The Russian Orthodox Church actively supports Russia's policy, justifies the war against Ukraine and acts as a tool for legitimizing the criminal actions of the occupiers. Statements by church leaders, in particular, comparing the war to “treatment” or “the work of a surgeon”, whitewash aggression and violence. This is what experts from the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council write.

By comparing war to a healing process, the Russian Orthodox Church seeks to shape the public opinion that war is a “necessary” and “good” act. Patriarch Kirill’s statements that death in war washes away sins, mobilizes society and demoralizes opponents of war, using religious motives. The Russian Orthodox Church’s cooperation with the Russian government provides propaganda cover for war crimes and promotes a narrative about the correctness of the “chosen path”.

Russian propagandists claim that Kyiv is allegedly going to demolish dozens of churches belonging to the UOC MP. Citing an investigation by Ukrainian journalists, the Russian propaganda writes that “journalists are inspecting the capital's UOC churches and pressuring the Kyiv City State Administration to demolish those they consider illegally built”.

However, propagandists manipulate information, StopFake reports. Journalists from Sledstvie.Info investigated the situation with illegally built UOC-MP churches in Kyiv. Thus, back in May 2023, they drew attention to the fact that the city authorities were not reacting in any way to three illegal buildings used by the UOC-MP. All the buildings listed in the investigation were built in circumvention of the law, and they also do not represent any historical value.

In response to a request from journalists, the Kyiv City State Administration noted that employees of the Department of Land Resources of the administration surveyed the indicated areas, drew up survey reports, and sent them to local prosecutor's offices and to the relevant executive body of the Kyiv City State Administration so that they could respond within the limits of their authority.

In fact, it is Russia that is massively destroying UOC MP churches in Ukraine. According to data for 2023, during the full-scale war, Russia completely destroyed about 80 UOC MP churches and damaged about 200 more.

Previously, we wrote about the messages that Russia is promoting in response to the ban on the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

Russian propagandists are spreading information that the SBU found several ruble bills during a search of the Sviato-Vvedenskyi Monastery in Kyiv and on this basis reported suspicion to Archimandrite Volodymyr (UOC MP). Therefore, he allegedly faces five years in prison with confiscation of property.

However, this information is not true, writes StopFake. The official statement from the SBU states that it did indeed notify one of the clerics of the UOC MP of the suspicion. At the same time, the reason for this was not ‘a few ruble bills’, but the cleric's justification of Russia's war against Ukraine and his dissemination of fakes about the socio-political situation in Ukraine.

The cleric is accused under Part 2 of Article 436-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. It defines punishment for acquittal, recognition as lawful, denial of armed aggression of Russia against Ukraine due to the distribution of relevant materials. Any punishment for possession of Russian rubles under this article is not provided, as it is not provided for by any other articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Russians continue to create fakes on religious topics in response to the law adopted in Ukraine banning religious organizations with a governing center in Russia. We previously wrote about the messages promoted by Russia, reacting to the ban on the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

Russian sources are spreading information that in the city of Chernivtsi there was a quarrel between an OCU clergyman and a husband in a camouflage T-shirt. This allegedly happened due to the fault of the priest, who refused to perform the funeral service for two dead Ukrainian soldiers because they were baptized in the UOC (MP). As “proof”, Russian propagandists add a corresponding video in which the quarrel takes place, and people around shout “Shame! Disgrace!”

In fact, this information is not true. As Ukrinform journalists report, everything happened exactly the opposite. This quarrel occurred because of a priest of the UOC (MP), who refused to perform the funeral service for two Ukrainian soldiers because he did not want to conduct the service together with the chaplain of the OCU. The video was filmed on August 10, 2023 in the village of Irkliiv, Zolotoniskyi district, Cherkasy region. That is, Russian propaganda presented the inhumane actions of a priest of the Moscow Patriarchate Church, which led to a scandal in the community of the Cherkasy region, as the actions of a clergyman of the OCU.

Moreover, an identical situation occurred in the village of Vyzhenka in Bukovyna in March 2024. Then, a priest of the UOC-Moscow Patriarchate did not allow the coffin with the body of the deceased defender to be brought into the church. This was reported by MP Iryna Nykorak.

In this way, propagandists are reacting to the recently adopted bill #8371 on the ban in Ukraine of the activities of religious organizations with their headquarters in Russia. The Russians want to artificially split Ukrainian society on religious grounds.

Read on Censor.NET: How conspiracy theorists explain events in Ukraine and the world: the theory of ‘church persecution in Ukraine’

Russian Telegram channels have spread the news that a Ukrainian refugee shot at a church icon in Zurich. The publications are accompanied by a screenshot from the woman's Instagram profile, where she shared a photo in yellow and blue colors with the hashtag #standwithukraine.

