Authorities of Lviv region report that all UOC communities have ceased their activities

In the Lviv region, all religious communities that were previously subordinate to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church have officially ceased their activities. Out of 66 active communities, 39 were “joined” to the OCU, and the rest were liquidated. Local authorities have also initiated processes to return to communal ownership church buildings built without proper permits.

According to the Suspilne media outlet, according to Iryna Havryliuk, director of the regional department for culture, nationalities and religions, the transition of communities to the OCU or their self-liquidation took place mostly calmly, based on statements from the believers themselves. “In the Lviv region, this process was somehow more calm, and religious communities ceased to exist on their own,” she noted.

At the same time, according to the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Lviv region, since the beginning of 2022, 34 appeals from citizens have been registered regarding the activities of representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, but none of them have been confirmed by the results of inspections.

Earlier, we reported that in Lviv, journalists of the local NTA TV channel released a report in which they revealed the addresses of private apartments used for worship by believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. For a year, the film crew had been following the clergy and parishioners, accusing them of anti-Ukrainian activities and calling them “FSB agents” and “potential killers.”