Another religious community in Vinnytsia region joined the OCU.

The religious community of the Church of Saint Demetrius of Salonika in the Tulchin district of Vinnytsia region has decided to join the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, leaving the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. This was reported by 'Glavcom' referencing the Vinnytsia-Barska diocese of the OCU.

'On March 11, 2025, in the administration of the Vinnytsia-Barska diocese of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Simeon of Vinnytsia and Bars received the rector of the Church of Saint Great Martyr Demetrius of Salonika in the village of Dahtalia, Tulchin district, Priest Petro Baran, who along with his parishioners at the general meeting of the parish held on February 2 decided to leave the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate and join the Orthodox Church of Ukraine', – it is stated in the announcement.

After the meeting, which was also attended by the archpriest of the Tulchin district, Archpriest Serhiy Povroznik, Metropolitan Simeon presented Priest Petro with a decree on his acceptance into the clergy of the Vinnytsia-Barska diocese and congratulated him and his community on joining the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.

'In addition to the parish in the village of Dahtalia, Priest Petro Baran has also been appointed the rector of the Church of Saint Great Martyr Paraskeva in the village of Netrabivka in the Tulchin district', – it is noted in the announcement.

It is worth recalling that on January 4, the religious community of the Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos in Chernivtsi (the 'Sadhora' microdistrict) moved from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.

UN criticizes Ukraine for dissolving religious organizations, including the UOC MP

Earlier, the UN criticized Ukraine for allegedly lacking 'sufficient justification' for dissolving religious organizations, in particular the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC MP). This is stated in a report by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

As reported, this is not the first Time the UN has reproached Ukraine regarding the Moscow Church. In 2023, the UN stated that Ukrainian law enforcement allegedly did not take measures to protect the believers of the UOC MP.

By the way, on August 24, 2024, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed bill No. 8371 on banning the activities of religious organizations in Ukraine that have a leadership center in a state that carries out armed aggression against Ukraine.