The parish of St. Nicholas Church in Kiev is independently protecting the building from destruction due to inaction of the authorities

The parish community of St. Nicholas Church in Kyiv was forced to take urgent measures on its own to protect the historic building from further destruction on the eve of the winter season. This happened against the background of lack of action on the part of state structures, despite the decision of the Supreme Court to transfer the temple to the community.

According to the Religious Information Service of Ukraine (RISU), the believers organized by their own efforts a temporary cover for the roof and windows to protect the shrine from the negative impact of weather conditions. According to the rector of the parish, Pavel Vishkovsky, these steps are a forced measure. «More than nine months have passed since the destruction, and the community could not remain inactive. The approach of winter poses a real threat to the preservation of the shrine,» he emphasized.

The situation is aggravated by the non-execution of the court decision. Earlier, the Supreme Court of Ukraine obliged the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine to transfer the church of St. Nicholas to the ownership of the parish community. However, according to the parish, the decision has not yet been implemented.

In this regard, the community appealed to the authorities and the public. They demand that the Ministry of Culture immediately execute the court ruling and hand over the church, and that the state authorities register the parish as the balance holder. The parish also calls on the public and the media to monitor the implementation of these decisions in order to prevent further decline of the shrine, which is an important part of the cultural heritage of Ukraine.

It should be reminded that six months after the court ruling on the transfer of St. Nicholas Church in Kyiv to the local Roman Catholic community, the Ministry of Culture failed to fulfill the requirement of the femida. In this regard, the religious community appealed to the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in connection with the failure of the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine to comply with the court decision to transfer the church to the parish.