The deputy of the Zdolbunovsky regional state administration Igor Shchebet led the storm and capture of the temple of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) in the village of Pyatigory.
On April 20th, 2019, on the eve of Palm Sunday, the activists of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) stormed and captured the temple of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) in the village of Pyatigory in the Zdolbunovsky district of the Rovno region.
As eyewitnesses say, supporters of the OCU came to the territory of the Nativity of Mary temple of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church allegedly to hold an evening service outside the walls of the church and to consecrate a willow. It turned out that such a “church service” served only as a disguise for the cynical capture of the temple. While the “priest” of the OCU held ceremonial actions, raiders broke the doors down.
“I left several times and observed what occurs at church,” commented the priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) Viktor Dovbenyuk. “I noticed considerable excitement only after a while. Many people surrounded the doors of the church, as if hiding something. When I understood that it may be a capture attempt, it was already too late. In the temple there was the deputy of the Zdolbunovsky regional state administration Mr Shchebet, who removed the locks and in fact captured the temple”.
Believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) immediately reacted to the incident and called the police. However, law enforcement bodies did not take any measures to bring the violators out of the church. Currently on the territory of the temple there are many people and law enforcement bodies, supporters of the OCU blocked the doors of the church building.
As a reminder, the church in Pyatigory was sealed off last week by the authorities because of an interfaith conflict. Between two religious communities there was an agreement whereby neither of the communities will enter the temple before the dispute is solved in court, however representatives of the OCU constantly violated this arrangement. In particular, on April 17th the deputy of the Zdolbunovsky regional state administration Shchebet, along with assistants, tried to break down the temple’s doors, but believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church did not allow them to do this.
Union of Orthodox Journalists
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