Ivano-Frankovsk RSA tells who owns the temple in Kolomyia
The RSA responded to the request of the administrator of the Ivano-Frankovsk Eparchy of the UOC Bishop Tikhon, who ascertained on what grounds the Annunciation Cathedral in Kolomyia had been occupied by the Uniates.
Ivano-Frankovsk Regional State Administration sent a letter, which said that the Annunciation temple in Kolomyia belongs to the state. In justification, officials referred to the article of the Administrative Code of the Ukrainian SSR of 1927. The fact that such a country – the Ukrainian SSR – does not exist, apparently does not bother the regional state administration. "This legislation has not been declared invalid from the day it was adopted," the RSA said in its answer.
When asked why the Greek Catholics are now serving in the Annunciation temple, the regional administration replied: "The Regional State Administration made no decisions about the transfer of the worship property to Kolomiya. We believe that the actual use of the worship structure is stipulated by the agreement between the faithful of religious communities, as some of the faithful have transferred to the UGCC community, while the others – to the community of the UOC-KP."
The document was signed by the deputy head of the State Administration Igor Pasechnik.
On October 18, 2017, a group of chaplains of the UGCC, with the support of right-wing radical forces, seized the temple in Kolomyia. To stop the skirmishes of believers, the police sealed the temple.
In May, representatives of the UGCC announced that the conflict around the Annunciation temple in Kolomyia had been exhausted, the church being from now on their property, to be transformed into a “spiritual painted Easter egg” with their help.
