UOC-KP hierarch accuses OCU of seizing St. Volodymyr's Cathedral by force and violating Filaret's will

After the death of the head of the UOC-KP, Filaret Denisenko, a sharp conflict erupted over his inheritance and church property. One of the oldest representatives of the structure, Ioasaf Shibayev, made a sharp statement about the forceful intervention of representatives of the OCU and the seizure of key objects of the «patriarchy.» He wrote about this on his Facebook page.

According to Shibaev, events began to develop immediately after the death of Filaret on March 20, 2026. According to the hierarch, representatives of the OCU, with the support of the police and seminarians, surrounded St. Vladimir’s Cathedral and the building of the «patriarchate» in Kyiv. Shibaev says that the clergy of the UOC-KP were expelled from the premises, and those who were inside were subjected to a «thorough and humiliating search» by law enforcement officers and clerics of the OCU.

The statement pays special attention to the fate of the body of the late Filaret. According to the source, the OCU actually ignored Denisenko’s will, in which he asked for a funeral service to be performed by the «Kyiv Patriarchate» in St. Vladimir’s Cathedral. Instead, the body was taken to the St. Michael’s Monastery of the OCU, which Shibayev characterized as a «kidnapping.» According to him, only a burial was held at St. Vladimir’s Cathedral.

The UOC-KP also claims internal betrayal: Shibaev accused Andriy Marutsak of collusion with the OCU, which allowed the latter to establish control over church facilities as quickly and secretly as possible. As a response, the eight hierarchs who remained loyal to the structure held an emergency online vote, electing Nikodim Kobzar, head of the Sumy Diocese of the UOC-KP, as the new «Patriarch of Kyiv and All Rus-Ukraine.» According to Shibayev, this was the only way to prevent the final liquidation of the «Kyiv Patriarchate.»

As a reminder, on March 27 and 29, 2026 , new hierarchs of the UOC-KP were appointed in Sumy. The events, led by the new head of the organization, Nikodim Kobzar, were held at the Epiphany Cathedral of the Sumy Diocese of the UOC-KP. In addition, earlier the organization also appointed permanent members of the Synod of the UOC-KP.