OCU Cleric Accuses UGCC of Past Church Seizures

Fr. Hryhoriy Petrushchak, rector of the Protection of the Mother of God Church (OCU) in Oleksandrivka, issued harsh criticism toward the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC). His comment came in response to a recent sermon by UGCC Head Sviatoslav Shevchuk, who condemned the practice of church seizures during wartime. Petrushchak posted his response beneath the sermon video on Facebook.

According to the cleric, such claims are historically inaccurate. He alleged that since 1988, many Orthodox communities — particularly from the UAOC and UOC-KP — have allegedly experienced coercion from Greek Catholics. “Today’s UGCC in Ukraine is built on crude, violent oppression of Orthodox priests and communities,” he wrote.

He further claimed that UGCC structures used paid activists (referred to as “titushky”) to seize churches, busing them to parishes not yet taken over by the UGCC. In light of this, Petrushchak called on Shevchuk to renounce all parishes allegedly acquired through such force.

The cleric noted that in Western Ukraine, Greek Catholics mainly seized churches belonging to the UAOC and UOC-KP, since the Moscow Patriarchate had little presence there. He believes this shows that autocephalous Orthodox communities posed a greater threat to the UGCC.

Petrushchak concluded by accusing both the UGCC and the UOC of opposing the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. “For foreigners, the Autocephalous Church is death. If the OCU exists, it testifies to Ukraine’s independence,” he said.

As a reminder, on 29 July 2025, Sviatoslav Shevchuk criticized religious institutions that, in his words, exploit the war for status and material gain. His remarks were made during a sermon marking the 160th anniversary of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky’s birth.