Source: www.forum18.org
Date: June 11, 2025
https://www.forum18.org/archiv
By Felix Corley, Forum 18
"Experts" appointed by Russia's Justice Ministry insist that an Orthodox
Brotherhood in Russian-occupied Luhansk Region provided "deliberately false
information that it operates as part of the Luhansk diocese of the
Ukrainian Orthodox Church, that is, a structure that does not in reality
exist". The Ministry's Expert Council cited the Moscow Patriarchate Bishop,
Metropolitan Pantaleimon, that "Luhansk Diocese does not support the
creation on its canonical territory of Orthodox parishes, brotherhoods and
other religious organisations which are not part of" the Russian Orthodox
Church.
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) is historically and ecclesiastically
affiliated with the Moscow Patriarchate, but in 1990 (and again in 2017)
was declared "a self-governing church with wide autonomy". Following
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Moscow Patriarchate
unilaterally subjugated in Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine to the Russian
Orthodox Church Moscow Patriarchate or created its own new dioceses. Those
who resisted the enforced takeover faced pressure from Russian officials
(see below).
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is separate from the Orthodox Church of
Ukraine (OCU), which was granted autocephaly (independence) by the
Ecumenical Patriarch (see below).
The "expert conclusion" - completed by the Expert Council on 11 February
– concludes that because the Brotherhood's documents were not reliable,
"registration of the Brotherhood does not seem expedient". The Brotherhood
still has Russian registration in occupied Luhansk, despite the Expert
Council's recommendation (see below).
The official at the department that registers religious communities at the
Russian-controlled Luhansk Justice Department – who did not give her name
– said she was "of course" familiar with the "expert conclusion" on the
Brotherhood. However, she refused to say if the view of Metropolitan
Pantaleimon represents the view of the Russian state. She refused to say if
communities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church are allowed to exist and gain
Russian registration in Russian-controlled parts of Luhansk Region. "We
don't give comments to journalists," she repeatedly told Forum 18 (see
below).
Officials at the Justice Ministry in Moscow did not answer the phone.
Viktoriya Burkovskaya, chair of the Ministry's Expert Council who signed
the "expert conclusion", did not respond to questions (see below).
In late April, Russian security officials reportedly visited at least one
church in the Russian-occupied part of Kherson Region. "The goal: to check
how exactly priests conduct the service and 'hold conversations'," the
Yellow Ribbon civil resistance movement noted. "The reason is that one of
the local priests refused to mention the Russian military in a positive
context and did not justify the war against Ukraine during the Easter
service" (see below).
Fines, raids, pressure to register, declaring places of worship "ownerless"
Russian-controlled courts in occupied parts of Ukraine are increasingly
punishing individuals and religious communities under Russia's
"anti-missionary" laws
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Russian-controlled Budennovsk Inter-District Court in the occupied
Ukrainian city of Donetsk fined Council of Churches Baptist Pastor Vladimir
Rudomyotkin several days' average local wage for allegedly conducting
missionary activity. The fine came two days after the same court punished
the city's Roman Catholic parish.
Russian occupation officials – including prosecutors and police – have
raided places of worship
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
target communities – including Council of Churches Baptists – which
function without Russian registration. On 30 May, police raided the Council
of Churches Baptist church in Luhansk's Artyomovsky District. On 8 June, as
Krasnodon's Council of Churches Baptist congregation was celebrating
Pentecost, the deputy prosecutor and police raided its Sunday morning
worship meeting.
Pastor Dmitry Malakhov, who leads the Council of Churches Baptist church in
Melitopol in Zaporizhzhia Region, is challenging a court order
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
the Russian authorities of his congregation's existence.
The Russian occupation authorities have been seizing property owned by
Ukrainian individuals or organisations that they deem "ownerless". Among
them have been places of worship already seized from religious communities
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Russian regime does not like.
In late 2024, the Russian occupation administration of Zaporizhzhia Region
included in a list of such property
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Catholic Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Melitopol and the
neighbouring parish house. It described them as a "single-storey and
two-storey building, surrounding land (used for conducting religious
rituals)". It also listed a building "formerly used by representatives of
the Jehovah's Witness religious organisation" and a "building of religious
designation" in the village of Derevetskoye.
