by the UOJ-Serbia edition.“We received with sorrow the news of the murder of Monk Varsonofiy at the Holy Dormition Sviatohirsk Lavra and of the serious wounding of two of his fellow monks. We pray for the repose of the slain monk and for the recovery of the wounded,” the letter states.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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On behalf of the entire Serbian Orthodox Church and personally, the Patriarch expressed condolences to Metropolitan Onuphry, Lavra abbot Metropolitan Arseniy, and the entire brotherhood of the monastery, quoting the Psalm: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints” (Ps. 115:6).Patriarch Porfirije stressed that Sviatohirsk Lavra is not only a place of prayer but also a refuge for those who have lost their homes.“Violence inside a house that sheltered people wounds more deeply than ruined walls,” he said.“Whatever the outcome of the investigation may be, one thing can already be said: no one should be placed in a situation where professing one’s faith becomes a condition for survival,” the Serbian Patriarch stated.He also urged that the death of the Lavra monk not be turned into anyone’s instrument:“Your Beatitude, we pray that this violent death not become anyone’s weapon. We beseech the Lord, the Conqueror of death, to receive the slain monk into the Kingdom of His unfailing love, and to grant consolation to the wounded and to all the victims of this war.”The letter is dated August 31, 2026, and was signed in Belgrade.On August 23, 2026, at around 11:00 a.m., a group of unidentified men in military uniforms attacked members of the monastery in the upper part of Sviatohirsk Lavra near St. Nicholas Church. Monk Varsonofiy (Turyansky) died from a through-and-through gunshot wound to the head and neck. Monk Gregory suffered four stab wounds, including one that penetrated his lung, while novice Andriy Kyriienko was thrown into a ravine and suffered a punctured lung.As previously reported by the UOJ, Ukrainian authorities and the country’s major media outlets largely remained silent about the tragedy, while procedural oversight of the pretrial investigation is being carried out by the Specialized Defense Prosecutor’s Office.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95763-serbian-patriarch-offers-condolences-over-murder-of-sviatohirsk-lavra-monk</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/63_main.jpg" length="43869" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[“Never seen before”: Israel reports record number of Hasidim in Uman]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95760-never-seen-before-israel-reports-record-number-of-hasidic-pilgrims-in-uman</link><description><![CDATA[According to an Israeli police representative, 52,000 pilgrims are currently in Uman – 10,000 more than last year. The city itself has a population of about 75,000.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 14:21:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[The number of Hasidic pilgrims who have arrived in Uman for Rosh Hashanah has reached an all-time high. Israeli police spokesman Maj. Michael Zingerman announced the figure on September 12, 2026.“As of now, there are 52,000 pilgrims in Uman. The vast majority are Hasidim who came from Israel – about 50,000. We can say this is a record. The number is enormous. We have never seen anything like this in the entire history of the pilgrimage to Uman,” he said.According to Zingerman, around 42,000–43,000 people came to the city last year.“Just imagine: Uman has a population of about 75,000, and within a few days another 52,000 people arrive. That number is simply incredible,” he said.The Israeli police representative said 17 Israeli officers had arrived in Uman to serve alongside Ukrainian law enforcement personnel, and that nearly all of them speak Russian or Ukrainian.“We have two main tasks. The first is to ensure the safety of all citizens – and, as I constantly emphasize, not only Israeli citizens but also Ukrainian citizens who are here. The second is to maintain a high level of public order, because there are so many people concentrated in such a small area,” the major explained.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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Asked why the number of pilgrims had reached a record high despite the ongoing war and the difficulty of traveling to Uman, Zingerman cited two reasons. The first, he said, is the pilgrims’ own religious beliefs.“The faith of the Hasidim teaches them that even when it is very difficult to reach the place where they are supposed to go, that only reinforces their conviction that they must come here. If getting here were easy, perhaps they would look at it differently. But according to their faith, if it is difficult, if the journey involves serious hardships, then it becomes all the more important for them to come here to Uman and celebrate Rosh Hashanah here,” he said.The second reason, he said, is the pilgrims’ trust in Ukrainian law enforcement. According to Zingerman, Hasidim who have visited Uman in previous years “see that everything is handled at a very high level, and they have no concerns in that regard about coming to Uman and staying here.”As previously reported by the UOJ, on the morning of September 12, the United Jewish Community of Ukraine said that 45,000 Hasidic pilgrims had arrived in Uman. The UOJ had earlier reported that the mayor of Uman said: “We weren’t expecting them, and we aren’t expecting them.”