But the person pictured is Sania Ameti, a Swiss politician of Bosnian origin with no ties to Ukraine. She is a member of parliament for the Green Liberals and heads the political movement Operation Libero.

Amethi shared a photo on her Instagram in which she was shooting at an image with Christian iconographic motifs online. Following a flurry of outrage, Sania Amethi deleted the post and apologized.

As a result, the Green Liberals leadership determined that the politician's actions did not cause a reputational blow to the entire organization, and will continue to ask Ameta to leave the party.

Following the recently adopted bill No. 8371 on the ban on the activities of religious organizations with a governing center in Russia, propagandists have spread information that a church in Lutsk was seized from the UOC and has already been turned into a laundry. As evidence, the authors of the fake add a corresponding photograph.

In fact, this information is not true. Using Google's reverse image search function, it was possible to find out that the photo of the church distributed by propagandists appeared online back in November 2023. And it was taken not in Lutsk, but in the Ternopil region. At that time, the first social laundry was opened in Terebovlia with the support of the Caritas-Ternopil charity foundation. The local city council reported that they opened it in the premises of the parish, which became the winner of a mini-grant within the framework of the project “Development of social service to unite communities to support IDPs and vulnerable groups at the parish level”, operating with the support of CNEWA Canada and Renovabis.

“Today, social laundry is a very relevant service. Because people from dangerous regions of the country come to our community with almost nothing, only some personal belongings. And often such people do not have the opportunity to buy a washing machine for themselves”, said Oleh Prodan, the mayor of Terebovlia.

With this fake, propagandists are trying to discredit the law banning the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine and show that Ukrainians are sinners and atheists. Russians call their church “true” and threaten that “sinners” will be held accountable for their actions in another world.

Read on Censor.NET: How conspiracy theorists explain events in Ukraine and the world: The theory of “church persecution in Ukraine”

After the adoption of bill No. 8371 in August 2024 on the ban on the activities of religious organizations whose leadership center is located in the aggressor country, Russian propagandists began to spread more disinformation about the religious situation in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian Crisis Media Center has highlighted recent key messages on this topic.

“Data on Ukrainians’ support for the ban on the UOC (MP) is fake”

In fact, according to a poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in April 2024, 83% of Ukrainians believed that the state should interfere in the activities of the UOC to some extent. In particular, according to 63% of respondents, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church should be completely banned in Ukraine. That is, Ukrainians, on the contrary, express significant support for the relevant measures.

“Pope Francis has sharply condemned the Church's law”

The Pope did comment on the new Ukrainian law on the activities of religious organizations linked to Russia. However, his words were different from those cited by propagandists. Pope Francis stated that “not a single Christian church should be abolished in Ukraine”. He expressed concern about religious freedom, but did not “harshly condemn” the law, as Russian sources claim.

It should be noted that the Vatican seeks to maintain dialogue with all parties, including Moscow. This often leads to cautious formulations that are distorted by propagandists.

“There is a persecution of religion in Ukraine”

In reality, Ukraine is taking action against religious organizations associated with the aggressor country, not against religion in general. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is historically linked to the Russian Orthodox Church and has proven ties to Russia. A study by the State Service for Ethnopolicy and Freedom of Conscience found that the UOC remains an organization centered in Russia. Therefore, the ban on religious organizations with a leadership center in the aggressor country is aimed at preventing foreign interference through these institutions, not at “persecuting believers”.

“All who are for are enemies, all who are against are friends”

Boxer Oleksandr Usyk, once “praised” by Russian propagandists as a “bearer of the Orthodox faith”, has supported Ukraine's policy of countering Russian influence. The propagandists' messages are now aimed at discrediting Usyk as a person who allegedly changes his beliefs and actions depending on circumstances and influence, thereby undermining his authority among the audience.

Read also: After nine months, the parties will only take up positions for battle. How the law banning religious organizations linked to Russia will work – MediaSapiens – Detector Media.

Propagandists are actively spreading manipulative statements about the activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) and bill No. 8371, which aims to ban it. They once again claim that the Verkhovna Rada is trying to completely limit the religious freedom of Ukrainians in this way. They say that foreign human rights activists and politicians, in particular the team of US presidential candidate Donald Trump, are paying attention to this. And the politicians defending the bill don’t know what they’re talking about. In this case, propagandists refer to the situation when People's Deputy and ex-President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko called Speaker of the US House of Representatives Mike Johnson Michael Jackson.

