UOC Hierarch Condemns Ukrainian Media After Reports on Pochaiv Lavra Pilgrimage

POCHAIV — Abp. Iona (Cherepanov) of Obukhiv has sharply criticized Ukrainian media following reports on a large pilgrimage by faithful of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) to the Holy Dormition Pochaiv Lavra.

The remarks came after Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform reported that thousands of UOC parishioners had begun a cross procession from the Volyn region to the Pochaiv Lavra in Ternopil region. Citing a video published by historian and Russian-Ukrainian war veteran Viktor Permyakov, the outlet reported that local authorities and law enforcement had been asked to comment on the legality of the mass gathering.

Responding to the coverage, Abp. Iona accused Ukrainian media outlets of acting as informers, writing on social media:

"The Ukrainian media are worthy successors of the Soviet-era informers. 'You are on the right path, comrades!' Yezhov, Yagoda, and Beria are applauding you from hell."

The procession comes days after Ukraine's State Service for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) concluded that the Pochaiv Lavra is affiliated with the Moscow Patriarchate through its status as part of the Kyiv Metropolis of the UOC. Following its findings, the agency gave the monastery 30 days to comply with an order to address what it described as violations of Ukraine's legislation on freedom of conscience and religious organizations.

This is typically a precursor to a forced seizure of church property by the government. For its part, the Pochaiv Lavra has maintained that it is administratively independent from Moscow due to the UOC's Council of Feofania, held in 2022.

The annual pilgrimage to the Pochaiv Lavra is one of the largest religious processions organized by the UOC, drawing thousands of faithful from across western Ukraine.

Previously, the UOJ reported that an attempted seizure of the Pochaiv Lavra was repelled by seminarians.