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95760-never-seen-before-israel-reports-record-number-of-hasidic-pilgrims-in-uman</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/60_main.jpg" length="153466" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[UOC faithful hold prayer vigil outside Lavra for more than 1,000 days]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95762-uoc-faithful-hold-prayer-vigil-outside-lavra-for-more-than-1-000-days</link><description><![CDATA[For three and a half years, Orthodox Christians have continued praying for peace and for the preservation of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 13:41:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[More than 1,000 days have passed since the prayer vigil began outside the walls of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. Faithful of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church continue to pray without interruption to the Lord and the Most Holy Theotokos for peace, justice, and the preservation of her holy Kyiv inheritance.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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Every day, Orthodox Christians come to the monastery to stand in its defense.“We are still here, continuing to pray to the Lord for the Lavra, for peace, and for justice,” participants in the vigil said. “The Lavra’s prayerful defenders have been here for more than 1,000 days, because the Mother of God must know that we will not abandon her holy Kyiv inheritance.”For three and a half years, UOC faithful have continued coming to the holy monastery despite summer heat, bitter cold, heavy rain, frequent air-raid sirens, and provocations by radicals. Through every hardship of weather and circumstance, Orthodox Christians have maintained their prayer vigil outside the ancient monastery.The faithful say their choice is rooted in a deep spiritual need to protect the UOC shrine from desecration and abuse. They seek to prevent mockery of the sacred site, stop the monks from being expelled, and preserve the Lavra for future generations.As previously reported by the UOJ, a priest explained why believers continue coming to the prayer vigil outside the Lavra.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95762-uoc-faithful-hold-prayer-vigil-outside-lavra-for-more-than-1-000-days</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/62_main.jpg" length="110454" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Zelensky congratulates Jews on Rosh Hashanah]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95757-zelensky-congratulates-jews-on-rosh-hashanah</link><description><![CDATA[Volodymyr Zelensky wished Jews peace and the triumph of good over evil.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 11:01:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated Ukraine’s Jewish community and Jews around the world on Rosh Hashanah.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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The head of state noted the contribution of everyone celebrating the holiday while defending the lives, freedom, and security of others. He described the beginning of the new year as a time of renewed hope and faith in a better future.“I congratulate the Jewish community of Ukraine and everyone around the world celebrating Rosh Hashanah... I wish you peace, goodness, and harmony. The beginning of a new year is always a time for new hopes and faith in a better future.”In his message, Zelensky expressed hope that the new year would bring “a lasting peace, more light, humanity, and goodness, which always triumphs over evil.”The president concluded his greeting with the traditional Jewish wish for a sweet and happy new year: “Shanah tovah u’metukah!”As previously reported by the UOJ, Ukraine’s chief rabbi thanked Zelensky for the law against antisemitism.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95757-zelensky-congratulates-jews-on-rosh-hashanah</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/57_main.jpg" length="71482" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Kyiv Theological Academy publishes book on Orthodoxy in 17th-century Ukraine]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95756-kyiv-theological-academy-publishes-book-on-orthodoxy-in-17th-century-ukraine</link><description><![CDATA[With the blessing of the UOC Primate, the Kyiv Theological Academy and Seminary has published a textbook marking the 430th anniversary of the birth of St. Petro Mohyla.