Propagandists also appeal to the fact that the UOC-MP was forced to hire the law firm Amsterdam & Partners LLP and lobbyist William Bjork-White to protect its interests in Washington, but they are silent about the ideological nuances of this decision, which Ukrainian investigators have revealed. Amsterdam & Partners is actively involved in political lobbying and often takes on controversial cases. In addition to the UOC-MP, the company officially represents the interests of sanctioned businessman Vadym Novynskyi. The company says Ukraine illegally confiscated Novynskyi's assets and is groundlessly persecuting him for his religious beliefs. It was the actions of this company that could contribute to further rhetoric from conservative circles in the United States regarding the application of the “Mahnitskyi’s Law” against the initiators of the ban on the UOC-MP. This law provides for personal sanctions against individuals who violate human rights, but its application is possible only by decision of the US administration.

In fact, the above-mentioned bill is aimed at preventing the use of religious organizations in the interests of the aggressor country and protecting national security, and not at restricting religious freedom. The purpose of spreading such messages is to destabilize the internal situation in Ukraine, split society along religious lines and undermine trust in the government. Propagandists seek to discredit the Ukrainian authorities, present it as undemocratic and repressive, and also create a negative image of Ukraine in the international arena, weakening support from Western countries. This is all aimed at undermining the sovereignty of Ukraine.

Pro-Russian telegram channels publish information that Metropolitan Ionafan of Tulchyn and Bratslav (UOC-MP) became a victim of repression from Kyiv because of his loyalty and unwillingness to make compromises bordering on treason. In spreading this message, propagandists refer to the statement of the head of the Russian Orthodox Church Kyryl (Volodymyr Hundiaiev).

In fact, this information is fake, according to the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security at the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine. There is no religious persecution or harassment based on religion in Ukraine.

Metropolitan Ionafan (Anatolii Yeletskykh) was sentenced to 5 years in prison for specific crimes not related to matters of faith. In October 2022, the SBU, during searches of the Tulchin diocese of the UOC-MP, discovered a number of propaganda postcards:

- with the image of the flag of the Russian Federation;

- with Putin’s decree on the annexation of Crimea to the Russian Federation;

- with images of a map of Ukraine, where Crimea is designated as the territory of the Russian Federation;

- letters (photocopies) of the Moscow Patriarch dated October 6, 2022 with a demand to pray for the President of the Russian Federation.

By spreading this fake news, Russian propaganda seeks to whitewash the agents of the Russian special services, who cynically conduct anti-state activities in Ukraine under the guise of church status. Previously, we analyzed the message of Russian propaganda that the arrest of the rector of the Sviatohirsk Lavra is supposedly “religious persecution”.

Russian resources are disseminating information that the rector of the Sviatohirska Lavra of the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate, Arsenii, was arrested due to his religious beliefs.

In fact, this information is fake, as reported by the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security at the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine. The church rector Arsenii (Ihor Yakovenko) was taken into custody after he was accused of disclosing information about the deployment and movement of Ukrainian military personnel: “In September 2023, the rector of the Sviatohirska Holy Dormition Lavra of the UOC-MP disseminated information of a military nature. In particular, during his sermon, he told the believers about the location of checkpoints, as well as units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine, the National Police of Ukraine and the Defense Forces of Ukraine on the territory of the Sviatohirsk community”, wrote the Donetsk regional prosecutor’s office.

The suspicion raised does not concern his “religious beliefs”. It is about his possible commission of specific actions, for which criminal liability in the form of eight years of imprisonment is provided, the Center adds.

At the beginning of a full-scale invasion, Patriarch Kyryl of the Russian Orthodox Church blessed Russian troops for a bloody war in Ukraine. The UOC-MP often carries out not only spiritual and cultural activities inherent in religious communities, but also carries out political actions that harm the interests and national security of Ukraine. How Russia blurs reality by resorting to rhetoric about “sinners” can be read here.

Propagandists are distributing on social networks a screenshot of a supposedly real vacancy from the Free Charitable Organization, where they are looking for a choir artist or vocalist who preaches the importance and tolerance of LGBT ideology to parishioners. However, this is a fake photo.

Specialists from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. They found out that, judging by the design of the vacancy, the advertisement was posted on the job search site Work.ua. However, they could not find this vacancy on this site. Moreover, the address indicated on the official website of the fund differs from the address in the screenshot. Additionally, the photo was checked using the FotoForensics tool, which showed signs of editing.

Also on the official Facebook page of the Svoboda Charitable Organization it is noted that this screenshot is fake, and the organization is not looking for vocalists. This is another attempt to discredit the organization’s activities by unscrupulous users, as well as to cause skepticism towards the LGBT movement in Ukraine.

