In Bukovyna, UOC believers appeal to Vance on the eve of OCU’s church raid

Parishioners of the St. Basil Church of the UOC in the village of Pidzakharychi. Photo: Parish Facebook page

Parishioners of the St. Basil Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) in the village of Pidzakharychi, Bukovyna, have appealed to U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance regarding the planned assault on their church by representatives of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU). This was stated in a video address published on the parish’s Facebook page on January 30.

The believers report that on January 26, a fraudulent meeting took place in their village, where several dozen people, who have no connection to the religious community, voted for the "transfer" of the St. Basil parish of the UOC to the OCU.

"False documents are being prepared for our church. Then a violent assault with metal rods, grinders, and militants will follow to spill Christian blood and seize our Orthodox church," the parishioners warn.

It is reported that the real members of the community – 172 people – were not allowed to attend the meeting.

"The National Police, the Vyzhnytsia Military Administration, and the Chernivtsi Regional Military Administration have been informed about this blatant violation of Ukrainians’ right to free expression. The meeting protocols confirming that we remain within the UOC under the leadership of His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry have been submitted to them," they say.

The believers have information that the assault on the church is planned to be as brutal as previous raider seizures in other villages in Bukovina.

In such cases, the police remain inactive and usually protect only the masked militants. Therefore, the parish decided to appeal to the U.S. government, specifically to Vice President J.D. Vance: "He is young, energetic, and interested in religious freedoms and Christian values. We believe he will respond to our appeal."

In addition, Bukovinians living in the U.S. are preparing a letter to Marco Rubio and the head of the State Department regarding "the outrageous discrimination and humiliation of Orthodox Christians in Podzakharychi and Ukraine as a whole."

"Tomorrow, I will send documents to Kyiv for the U.S. Embassy so that the United States intervenes in our situation, helps protect Christian and family values, and prevents the bloodshed and atrocities committed by the bandits brought in for the assault on Podzakharychi," the believers added.

They also reported that they invited a UN monitoring group and an OSCE human rights officer: "We have been informed that our case is now under their supervision."

As previously reported by the UOJ, in the Bukovynian village of Komarivtsi, the OCU is preparing to seize a church following a provocation at a soldier’s funeral service.

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