On March 27–28, 2026, an international conference titled “The 1946 Pseudo-Sobor: Eighty Years Later – The Persecution Continues” took place in Washington, D.C. (USA). Following the conference, scholars and religious leaders signed a joint document titled “An Appeal to Stop Religious Persecution in Russian-Occupied Ukraine.”
This was reported by the UGCC Department for Information.
The conference was organized by the Center for Ukrainian Church Studies at The Catholic University of America, the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU), and the St. Gabriel Institute.
In the conference's final document, the participants — religious scholars and representatives of diverse faiths and confessions — appealed to American Catholics, Christians, and all people of good will this Holy Week to unite in prayer and solidarity with the Ukrainian people, their Churches and religious organizations, as they continue to walk the Way of the Cross at great cost, making the ultimate sacrifice, emulating Christ in His Passion on the way to the Resurrection.
Religious leaders and scholars have drawn direct parallels between Stalin's repressions in 1946—when the Soviet authorities tried to eliminate the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church—and the current crimes of the Russian army in the occupied territories.
"We examined the Soviet-orchestrated Pseudo Sobor of 1946 — a calculated act of state violence which outlawed the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church after arresting its bishops and terrorizing its clergy. This study of the past was combined with an eye to the present: the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine and its devastating effect on religious freedom," the document reads.
The authors of the appeal highlighted that Russia's ongoing aggression is once again resulting in systematic violations of religious freedom, the destruction of places of worship, and the persecution of clergy members.
Conference participants provided specific data on the extent of the destruction and losses suffered by Ukraine's religious and humanitarian infrastructure: 737 places of worship have been damaged or destroyed in Ukraine by Russian aggression. 67 clergy members across denominations have been killed. At least 2,881 attacks on healthcare have been documented, including strikes on hospitals, ambulances, and medical warehouses. 4,048 schools have been damaged and 408 destroyed.
"And it continues," the signatories emphasize, noting that as recently as March 24, a Russian drone attack struck five meters from a UNESCO-listed 17th-century church in Lviv.
Addressing Christians and all people of good will, the conference participants called for prayer and solidarity with the Ukrainian people. The document emphasizes: "The torment of Ukraine, the occupied territories, and Crimea cannot be remote for us. It should be our anguish, our concern, and an imperative for our action."
The authors urged the international community to speak out against war crimes and religious persecution: "This is a moment for Christians and people of good will to demonstrate what is in short supply: the courage to call evil evil and to refuse to evade the truth by hiding behind diplomatic silence."
Among the signatories of the Appeal to Stop Religious Persecution in Russian-Occupied Ukraine are Metropolitan Borys Gudziak, Ukrainian Archbishop of Philadelphia; Rev. Dr. Mark Morozowich (Catholic University of America); George Weigel (Ethics and Public Policy Center); Rev. Dr. Mykhailo Cherenkov (Tavriski Christian Institute); Sergei Chapnin (Orthodox Christian Studies Center, Fordham University); Rev. Mykhailo Brytsyn (Mission Eurasia); Oleh Turii, Rev. Dr. Fr. Yuriy Shchurko, Dr. Anatoliy Babynskyi (Ukrainian Catholic University); Dr. Maksym Vasin (Institute for Religious Freedom); Dr. Kateryna Budz (University of Edinburgh); Dr. Anastacia Wooden (University of America); Dmytro Vovk (Yaroslav the Wise National Law University).