Moscow Patriarchate takes over Ukrainian Orthodox dioceses
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) is historically and ecclesiastically
affiliated with the Moscow Patriarchate, but in 1990 (and again in 2017)
was declared "a self-governing church with wide autonomy". Following
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Moscow Patriarchate
unilaterally subjugated dioceses in Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine to
the Russian Orthodox Church Moscow Patriarchate or created its own new
dioceses.
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is separate from the Orthodox Church of
Ukraine (OCU), which was granted autocephaly (independence) by the
Ecumenical Patriarch in 2019. The Russian occupation authorities have
crushed all the parishes of the OCU
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
parts of Ukraine.
Priests of both the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) and the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church affiliated with the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC) have been
disappeared (https://www.forum18.org/archi
they reject pressure to join new dioceses the Moscow Patriarchate Russian
Orthodox Church has unilaterally established on occupied Ukrainian
territory.
Fr Kostiantyn Maksimov served a Ukrainian Orthodox parish in Tokmak in
Russian-occupied Ukraine until his arrest and enforced disappearance in May
2023. He is serving a 14-year sentence in a strict regime labour camp
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Region on "espionage" charges.
Artyom Sharlay, the head of the Russian occupiers' Department for Work with
Ethnic, Religious and Cossack Organisations of the Social and Political
Communications Department of the Internal Policy Department of the
Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia Regional Administration, claimed to Forum
18 in October 2023 (https://www.forum18.org/archi
that Fr Kostiantyn had not wanted the Berdyansk Diocese of the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church (UOC) to move to be an integral part of the Russian
Orthodox Church. The Russian Orthodox Church took over the Diocese in May
2023.
Officials pressured another local Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) priest,
Fr Vladimir Saviisky of St Nicholas Church in Primorsk, in 2023 to accept
the transfer of the Berdyansk Diocese from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
(UOC) to the Russian Orthodox Church. He refused
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Ukrainian Orthodox Church, "a structure that does not in reality exist"
On 8 November 2024, the Russian-controlled Luhansk Region Justice
Department requested an "expert conclusion" from the Justice Ministry in
Moscow on the Brotherhood of Cyril and Methodius Equal to the Apostles of
the Luhansk Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The Ministry passed
the request to its Expert Council, together with copies of the
Brotherhood's documents. The Ministry asked it to determine whether the
organisation is religious and whether the information it supplied is
accurate.
The Brotherhood was established by Ukrainian Orthodox priest Fr Georgy
(Yury) Melish as part of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church's Luhansk Diocese.
The Ukrainian authorities registered the Brotherhood in November 2002.
Following the establishment of the Russian-backed Luhansk People's Republic
in 2014, the Brotherhood gained registration with the LPR Justice Ministry
in July 2018. Russian tax records show that the Brotherhood gained Russian
registration on 29 November 2022, with Fr Georgy as its head. He also
serves as priest in the village of Khryashchuvate in Russian-controlled
Luhansk Region.
The "expert conclusion" on the Brotherhood was completed by the Expert
Council on 11 February 2025 and signed by its chair, Viktoriya Burkovskaya.
A Moscow lawyer and professor, she has headed the Expert Council since
2015.
The "expert conclusion" found that the Brotherhood is religious. However,
in answer to the question as to whether the information the Brotherhood
provided was reliable, it noted that "the Brotherhood is in spiritual and
canonical communion with the Russian Orthodox Church, the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church, and the Luhansk Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church".
The "expert conclusion" then quotes a letter of 9 January 2025 from
Metropolitan Pantaleimon (Povoroznyuk) to the head of the Moscow
Patriarchate's Legal Department, Sister Kseniya Chernega, that "Luhansk
Diocese does not support the creation on its canonical territory of
Orthodox parishes, brotherhoods and other religious organisations which are
not part of the structure of the ROC [Russian Orthodox Church]".
Although Metropolitan Pantaleimon was appointed by the Ukrainian Orthodox
Church, and its Luhansk Diocese does not appear to have been formally
transferred to the direct jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church, the
bishop appears to have accepted the direct subjugation to Moscow. The
diocesan website states that it is the Luhansk Diocese of the Russian
Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
The "expert conclusion" notes that the Brotherhood's statute – adopted on
17 September 2024 – gives "deliberately false information that it
operates as part of the Luhansk diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church,
that is, a structure that does not in reality exist". The Expert Council
found "unconvincing" a 16 December 2024 clarification from the Brotherhood
that this was a "technical error". It adds that "in September 2024, only
the Luhansk Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church functioned, of which the
Brotherhood was not part".
The "expert conclusion" – which is only a recommendation – concludes
that because the Brotherhood's documents were not reliable, "registration
of the Brotherhood does not seem expedient".
The Brotherhood's Russian registration remains valid as of 11 June. (24
organisations affiliated to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church have Russian
registration in occupied Luhansk Region, 10 in occupied Donetsk Region and
1 in the occupied Crimean city of Sevastopol. Other Russian-occupied parts
of Ukraine have no UOC communities with Russian registration.)
The woman who answered the phone at the Brotherhood on 9 June declined to
put Forum 18 through to Fr Georgy or answer Forum18's questions.
Forum 18 was unable to reach Expert Council chair Burkovskaya by phone on 9
June to find out:
- why she and her colleagues appeared to accept the view of the Russian
Orthodox bishop in reaching their conclusions;
- why the affiliation of the Brotherhood makes any difference to whether or
not it should be allowed to register;
- and whether she believes that Ukrainian Orthodox Church organisations
should not be allowed to gain Russian registration.
Forum 18 sent the questions late on 9 June in writing. Forum 18 had
received no response by the morning of the working day in Moscow of 11
June.
The official at the department that registers religious communities at the
Russian-controlled Luhansk Justice Department – who did not give her name
– said she was "of course" familiar with the February "expert conclusion"
on the Brotherhood. However, she refused to say if the view of Metropolitan
Pantaleimon cited in the analysis represents the view of the Russian state.
She refused to say if communities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church are
allowed to exist and gain Russian registration in Russian-controlled parts
of Luhansk Region.
"We don't give comments to journalists," the official repeatedly told Forum
18 from Luhansk on 27 May. "It is not within our competence to explain the
law." She then put the phone down.
Officials at the department that registers religious organisations at the
Justice Ministry in Moscow did not answer their phones between 5 and 9
June.
Russian Justice Ministry's "expert conclusions"
The 18 February 2009 Russian Justice Ministry Order on State
Religious-Studies Expert Analysis gives the Justice Ministry and its local
Departments wide powers to commission such "expert conclusions".
"Expert conclusions" by Russia's Justice Ministry Expert Council following
the Russian invasion and annexation of Crimea in 2014 led to some Crimean
religious organisations having to make changes to get re-registration under
Russian law (https://www.forum18.org/archi
Crimean Muftiate had to cut its ties to the Crimean Tatar Mejlis (a
political organisation). The nine Catholic parishes had to formally cut
ties with their Diocese of Odessa-Simferopol in southern Ukraine and are
now in a Pastoral District of Crimea and Sevastopol. Yalta's Augsburg
Lutheran congregation had to remove a reference to pilgrimages in its
statute.
The 2025 "expert conclusion" on the Luhansk Brotherhood was one of six
Russia's Justice Ministry has conducted of religious communities in
Russian-occupied Ukraine since 2023. Of the other five communities, two
were in Crimea, and three in Donetsk Region.
Four of the other "expert conclusions" found that the organisations were
religious and that they had presented reliable information. Only in the
case of the fifth, the conclusion on Donetsk Jewish Religious Community,
did it find minor faults in its documents (such as giving the title of
Russia's Religion Law slightly incorrectly).
A Donetsk court punished the Donetsk Jewish Religious Community in March
for allegedly failing to give its official full name "within the framework
of missionary activity". The organisation is now being liquidated
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Russians checking priests' sermons for loyalty?
In late April, Russian security officials reportedly visited at least one
church in the Russian-occupied part of Kherson Region. "The goal: to check
how exactly priests conduct the service and 'hold conversations'," the
Yellow Ribbon civil resistance movement noted on 26 April. The group did
not identify the church or its affiliation.
"The reason is that one of the local priests refused to mention the Russian
military in a positive context and did not justify the war against Ukraine
during the Easter service," Yellow Ribbon added. "This was complained about
by one of the visitors from Russia, of whom there are already more than
15,000 people in the occupied Kherson Region." (END)
More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Occupied
Ukraine (https://www.forum18.org/archi
For background information, see Forum 18's Occupied Ukraine religious
freedom survey (https://www.forum18.org/archi
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