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 10:28:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[The Kyiv Theological Academy (KDAiS) has published a new textbook titled History of Orthodoxy in Ukraine in the 17th Century. The book was prepared by Archimandrite Mitrofan (Bozhko), head of the academy’s postgraduate program and its academic secretary. The Publishing Council of the Kyiv Theological Schools released the textbook as part of the academy’s series of scholarly works.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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The publication was issued with the blessing of His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine, Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The textbook is dedicated to the 430th anniversary of the birth of St. Petro Mohyla.The book examines the key transformations in church governance, theological education, liturgical life, theological thought, printing, and church art. It also provides a detailed account of interconfessional relations and Church–state relations in the 17th century.The historical material is presented with attention to regional developments within a broad civilizational context. The author brings together early historical sources, classic monastic works, and the findings of modern scholarship. The textbook combines factual material with analytical interpretation.As previously reported by the UOJ, KDAiS will host a conference on the relationship between theological and secular scholarship.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95756-kyiv-theological-academy-publishes-book-on-orthodoxy-in-17th-century-ukraine</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/56_main.jpg" length="92932" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[45,000 Hasidic pilgrims arrive in Uman]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95755-45-000-hasidic-pilgrims-arrive-in-uman</link><description><![CDATA[Around 45,000 Hasidic pilgrims have already arrived in Ukraine for Rosh Hashanah.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 09:54:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Around 45,000 Hasidic pilgrims have already arrived in Uman to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. This is the largest number of pilgrims in recent years, Ukrinform reports, citing the United Jewish Community of Ukraine.Up to 50,000 Jewish pilgrims are expected in Uman this year.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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The United Jewish Community of Ukraine said this year’s number of pilgrims is the highest recorded in recent years.The annual pilgrimage is associated with Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav, the founder of Bratslav Hasidism, whose grave is located in Uman. Rosh Hashanah means “head of the year” in Hebrew and falls on the first two days of the month of Tishrei, marking the beginning of the new year in the Jewish calendar. This year, the holiday runs from the evening of September 11 through the evening of September 13, ushering in the year 5787.As previously reported by the UOJ, Hasidic pilgrims in Ukraine are being transported to Uman in Ukrainian Armed Forces buses.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95755-45-000-hasidic-pilgrims-arrive-in-uman</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/55_main.jpg" length="94463" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[New altar consecrated at Horodylovo monastery in Zakarpattia]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95754-a-new-uoc-church-was-consecrated-at-the-horodylivsky-monastery-in-zakarpattia</link><description><![CDATA[Metropolitan Mark of Khust and Vynohradiv consecrated a new altar at St. Panteleimon Monastery in Horodylovo.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 09:40:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[On September 10, 2026, the feast day of St. Job of Pochaiv, Metropolitan Mark of Khust and Vynohradiv consecrated a new altar at a church of the UOC Khust Eparchy. The consecration took place at St. Panteleimon Monastery in the village of Horodylovo, the eparchy’s press service reported.Following the consecration rite, Metropolitan Mark, who heads the Khust Eparchy, celebrated the Divine Liturgy. Special prayers were offered for peace in Ukraine, for its defenders, for deliverance from the enemy, for those who have fallen into despair and lost their homes, and for all those helping people in need.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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        Thousands of UOC faithful honor St. Job of Pochaiv
    
