“Now they will be forgiven”: The OCU “consecrated” a church on the territory of the Volyn Regional TRC

On July 5, 2025, the Volyn Regional Territorial Center for the Recruitment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (TRC) held a “consecration” ceremony for a church dedicated to Prince Vladimir, Equal to the Apostles. The religious ceremony was conducted by the controversial head of the Volyn Diocese of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Mykhailo Zinkevych. Together with Zinkevich, employees of the TRC and chaplains of the OCU “prayed” in the temple. This was reported by the regional publication Volyn News.

According to Yuriy Blyznyuk, chief chaplain of the Volyn Diocese of the OCU, who is also involved in the “pastoral care” of employees of the Volyn Regional Territorial Center for the Recruitment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, construction of the temple began two years ago. Now, with the assistance of representatives of the OCU, TRC employees will be able to “atone” for their sins before society for participating in the violent mobilization and death of innocent people.

We previously reported that clergymen of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, who were detained earlier by employees of the Territorial Recruitment Centers (TRC) in various regions of the country, are being forcibly held in one of the military units in the Lviv region. The priests are being pressured to sign documents and begin military service on the front lines.