Russia-occupied Crimea's de facto authorities want to close the major cathedral of the newly created Ukrainian Orthodox Church – the Cathedral of Saints Volodymyr and Olha in the center of Simferopol.
Archbishop of Chernihiv and Nizhyn of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine Yevstratiy (Zorya) reported this on Facebook, according to an UNIAN correspondent.
"Archbishop Clement with the parish of the Cathedral of Saints Volodymyr and Olha in Simferopol need general prayer support – the occupying authorities have ordered them to leave the premises," he said.
"The only Ukrainian Orthodox Church in that city is facing liquidation. Obviously, this is Moscow's revenge, including for the Archbishop's human rights activities," he added.
UNIAN memo. The Unification Council of members of the Ukrainian Orthodox churches in Kyiv on December 15 elected Metropolitan of Pereyaslavsky and Bila Tserkva from the then Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate Epifaniy (also known as Epiphanius I) as head of the new local Orthodox church in Ukraine. On January 6, Epifaniy, as Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine, received the tomos of autocephaly (independence) of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine from Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I in Istanbul, Turkey. Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine Epifaniy was inaugurated as Primate of the newly created Orthodox Church of Ukraine at Kyiv's Saint Sophia Cathedral on February 3.