In his remarks after the dismissal, Metropolitan Mark congratulated the monastery brotherhood on the consecration and spoke to the faithful about the life and spiritual struggles of St. Job of Pochaiv. He called on everyone present to follow the saint’s example of faith, humility, patience, and love for God.As previously reported by the UOJ, a vicar bishop of the Khust Eparchy performed a monastic tonsure at a monastery in the village of Lypcha.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95754-a-new-uoc-church-was-consecrated-at-the-horodylivsky-monastery-in-zakarpattia</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/54_main.jpg" length="114188" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[When a lie becomes blasphemy against the Creator]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/chelovek-i-cerkovy/95750-when-a-lie-becomes-blasphemy-against-the-creator</link><description><![CDATA[The tragedy that struck the young Christian community in Jerusalem may seem harsh. A close reading of the Book of Acts reveals the true reason for the sudden judgment that befell the couple.]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:08:00 +0300</pubDate><category>Man and Church</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Jerusalem, the 30s of the first century. The first Christian community is experiencing an extraordinary spiritual awakening – the kind that happens only once in history. The Book of Acts describes it briefly but comprehensively: “Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them down at the apostles’ feet” (Acts 4:34–35).People sold their homes. They brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet. And amid this wave of shared enthusiasm, a married couple appears – Ananias and Sapphira.A voluntary gift and the theft of one’s own propertyAnanias sells his property. But instead of honestly giving the entire amount – or just as honestly saying that he is giving only part of it – the couple decides to deceive. They hold back some of the money and bring the rest to the apostles, presenting it as a complete and wholehearted offering.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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The Apostle Peter exposes what is really happening. Notice that he does not rebuke Ananias for failing to give everything. In the Greek original, his question could hardly be clearer: “While it remained, was it not thine own?” (Acts 5:4). Giving in the Jerusalem community was entirely voluntary. No one was forced to sell a house, and there were no mandatory contributions. Ananias could have kept the land. He could have sold it and given a tenth or half of the proceeds – as long as he openly told the community what he was doing.St. John Chrysostom draws attention to the paradox: Ananias is punished as a man who has stolen his own property. The land belonged to him, and the money was entirely at his disposal – but in trying to claim the reputation of a selfless righteous man, he walked straight into his own trap.There is a bitter irony here. The name Ananias comes from the Hebrew Hananiah – “the grace of God,” or “God is gracious.” A man whose very name pointed to a gift from above chose to disregard spiritual authority.A threefold sin at the very birth of the ChurchPeter’s response came like a thunderclap: “Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?” (Acts 5:3). And immediately afterward: “Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God” (Acts 5:4).
The attempt to appear better than one really is becomes, in an instant, a matter of divine judgment. These two verses contain one of the New Testament’s most important testimonies: lying to the Holy Spirit is explicitly equated with lying to God Himself. The Holy Spirit in the community is not an impersonal force, but the Living God acting through the word of the apostles.
Upon hearing Peter’s rebuke, Ananias falls dead. The Greek text uses the rare verb ἐξέψυξεν to describe his death – literally, “breathed out his soul,” or “breathed his last.”Chrysostom insists that the sudden death was not caused by fright or a heart attack. It was a divine act proportionate to Ananias’ threefold sin – accepting a satanic thought, lying to the Creator, and succumbing to the love of money.Why was the punishment so swift and severe? Because this happened at a pivotal moment in Christian history. The Church was only laying its foundations, and a lie embedded in those foundations could have poisoned the entire spiritual body that was to grow from them. Had this display of counterfeit piety gone unpunished, the community could quickly have turned into a fellowship of hypocrites.The shadow of Achan and holy fearFor the first readers of Acts who came from a Jewish background, there was nothing puzzling about this story. It would immediately have called to mind a similar tragedy from the Old Testament.The Book of Joshua describes a moment when the Israelites had only just entered the Promised Land. After the capture of Jericho, one of the warriors, Achan, secretly kept some of the things placed under the ban – a bar of gold and an expensive garment (Josh. 7:1). The act of one man brought disaster upon the entire people; his sin was exposed, and the guilty man was immediately punished.The parallel is striking. Both Achan’s and Ananias’ offenses take place immediately after a great manifestation of God’s power. In both cases, something that was supposed to be surrendered in full is secretly withheld. And in both cases, immediate judgment produces the same result: “And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things” (Acts 5:11).
The word “Church” – ekklesia – appears for the first time in the Book of Acts precisely here. The first reference to the Church as one body is associated with the community’s purifying fear in the presence of God.
Three hours later, Sapphira enters the room, still unaware of her husband’s death. Peter gives her one last chance: “Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much?” (Acts 5:8). She repeats the rehearsed lie: “Yea, for so much” (Acts 5:8). What began as a decision to hold back some of the money has now become a conspiracy between husband and wife against the truth.A false facade before the Face of GodSapphira falls at the apostle’s feet and, like her husband, breathes her last. The young men carry her out and bury her beside him.The story is frightening in its uncompromising severity. There is none of the familiar picture of repeated warnings and gradual correction. We want to see God as an indulgent Teacher who overlooks little acts of pretense – but the biblical text presents something very different.
The couple’s sin was not that they kept some of the money for themselves. The tragedy lay elsewhere: they tried to sell the community a counterfeit holiness, to buy the respect of their fellow believers at a discount, passing ordinary self-interest off as the height of spiritual sacrifice.
