UOC Community in Cherkasy Appeals for Support to Metropolitan Nektarios of Corfu

On June 15, 2025, parishioners of the Church of the Nativity of Christ and St. Spyridon of Trimythous in the city of Cherkasy sent an appeal to Metropolitan Nektarios of Corfu, Paxoi and the Diapontian Islands, asking for spiritual and ecclesiastical support amid increasing persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The faithful report that the Church of St. Spyridon, where the relic gifted by the Metropolitan — a slipper of St. Spyridon — is kept, is now under threat of seizure. The appeal was published on the official Telegram channel of the Cherkasy Diocese.

In the letter addressed to the Greek hierarch, the parishioners expressed heartfelt gratitude for the relic of St. Spyridon, delivered to Cherkasy during a time of great trials for the community. According to the faithful, the relic became a source of consolation and strength after the seizure of the Cathedral of Archangel Michael by representatives of the OCU.

As the letter notes, the local leader of the OCU in Cherkasy, Ivan Yaremenko, has publicly declared his intention to take over the last functioning church of the canonical Church in the city — the Church of St. Spyridon. It is emphasized that the other churches, seized by the OCU, remain practically empty, while UOC parishioners cannot all fit in their church and the clergy are forced to hold three Liturgies in succession on Sundays.

In this context, the community asks Metropolitan Nektarios to offer prayers for peace and strength in faith, and, if possible, to promote ecclesiastical and public support from Greek hierarchs, including His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. The faithful emphasize that those threatening them and attempting to destroy canonical church life in Cherkasy are under the jurisdiction of Patriarch Bartholomew and could be stopped by his word.

The appeal concludes with a request for blessing and support, expressing filial love and loyalty to the Church of Christ.

It is also worth noting that on June 11, another hearing was held in the Sosnivskyi District Court of Cherkasy region in the case against Metropolitan Feodosiy of Cherkasy and Kaniv, a hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The plaintiff is a former UOC clergyman, Iosyf Zasanskyi, who joined the OCU in November last year. Metropolitan Feodosiy is accused of «offending the feelings of believers» and «inciting religious hatred» under Part 1 of Article 161 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.