Chernihiv Regional Council refuses to transfer UOC temple to OCU

The Chernihiv Regional Council did not vote in favor of transferring the Holy Ascension Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the village of Korop to the ownership of the OCU. According to the regional council, the Ascension Church, an architectural monument of the XVIII century, is still the subject of litigation, and therefore a new ownership of the religious building cannot be established. This is reported by Suspilne.Chernihiv.

It is reported that in March 2024, the court ordered the regional council to register property rights to the Ascension Church. But at that time, the decision was still being appealed in the Court of Appeal, in particular, the issues of whether this religious building belongs to state or municipal property were being clarified. An agreement with the users of the Ascension Church can only be concluded when the court finally determines the owners. They will be responsible for the restoration and maintenance of the church. In addition, the agreement with the users needs to be approved by the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, as the Church of the Ascension is a national monument.

According to Olena Dmytrenko, head of the regional council, there are still lawsuits over the ownership of the church building. Therefore, before the vote, the draft decision was amended to read “after the end of the lawsuits.” However, the decision was not adopted: it received only 25 votes.

As reported, on November 26, 2024, the Supreme Court of Ukraine issued a decision dismissing the claim of the Chernihiv Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church regarding the right to use the 11th-century Transfiguration Cathedral, which the state had previously expropriated from the Church.