We often follow the same path – choosing pious words, constructing an attractive facade, wanting others to see us as exemplary Christians. But God does not look at the scenery. He sees the heart – without the benefit of makeup or masks. And in His eyes, an honest admission of the poverty of our faith is always worth more than a beautiful but hollow facade.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/chelovek-i-cerkovy/95750-when-a-lie-becomes-blasphemy-against-the-creator</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/50_main.jpg" length="133295" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Civic movement calls on SBU to tighten oversight of Pochaiv Lavra]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95746-civic-movement-calls-on-sbu-to-tighten-oversight-of-pochaiv-lavra</link><description><![CDATA[Activists demanded that legal proceedings begin immediately if the Pochaiv Lavra fails to comply with DESS requirements.]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 11 Sep 2026 19:24:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Ukraine’s civic-military movement has appealed to law enforcement agencies to tighten preventive oversight of the Pochaiv Lavra. The activists called on the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the National Police to step up monitoring of the monastery’s property during the period granted by DESS for it to sever ties with the Kyiv Metropolia.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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“We demand that the Security Service of Ukraine and the National Police strengthen preventive oversight to ensure the preservation of the Pochaiv Lavra’s movable and immovable property,” the organization said. “Any attempts to illegally remove icons, liturgical items, museum valuables, or carry out unauthorized construction work during the transition period must be prevented.”Representatives of the movement stressed the need for uncompromising compliance with DESS requirements. The activists called on the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience and the Ministry of Culture to prepare the necessary evidence and legal case “so that, if the order is not complied with, court proceedings to terminate the right to use the property can be launched immediately and completed within the shortest possible procedural timeframe.”The civic movement urged the monks to “recognize their historic responsibility to Ukrainian society.” In their view, the monastery should serve Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. Representatives of the movement also said they reserve the right to exercise public oversight over compliance with the deadlines and procedures established for the Pochaiv Lavra.Earlier, the UOJ reported that DESS had given the Pochaiv Lavra another 60 days to sever ties with the Kyiv Metropolis of the UOC.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95746-civic-movement-calls-on-sbu-to-tighten-oversight-of-pochaiv-lavra</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/46_main.png" length="683572" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA["Don’t let this death be silenced": global reaction to murder in Sviatohirsk]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/zashhita-very/95744-dont-let-this-death-dissolve-global-reaction-to-murder-in-sviatohirsk</link><description><![CDATA[Primates of Local Churches call for the murderers of monk Varsonofiy to be found and speak of the atmosphere of hatred toward the UOC that made the crime possible.]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 11 Sep 2026 19:04:00 +0300</pubDate><category>Faith Protection</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[Following the murder of monk Varsonofiy at the Sviatohirsk Lavra, there has been no notable reaction from Ukrainian authorities. Orthodox Christians from different countries, however, do not remain silent. Increasingly, they are raising questions about the years-long campaign against the UOC against the backdrop of which this crime occurred.The facts of the crimeOn August 23, 2026, at around 11:00 a.m., a group of unidentified individuals attacked members of the monastic community on the grounds of the Holy Dormition Sviatohirsk Lavra. Monk Varsonofiy (Turiansky) was killed, while Monk Gregory and Andriy Kyriienko, who resides at the monastery, sustained serious injuries.A subsequent forensic examination established that Father Varsonofy died from a through-and-through gunshot wound to the head and neck. A criminal investigation has been opened, but the identities of the attackers and the final motive for the crime have not yet been officially established.One of the injured men, novice Andriy Kyriienko, said that three servicemen attacked him with knives after he responded to the greeting "Glory to Ukraine!" with "Glory to our Lord God. Save and protect." According to members of the monastic community, there are grounds to believe that a similar exchange took place with Monk Varsonofiy before his murder.Media reactionSecular Ukrainian media only began reporting on the incident a full day later. TSN published the news on August 24 at 10:45 a.m., Ukrainska Pravda at 11:13 a.m., and RBC-Ukraine not until 2:28 p.m.Moreover, those secular media outlets that did report on the crime largely limited themselves to recounting the attack and providing updates on the condition of the victims. In the materials we found from these outlets, there were no calls to solve the crime and punish those responsible, nor any mention of religious hatred as a possible motive. High-profile crimes typically generate a wave of similar coverage in the Ukrainian media. But not when the victim is a UOC monk.Nor did the story become a notable topic in opinion columns, political talk shows, or public statements by current state leaders. It remained merely a brief crime report.Even more striking is the silence of the authorities.On August 25, the police confirmed that information about the attack had been entered into the Unified Register of Pretrial Investigations (URPI) under articles concerning intentional murder and attempted murder. However, this information also became public only in response to an inquiry from a media outlet.On August 24–25, including in connection with Independence Day, numerous reports, statements, and messages from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky were published on the official website of the President of Ukraine. However, none of them addressed the murder at the Sviatohirsk Lavra.We also found no public statement from the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada. The official parliamentary news feed during those days featured reports on meetings involving parliamentary leaders, statements by lawmakers, legislative initiatives, and other events, but the Sviatohirsk Lavra was not mentioned. Nor was there any public reaction from the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights.But most telling of all is the silence of the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) – the government body directly responsible for religious affairs. It is difficult to imagine DESS remaining equally silent if a member of the clergy of any other religious denomination had been killed.
    
