Dead warrior's mother begs OCU priest on knees for last rites over her son

A parishioner asks an OCU "priest" not to take away the church. Photo: a video screenshot of Kokhanovska's Facebook page

On December 7, 2022, in the village of Tarasivka, a parishioner of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, whose son had died on the frontline the day before, knelt before an OCU "priest", begging him not to seize the Dormition Church and allow performing a funeral service over her son. The video was published on the YouTube channel of the UOC Information and Educational Department.

The community told the UOJ that the parishioner had defended her church the previous day from clerics and supporters of the OCU, who, together with the territorial defence forces and government representatives, attempted to seize it. The next day they came again. The woman asked them not to seize the church and allow her to have the funeral service for her deceased son.

As earlier reported, people in balaclavas kicked a UOC priest out of a church in Tarasivka.

Read also

Thousands in Ghana Enter Canonical Orthodox Church After Year-Long Catechism

Major growth for Patriarchate of Alexandria as former independent group unites with Orthodox Church.

Antiochian Archdiocese to Celebrate Sunday of All Saints of Antioch With Patriarchate of Antioch for First Time

The feast, established in 2023, highlights the enduring witness and legacy of the Church of Antioch.

Church of Cyprus Defrocks Priest Amid Mounting Ecclesiastical Tensions

Fr. Dimos Serkelidis removed from clerical office following Synodal Court decision; controversy grows over internal Church governance

OCU Holds Service in Seized Cherkasy Church—But Nobody Came

Photos reveal nearly deserted worship in St. Andrew’s Church after its seizure from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC)

Romanian Orthodox Hierarchs Propose Five Women for Canonization

Canonization effort highlights upcoming Commemorative Year of Holy Women in 2026.

St. Olga of Alaska Officially Glorified in Her Hometown of Kwethluk

First North American female saint honored in historic vigil attended by hundreds of pilgrims and hierarchs.