In Kyiv, the new Orthodox Church of Ukraine held its first Christmas service at the disputed Pechersk Monastery (Pechersk Lavra), which used to depend on the Moscow Patriarchate but was claimed by Ukraine as a result of the war, DPA and France Presse reported on Saturday. , reports Agerpres.

Several hundred believers, dozens of journalists and Minister of Culture Oleksandr Tkatsenko accepted the invitation to the service on Saturday in the Assumption Cathedral. The service was also broadcast live on Ukrainian television.

Metropolitan Epiphany, Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, autocephalous and created in 2018-2019 after the split with the Russian Church, for the first time led the Christmas service in the Dormition Cathedral of this 11th-century monastery, the largest in the country.

Parishioners, including men in military uniform, were gathered under increased police presence, AFP journalists note.

Participants were required to present their passports and pass through metal detectors.

Until the end of 2022, Ukraine’s most important cathedral was used by the rival Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which has long been associated with the Moscow Patriarchate. But his contract was not renewed for the use of two of the 10 main churches of the monastery, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A rival church criticizes the process as illegal.

Located in the capital of Ukraine, this monastery was the seat of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, dependent on the Moscow Patriarchate, which severed relations with Russia in May.

Although the leaders of this branch have distanced themselves, they are under pressure from the Ukrainian authorities, who in recent weeks have conducted several raids on places of worship and sanctioned clerics for their positions, which are considered pro-Russian.

The Pechersk Lavra in Kyiv, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, was also searched. In December, the monastery was transferred to the jurisdiction of the Church of Ukraine, which is independent from the Moscow Patriarchate.

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops to observe a 36-hour unilateral ceasefire on the occasion of the Old-style Orthodox Christmas, which is celebrated in Ukraine as it is in Russia. However, on Friday, fighting continued at several points of the front, although their intensity was lower compared to the previous days.

Orthodox churches in Ukraine, as well as in hostile Russia, celebrate Christmas no earlier than January 6-7, DPA reminds.

In order to break ties with Russia, a new Orthodox Church of Ukraine was founded in 2018 with the help of the state. Her autocephaly was recognized by the Constantinople Patriarchate, not by the Moscow Patriarchate.