        
            
        
    
    
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Prayer and solidarityThe Orthodox world, both in Ukraine and beyond its borders, reacted in an entirely different manner to the murder of Fr. Varsanofiy.Metropolitan Rastislav, Primate of the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, stressed that "a holy place where monastic labors are carried out and where prayer to the Most Pure Theotokos is always kept alive has become a place of bloodshed – a manifestation of human malice and the devil’s hatred."Metropolitan Nicholas, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, addressed Metropolitan Arseniy, abbot of the Sviatohirsk Lavra, and the monastic brotherhood: "Today, as a new tragedy has touched the brotherhood of Sviatohirsk, we once again feel ourselves standing beside you – not only in heart but also in prayer."Metropolitan Timotheos of Bostra of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem called for the perpetrators to be punished and pointed to the atmosphere in which the crime took place: "In recent years, a grave atmosphere has developed around the Ukrainian Orthodox Church: its faithful have often been spoken about publicly in ways one should not speak about fellow citizens and fellow believers, and the harshness of such rhetoric has long ceased to trouble anyone."Metropolitan Isaac of Germany and Central Europe of the Patriarchate of Antioch demanded that "the truth about this terrible crime come to light and that justice prevail."The Chancery of Metropolitan Sawa, Primate of the Polish Orthodox Church, expressed condolences over the murder of Fr. Varsonofiy: "Raising one’s hand against another person is also a tragedy." The Polish Church also said that it was praying not only for the murdered monk but also for those responsible for this crime, so that they might realize what they did.Archimandrite Nazary Basilaya of the Georgian Orthodox Church described the attack on the residents of the Sviatohirsk Lavra and the murder of monk Varsonofiy as a tragedy that deeply affected the clergy and all Christians. "We, as clergy from a brotherly country, sympathize and share the great sorrow that has befallen the Lavra," Fr. Nazary said.Clergy of the Church of Greece also condemned the murder of Fr. Varsonofiy, including Archimandrite Ephraim (Avramidis), Archpriest Georgios Katsaounis, and Priest Andreas Evangelatos. Archimandrite Chrysostomos (Nesic), a cleric of the Serbian Church, called the monk’s murder a “Cainic sin.” Bulgarian priest Vasiliy Dimitrov, Albanian theologian Dr. Themistocles Bambulla, who called the murder a wound for the entire Church, and Greek theologian Georgios Foundoulakis also spoke out. Bulgarian theologian Georgi Todorov described the silence around the murder at the Sviatohirsk as a grave sin.However, support for the brotherhood of the Sviatohirsk Lavra came not only from Orthodox Christians. Cardinal Ladislav Nemet, Archbishop of Belgrade of the Roman Catholic Church, like Georgi Todorov, said that silence about the murder was unacceptable. The crime was also condemned by Catholic bishops in the Czech Republic — Bishop Tomáš Holub of Plzeň and retired Bishop Václav Malý.German Protestant theologian Dr. Heinrich Derksen and Dr. Irina Volfson also spoke out. Church media in other countries have also begun reporting on the tragedy, including the Greek portal Romfea, Bulgaria’s Hristonostsi, and North Macedonia’s Liturgija."Do not let this death be silenced"The statements called for the crime to be solved and for the tragedy not to disappear from the public eye.Metropolitan Antony (Pakanych), UOC Chancellor, posed the question bluntly: "Does anyone have the right to kill with impunity simply because another person is of ‘a different faith’?” He urged: “Don’t let this death dissolve into the cold indifference of society."Bishop Job of Stuttgart stressed: “The ruthless and, I can only assume, unpunished killing of a representative of a Church that for many years has been on the verge of a state ban in Ukraine takes us in our thoughts back to the days of early Christianity, when adherents of a religio illicita – a forbidden religion – could and were expected to be eliminated for the good of society.”"When a person is taught for years to see a brother as an enemy"But the most significant part of the statements concerns more than simply finding the murderers. Orthodox hierarchs are raising questions about the social climate in which the crime took place.Metropolitan Antony recalled the seizures of churches, legislative pressure, and the information campaign against the UOC. In his view, this has resulted in its faithful being treated as second-class citizens.Metropolitan Timotheos of Vostra was even more direct. He described the murder of Father Varsonofy as a predictable result of a years-long campaign of harassment and incitement of hatred against the UOC: "When a person is taught for years to see an enemy in a baptized brother, sooner or later someone will inevitably take this idea to its extreme."Bishop Job of Stuttgart drew attention to the media reaction: "We are witnessing... relative silence from the Ukrainian media and complete silence from the German media." He attributes this to the fact that the victim belonged to the "wrong" Church, from the perspective of Ukrainian nationalism.On September 7, Metropolitan Theodosiy of Cherkasy and Kaniv put the point particularly bluntly: "Politicians and the media in Ukraine have today incited such strong hatred toward the Ukrainian Orthodox Church that simply being a member of it... is already dangerous."Hatred toward the UOC was fueled not only by politicians. Actors, bloggers, public figures, journalists, and many others were also involved. We will not list all instances of verbal aggression and calls for violence against the UOC. But one episode is nevertheless worth recalling.On December 7, 