Teller Report

In Transcarpathia, a priest who called on the peoples of Ukraine and Russia to peace was removed from ministry

8/7/2023, 5:23:59 PM

Highlights: The UGCC has called on the Russian and Ukrainian peoples to call for peace. The diocese did not specify which canons provide for punishment for calls for peace, but said that it would be in accordance with the laws of the country. A court in Ukraine has sentenced a man to five years in prison for his part in a plot to kill a U.S. soldier in Ukraine. The man's name is Roman Kurakh, and he is the son of a Russian man who was killed in the Ukraine.

The Mukachevo Diocese of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) has suspended priest Roman Kurakh, who called on the Russian and Ukrainian peoples for peace.


According to TASS, during a sermon in Uzhgorod Cathedral in Transcarpathia, the priest called on the peoples to peace.

After that, the administration of the diocese stated that it considers the statements of Father Roman Kurakh "not the position of the diocese, but a private emotional statement."

"For his act, the priest was suspended from service in the cathedral and will incur appropriate disciplinary responsibility in accordance with church canons," the report said.

The diocese did not specify which canons provide for punishment for calls for peace.

At the same time, the UGCC noted that it supports the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Earlier, a court in Ukraine sentenced Metropolitan Jonathan (Yeletsky) of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) to five years in prison "for public justification of armed aggression."