UOC Priest Detained after Refusing Sniper Duty
A UOC priest was detained and charged with desertion for refusing combat duty on grounds of priestly conscience.
NIKOPOL, UKRAINE — Archpriest Vitaly Agafonov of the Transfiguration Cathedral has been placed in military detention and charged with desertion after leaving his army assignment, citing his priestly conscience as the reason he could not bear arms.
Mobilized in November 2025 and assigned as a rifleman-sniper in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Fr. Vitaly left his post rather than violate canonical prohibitions on clergy taking up weapons, according to Archpriest Nikita Chekman, who represents the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) in ongoing legal matters.
A court set bail at $6,075, an uncommon measure during martial law. Fr. Chekman emphasized that UOC clergy currently face obstacles in serving as military chaplains or receiving deferments, leaving priests at risk of conscription into combat roles. A fundraising campaign to raise money for Fr. Vitaly's bail quickly met its goal.
Previously, the UOJ reported that the Zhytomyr appeals court overturned the conviction of a UOC priest.