2022, Kvartal 95 actors Oleksandr Pikalov and Yevhen Koshovyi, in an episode of Bayraktar News, offered viewers a peculiar joke "price list": "Spit on a UOC-MP priest — 20 hryvnias... slap him on the left cheek and automatically on the right – 100 hryvnias." On December 10, the videos were posted on YouTube channels associated with Kvartal 95. The UOC regarded these statements as propaganda of physical violence against clergy and appealed to law enforcement authorities.The police response was extremely sluggish. Criminal proceedings were registered only on March 10, 2023 – three months later – and only after the investigator’s inaction was challenged in court. A linguistic examination was ordered, but by December 2024, its findings had still not been provided to UOC representatives, the complainants had not been questioned, and no charges had been brought against Koshovyi or Pikalov. We were unable to find any later public information indicating significant progress in the investigation. In short, the case was allowed to quietly fizzle out.Of course, there is no direct causal link between Koshovyi and Pikalov’s "price list" and the murder of monk Varsonofiy. But this episode, as well as the law enforcement response to it, illustrates well the atmosphere of hatred and impunity that has developed around the UOC. This is precisely what Orthodox hierarchs mean when they say that the image of an “enemy Church” has been created over many years.Was the monk in Sviatohirsk killed by hatred?In the first days and weeks after the tragedy, social media users began suggesting that the crime had been committed by an enemy sabotage and reconnaissance group.In this context, it is worth citing a statement by Brigadier General and Commander of the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade Andrii Biletskyi, who commented on claims by the Russian leadership that Sviatohirsk had been captured.He stressed that the Sviatohirsk Lavra is located in the rear of Ukrainian forces, where Russian soldiers could not have entered in the first place: "It’s not just that there have never been Russian soldiers in Sviatohirsk... Everything is fine here," Biletskyi said. "The city of Sviatohirsk is located within the defensive line of the 60th Mechanized Brigade of the 3rd Army Corps. It is the rear area of our corps."Of course, the investigation will provide the final answer if any. At the same time, Andrii Biletskyi’s words give us reason to reflect.A few words on martyrdomSome of the statements by Orthodox hierarchs also touch on the martyrdom of monk Varsonofiy. Metropolitan Nicholas, First Hierarch of the ROCOR, described his death as martyrdom. Bishop Job of Stuttgart clarified that if the accounts of the victims are accurate, it could be understood as martyrdom in the original sense of the word — the Greek μάρτυς means “testimony,” in this case a testimony to Christ.Metropolitan Theodosiy goes even further: "I believe that the monk of the Sviatohirsk Lavra who was killed for glorifying the name of Christ has today joined the ranks of the martyrs of our Church."The Sviatohirsk Lavra quotes Fr. Varsonofiy’s final words: "Glory to the Lord Jesus Christ!.. I am a monk."Of course, calling for the canonization of Fr. Varsonofiy at this stage would be premature: we do not know all the circumstances of what happened. But the very fact that the murder at the Sviatohirsk Lavra is being discussed in these terms is quite telling. It shows that Orthodox Christians see what happened as more than simply a criminal incident or a tragic turn of events but as something much deeper.In Lieu of a Conclusion: The enemy image brings deathThe investigation has yet to establish either the identities of those who killed Fr. Varsonofiy or the final motive for the attack.But it would be a mistake to view the tragedy in Sviatohirsk outside the context of Ukraine’s state religious policy in recent years. This policy, along with much of the public rhetoric surrounding it, has consistently portrayed the UOC not as a Church but as a threat to national security, a source of disloyalty, and an instrument of hostile influence. The episode involving Kvartal 95 is a particularly striking example of how far this rhetoric went: the physical humiliation of a priest became the subject of a public joke.Such rhetoric shapes public consciousness: if the UOC is called an enemy for years, its clergy are branded “Moscow priests,” and its faithful are portrayed as adherents of the “Russian world,” then violence against them can begin to seem not like a crime but an act of patriotism.An artificially created image of the enemy can become deadly. The seeds of hatred sown by the authorities bear terrible fruit. Instead of bringing society together, they divide it into warring camps. What more must happen before the authorities realize that Ukraine is paying too high a price for attempts to turn its own Church into an internal enemy?
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/zashhita-very/95744-dont-let-this-death-dissolve-global-reaction-to-murder-in-sviatohirsk</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/44_main.jpg" length="107954" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[4th-year students tonsured as readers at Pochaiv Seminary]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95745-4th-year-students-tonsured-as-readers-at-pochaiv-seminary</link><description><![CDATA[Metropolitan Sergiy and Archbishop Job performed the tonsure of readers on the feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist.]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 11 Sep 2026 18:27:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[On September 11, 2026, Metropolitan Sergiy of Ternopil and Kremenets and Rector Archbishop Job of Shumsk performed the rite of tonsure as readers for fourth-year students of the Pochaiv Theological Seminary, reports the UOC Information Center.
    
