“We believe not in the ‘Russian world’, but in God!”: Bukovina priests of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church publish an open letter

The clergy of the Chernivtsi-Bukovina Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church published an open statement refuting the fake news recently spread by supporters of the OCU regarding the canonical Church in Bukovina. The statement says that priests and believers of the UOC, along with everyone else, pray and work for the good of Ukraine, so accusing them of treason is a lie. This is reported by the media.

«First of all, we must emphasize that we do not believe in the ‘Russian world’—we believe in the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! We have the peace of Christ (John 14:27). Our parishioners live and serve here in Ukraine. They pray, defend their homeland, volunteer, and help their neighbors. To accuse them of treason is to betray the truth. The faith we profess and defend is not blind. We know well what and whom we believe in. We remain with God. We read the Holy Scriptures, unite with God in the holy sacraments, and work on ourselves to the best of our ability, trying to approach the ideal presented by Christ. We believe not “out of habit,” but with our hearts and minds. This is what allowed the Orthodox Church to stand firm on the land of Bukovina during the times of godless rule. And if someone says that our faith is not conscious, then this is a great disrespect to people who may not have degrees in theology, but have a clear conscience and a sincere heart before God,» — the statement says.

In addition, the statement emphasizes that today it is especially painful to see those who call themselves their brothers in faith, but come to them with anger, seize churches, humiliate and even physically maim priests and believers. The text states that the UOC does not seek enmity and does not want confrontation. The clergy only wants to “live with God, pray in their churches, not fear for their faith, and live in a free and independent Ukraine.”

We previously reported that a new UN report on human rights violations in Ukraine for the period from December 1, 2024, to May 31, 2025, documented attacks on clergy and believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The document cites as an example the seizure of UOC churches in Bukovina, noting that the incidents took place with the full connivance of law enforcement agencies.