On the night of May 9th, close to Sloviansk, Archpriest Pavel Zhuchenko of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) was shot and killed. He served at the St. Dmitry Donskoy church in the city of Druzhkovka (Donetsk region). The circumstances of the priest’s death are unknown.
Pravmir has been informed from the Horlivka and Sloviansk diocese that Father Pavel was not listed as staff of a particular parish, and there is no detailed information about the tragedy. It was also advised to be cautious of the on media’s attempt to connect Father Paul to one or another side of the region’s political conflict. In the diocese, it was also advised to refrain from untimely canonizing the murdered clergyman:
“The priest was dressed in civilian clothes. What exactly happened is currently being analyzed by the law enforcement authorities”
– explained press-secretary of the diocese Svetlana Ohrimenko. We ask for prayers for the repose of the murdered Archpriest Paul.
Source
