Metropolitan Arseny was taken to court with a convoy: the incident caused a public outcry

A video recording depicting the delivery of Metropolitan Arseniy, Vicar of the Sviatogorsk Lavra, to a regular court hearing accompanied by four law enforcers is being actively circulated on the network. The bishop had previously been refused hospitalization, which, combined with the harsh measures of convoying, caused a wide public outcry. Users of social networks compare the measures applied to the metropolitan with the treatment of persons suspected of committing serious crimes.

According to the press service of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, on December 15, 2025 on the official page of the Sviatogorsk Lavra in Facebook was published a video showing the arrival of Metropolitan Arseniy in the courtroom. The Information and Education Department of the UOC confirmed these data with reference to the press service of the monastery. The footage clearly shows how the bishop, despite the court refusal to hospitalize him, is accompanied by four law enforcement officers.

This episode caused a wave of indignation among Internet users. In comments under the video, readers express bewilderment at the harsh measures applied to Metropolitan Arseny. Many draw parallels with the appeal to the suspects of crimes, which had a significant resonance not only in Ukraine, but also abroad, affecting the image of the state among international partners.

Earlier, the head of the international human rights company «Amsterdam & Partners LLP» Robert Amsterdam, representing the legal interests of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, made a sharp statement on the case of Metropolitan Arseniy of Sviatogorsk, calling his persecution a «full-scale crime against humanity». Ahead of the next court hearing scheduled for December 2, 2025, human rights activists accused the Ukrainian authorities of falsifying the case and systematically attacking the believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC).