UOC faithful in Kamin-Kashyrskyi fight church transfer to OCU in court

Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos in Kamin-Kashyrskyi. Photo: BUG

On August 17, it became known that the legal dispute in Kamin-Kashyrskyi is continuing, with UOC believers defending the Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos against its transfer to an OCU community, the BUG outlet reports.

The conflict over the 18th-century architectural monument has been ongoing since 2019. In September 2023, the Volyn Regional State Administration registered a new version of the religious community’s charter, reclassifying it as an OCU structure, and made the corresponding changes to the state register. UOC parishioners did not agree with the re-registration and continue seeking to preserve their community’s right to use the church.

In spring 2025, OCU representatives filed a lawsuit with the Kamin-Kashyrskyi District Court seeking to remove obstacles to their use of the church and the land plot. Since then, more than 30 hearings have been held in the case, while the UOC side has used procedural mechanisms provided by law, filing motions and challenging decisions related to the re-registration of the religious community.

The authors of the publication accuse UOC believers of “delaying” the proceedings by changing lawyers and filing new motions. In July, the court refused to close the proceedings, and on August 10 it rejected a request by UOC representatives to clarify an earlier ruling concerning the state registrar.

Despite the OCU community having registration documents, the dispute over the shrine has not been finally resolved. Consideration of the case on the merits is continuing, while UOC believers are still defending the church in court against its transfer to another religious structure.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that pilgrims from Zakarpattia supported the persecuted UOC community in Kerstentsi.

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