        
            
        
    
    
        On this topic
        His Beatitude tonsures fourth-year KDAiS students as readers
    
The tonsure was traditionally held on the feast commemorating the Beheading of the Honorable Head of St. John the Prophet and Forerunner of the Lord. The hierarchs performed the rite of cheirothesia with the laying on of hands and an archpastoral blessing. Following the rite, the newly tonsured readers received Holy Communion during the Divine Liturgy.A reader is the first rank of the Orthodox clergy and the lowest order of cleric. A reader’s duties include reading liturgical texts and Holy Scripture in church. In ancient times, readers also explained the texts and translated Scripture into local languages. Among the great Church Fathers who began their ecclesiastical service as readers were St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian, and St. John Chrysostom.As the UOJ reported, DESS gave the Pochaiv Lavra another 60 days to break ties with the Kyiv Metropolis of the UOC.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95745-4th-year-students-tonsured-as-readers-at-pochaiv-seminary</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/45_main.png" length="637086" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Chisinau Airport restricts access due to influx of Hasidic pilgrims]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95743-chisinau-airport-restricted-access-due-to-influx-of-hasidic-pilgrims</link><description><![CDATA[Chisinau Airport administration has established special rules due to the transit of Hasidic pilgrims to Ukraine.]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 11 Sep 2026 17:46:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[From September 14 to 17, 2026, the administration of Chisinau International Airport restricted access to the terminal due to the mass transit of Hasidic pilgrims. The administration allowed entry into the airport building only for passengers with tickets, staff, and aircraft crew members, reports TV8.The management approved these measures to handle the increased passenger flow and prevent crowding. Passengers are permitted to enter the terminal no earlier than three hours before departure upon presentation of a travel document and flight confirmation."The measures being taken are temporary in nature and are necessary for the safe management of the increased passenger flow and to maintain uninterrupted airport operations," the airport press service stated.
    
        
            
        
    
    
        On this topic
        Hasidic pilgrims taken to Uman in Ukrainian military buses – social media
    
Special rules have also been established for buses carrying groups of Hasidic pilgrims. Drivers are permitted to drive and park exclusively in specially designated areas, with mandatory compliance with approved routes and stopping points. The administration has brought in additional staff to screening areas and adjusted the airport's operating schedule to reduce waiting times.As the UOJ previously reported, Israeli airports are detaining Hasidic draft evaders on their way to Uman.
]]></content:encoded><guid>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95743-chisinau-airport-restricted-access-due-to-influx-of-hasidic-pilgrims</guid><enclosure url="https://test.spzh.eu/img/article/957/43_main.png" length="452784" type="image/jpeg"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[SBU reports suspicion against ROC Metropolitan Tikhon (Shevkunov)]]></title><link>https://test.spzh.eu/en/news/95742-sbu-reports-suspicion-against-roc-metropolitan-tikhon-shevkunov</link><description><![CDATA[The SBU and the Prosecutor General's Office charged the ROC hierarch under two articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 11 Sep 2026 17:16:00 +0300</pubDate><category>News</category><content:encoded><![CDATA[The Prosecutor General's Office, together with the Security Service of Ukraine, announced suspicion against Metropolitan Tikhon (Shevkunov), who has been managing the Crimean Metropolis of the ROC since 2023. The security forces stated that the metropolitan use his status and authority to support the war and spread Kremlin propaganda."The hierarch described the Russian invasion as a 'terrible and forced measure,’ allegedly necessary to protect Russia, and called Ukraine a ‘projectile against Russia’ created by external forces," the Office of the Prosecutor General stated.
    
        
            
        
    
    
        On this topic
        SBU notifies ROC metropolitan of suspicion in absentia
    
Investigators allege that the metropolitan portrayed the war as a “civil” conflict and claimed that external enemies had pushed Russia into the conflict. The hierarch described the goal of the military operation as “victory over Nazism and fascism” and over the “misanthropic regime” established in Ukraine. Law enforcement officials allege that the hierarch’s public statements contain calls for changing Ukraine’s government and altering its borders through a war of aggression.“The rhetoric about ‘Nazism’ and ‘fascism,’ as well as pitting Ukrainian religious communities against each other, according to the investigation, contains signs of inciting national and religious hatred," the Prosecutor General's Office reported.Law enforcement officers charged the hierarch under part two of Article 110 and part three of Article 436-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Ukraine and the European Union had previously added Metropolitan Tikhon to their sanctions lists.The ROC Synod appointed Metropolitan Tikhon as head of the Crimean Metropolis on October 11, 2023, replacing Metropolitan Lazarus of Simferopol and Crimea, who was retired. The metropolitan himself compared his new place of ministry to Kolyma. Earlier, on June 7, 2022, the ROC Synod transferred the Crimean eparchies of the UOC to “subordination to the Patriarch,” after which they were “united into a metropolis.” The UOC did not recognize this decision.As the UOJ reported, Metropolitan Tikhon stated that the ROC may forgive UOC clergy who "repent for betrayal and treason".
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