UOC Monastery in Miltsy calls on U.S. leaders to protect religious freedom

Brothers and parishioners of the St. Nicholas Monastery in the village of Miltsy in Volyn Oblast have appealed to U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance and Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna to protect their religious rights from the threat of eviction. The monastery, which has a history dating back some 700 years, is at risk of eviction after its lease expires.

As reported by First Cossack, the abbot of the monastery, Archimandrite Leonty, noted that the state has not transferred the monastery to the ownership of the Church, despite the restoration of monastic life after the collapse of the USSR. “Now that the lease is over and the monastery has been restored, we are being asked to leave, ” he said.

The brotherhood also complains of pressure from MP Igor Guzya, who, according to the archimandrite, previously seized the cathedral in Vladimir with the help of armed men. “Perhaps he wants to do the same to us,” the priest added. The monastery was revived after decades of Soviet persecution, when the sacred buildings were turned into a canteen and littered with construction debris.

We will remind, earlier we reported that in St. Nicholas of Miletsky monastery of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) arrived commission to conduct “architectural measurements”. Despite the correct behavior of the officials during the visit, parishioners express serious concerns that these actions could be a precursor to the expropriation of the monastery and its subsequent transfer to the OCU.