The Russian occupation administration has transferred the temple building to an ROC religious organization
In temporarily occupied Mariupol, invaders destroyed the Vasyl Stus Library and damaged the decoration of the OCU cathedral in honor of St. Petro (Mohyla). The site was famous for its unique Petrykivka painting, which the occupation authorities ordered to be destroyed due to non-compliance with their canons. This was reported by Ukrinform citing Orthodox Church of Ukraine, according to the portal PromPolitInform.
In 2020, the cathedral was included in the Book of Records of Ukraine as the only church in the world with a complete exterior painting in the style of Petrykivka art. Before the full-scale invasion, the temple functioned as a significant cultural and educational center, operating free courses in painting, bandura, iconography, and embroidery.
Destruction of Ukrainian heritage
According to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, after the city was seized, Russian forces removed and burned the collection of the Vasyl Stus Library, which included rare Ukrainian-language editions. The temple itself was looted and appropriated by the occupation authorities.
In 2024, a special commission of the Russian Orthodox Church declared that the building’s Ukrainian-style interior decoration did not meet their religious requirements. On this basis, a decision was made to forcibly change the look of the temple and rename the community in honor of St. Spyridon of Trimythous of the ROC.
Official seizure of property
On November 5, 2026, the occupation administration of Mariupol officially transferred the temple building, covering 550 sq. m, and the adjacent 1,411 sq. m plot of land for free use to the newly created parish. Representatives of the OCU emphasize the hypocrisy of the Russian side, which accuses Ukraine of allegedly persecuting believers, while Ukrainian church infrastructure is systematically being destroyed in the occupied territories.
Currently, no Ukrainian parishes are operating in the occupied lands, and local clergy are being massively replaced by representatives of the ROC. The OCU points out that such actions are accompanied by the destruction of monuments and forced renunciation of Ukrainian identity.
Photo: ПЦУ
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