During wartime, Rivne Eparchy of UOC donates about UAH 2 mln to AFU

A charity fair to support the AFU at the UOC Church of All Volyn Saints (Rivne). Photo: rivne.church.ua

Since the beginning of the full-scale war, the Rivne Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has regularly provided assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and residents of the frontline regions. In particular, the parishes of the UOC in the Rivne region have donated about two million hryvnias to the army, says Secretary of the Rivne Eparchy, Archpriest Victor Zemlianyi, in an interview with the YouTube channel "Tetiana Tsaruk. In Search of Truth"

"We constantly hold actions in support of the AFU,” said Fr. Victor. “For this entire period, our parishes have donated up to two million hryvnias. I do not know who helps more."

The priest said that already in the first days of the war, Rivne believers collected about 180 tonnes of humanitarian aid. Also, a Mercedes Sprinter minibus was donated to the needs of the army, and now the eparchy is helping the military with its maintenance.

"Our monastery has collected UAH 20 thousand – yesterday the abbess handed it over, today we will give the sum to the AFU. We need to buy winter rubber for the bus, which we also donated," said Fr. Victor.

According to him, the eparchy delivers food and other humanitarian supplies to the Donetsk Regional Hospital located in Kramatorsk and to the Kherson region monthly. Recently they have bought blood-stopping materials abroad and given them to Rivne volunteers.

The priest stressed that the UOC faithful support all those in need, without dividing them along sectarian lines. For example, the other day they helped Protestants who take care of sick people in a nursing home.

"We took a large pallet of milk and diapers. We don't distinguish people, Ukrainians; we help everyone. We don't say, 'We'll help you because you're Orthodox', and we don't ask about your confession affiliation. When people come to us for help, we respond immediately to the best of our abilities because our resources are not unlimited either. The Church survives on donations," said the Secretary of the Rivne Eparchy.

He also noted that despite the scale of assistance provided by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to the Ukrainian army and fellow citizens affected by the war, the authorities and pro-government media remain silent and continue their campaign to discredit the UOC.

"When there was an event in the centre of Ostroh and they talked about volunteers, nobody even mentioned our religious community," said Father Victor. "We continue to help despite everything. So much mud is being thrown at me and our parish, and it's all untrue. The Lord calls the Prince of this world – the devil – the Prince of lies. And people who spread lies serve the devil."

As reported, members of the Svoboda battalion of the National Guard's Rapid Reaction Brigade and the 141st battalion of the 241st Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine recorded video messages in which they expressed gratitude to the Rivne Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church for the donated equipment.

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