OCU monks in Prykarpattia accused of obstructing transition to 'new calendar' and pro-Russian rhetoric

In the village of Kosmach, Ivano-Frankivsk region, tensions are growing over the transition of the local Orthodox community to the New Julian calendar. Some of the parishioners who support the old style of the liturgical calendar, according to local residents, receive support from the monks of the Holy Trinity Monastery of the OCU from the village of Banya-Bereziv. They are accused of interfering in the religious life of the community, obstructing reforms, and even demonstrating a «non-Ukrainian position» similar to the rhetoric of the Moscow Patriarchate.

According to the regional publication Firtka, Maria, a resident of Kosmach, spoke about the situation. According to her, on January 19, 2026, during the celebration of Epiphany according to the Julian calendar, the head of the Banya-Berezovskyi Holy Trinity Monastery of the OCU, Afanasiy Lazarovych, held religious events in the church of the village of Kosmach. Vasily Kifor, the rector of the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Kosmach, is currently suspended from his duties and is awaiting a decision from the church leadership.

Maria claims that during the service on January 19, Lazarovych did not mention the war in Ukraine in his prayers and did not express support for the Ukrainian military. «During the service, not a single word was said about Ukraine’s victory, the health of our soldiers, or support for the families of the victims. It came as a shock to many people,» she was quoted as saying. She sees this as a «clearly traceable non-Ukrainian position,» which, in her opinion, «echoes the rhetoric of the Moscow Patriarchate.»

According to Maria, Lazarovych «incited people» who oppose the transition to the new calendar and held religious events without proper permission. She also said that representatives of the monastery organized meetings in Kosmach, posted leaflets and called local residents with calls to come «for the sake of numbers» to «create a picture that there are many of them.» The woman added that the monks had access to the church using keys whose origin is unknown to the community, and «taking advantage of the situation, they behave as if they can do whatever they want.»

Maria calls on the state and church authorities to intervene and give a legal assessment of the situation, emphasizing that some residents of Kosmach are categorically opposed to any manifestations of support for the ideas of the «Russian world.»

As we reported earlier, the OCU church in honor of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Kosmach (Ivano-Frankivsk region) did not hold Christmas services on December 25 or January 7. This situation was the result of calendar disputes that arose among the adherents of the OCU in Kosmach, most of whom wished to celebrate Christmas in the old style, but this position was opposed by other villagers who expressed a desire to switch to the Gregorian calendar.