In such messages, the authors, on behalf of the “prayer department”, offer to pray for the Ukrainian military who find themselves surrounded. For example, one of the messages talked about two Ukrainian brigades that were allegedly surrounded by 40 thousand Russian soldiers near Avdiivka.

The Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security reports that the vast majority of such messages are the work of Russian intelligence services.

This is evidenced by the following:

- sometimes messages are written in Russian, which may already be the first sign of it;

- in the structure of the Armed Forces of Ukraine there is no “prayer department” responsible for prayers;

- lack of specifics about the brigades and the time of the location of hostilities;

- the desire to evoke an emotional reaction in the reader in order to obtain maximum coverage;

- in the comments there may be calls for Ukrainians to give up.

Russians can manipulate even such intimate areas as religion, so you should not trust overly emotional messages and calls on this topic.

Users of social networks are disseminating information that allegedly Greek Catholics of Ukraine were exempted from mobilization. They say that proof of this is that the Kyiv Three Hierarchs Theological Seminary received a license from the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine to conduct higher education in the Theology specialty. However, this is fake.

Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that indeed, by order of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine dated January 15, 2024, the Kyiv Three Hierarchs Theological Seminary of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) received a state license and was registered in the Unified State Electronic Database of Education. However, this does not mean that members of the Greek Catholic Church are exempt from the obligation to serve in the army according to constitutional requirements.

Lawyer of the Miller law firm Andrii Novak notes in a commentary to Ukrainska Pravda that, according to the legislation of Ukraine, religious beliefs do not exempt an individual from the obligation to defend the state. The country's constitution guarantees the equality of all citizens before the law and prohibits discrimination on religious grounds. The current version of the laws on mobilization preparation and mobilization does not provide for any exceptions for believers. The obligation to serve in the army is the same for both believers and non-believers.

At the same time, Article 35 of the Constitution of Ukraine provides for the possibility of replacing military service with alternative (non-military) service if the performance of military duty contradicts the religious beliefs of a citizen. There is a list of religious organizations whose supporters are prohibited not only from using, but even picking up weapons. The Greek Catholic Church is not included in this list. However, this rule applies only to conscript service in peacetime.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists want to arouse public distrust in government decisions and discredit the mobilization process in the country. Detector Media has already refuted other Russian fakes on mobilization.

Pro-Kremlin resources are disseminating information that the Kyiv City Council is allegedly considering the issue of demolishing churches of the canonical UOC - on the list, according to propagandists, there are more than 70 objects. And in the Vinnytsia region, bulldozers are allegedly working now.

Specialists from the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security drew attention to this news and denied it. They found that the website of the capital city council does not contain any news, statements or petitions on the destruction of religious buildings. A search at the request of the UOC reveals news there dated April 20, 2023 with a request from the Kyiv City Council to the Cabinet of Ministers and the National Security and Defense Council to take urgent measures to terminate lease agreements or use agreements with the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate for state-owned religious buildings. And there is not a word here about the destruction of temples.

Nothing like this can be found on the official website of the Vinnytsia City Council. The newest news marked “UOC” dates back to April 28, 2023, which refers to an appeal to people’s deputies with a request to speed up the consideration of bills banning the activities of the Moscow Church in Ukraine.

The purpose of this disinformation is to once again try to quarrel Ukrainians on religious grounds. On the other hand, the Russians want to demonize the Ukrainian authorities, who allegedly “wanted to sneeze” at Ukrainian believers of the UOC. Learn more about how Russia blurs reality with a newspeak: sinners.

Between January 20-22, 2024, social media users spreading pro-Russian rhetoric circulated the video along with the claim that it was filmed in a church of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The authors of messages with it indicate that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which, according to them, was liberated from “pro-Russian exarchs”, has now been captured by the “Zelenskyi regime”, which holds musical performances instead of church services. However, this is manipulation.

Specialists from the MythDetector project drew attention to it. They found out that Information about the Orthodox Church of Ukraine is regularly disseminated with fabrications and manipulative descriptions and is directed against the autocephaly of the Ukrainian Church. In fact, this video was not filmed in the church of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), but in the Cathedral of the Resurrection in Ivano-Frankivsk, which belongs to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. It clearly reflects the arrangement of religious symbols, chandeliers and ceramic glass windows, thanks to which it was possible to determine the denomination of the temple.

The video was filmed on January 14 and depicts a performance by the orchestra of the Lviv Theological Seminary. According to information published on the official website of the Cathedral, members of the seminary orchestra came to it after the service and played various musical instruments for the clergy and guests of the church.

Propagandists spread such manipulations to reinforce their narrative that the autocephalous Ukrainian Orthodox Church is “blasphemous” and “unreal”. They say that the Zelenskyi regime infringes on the rights of real believers, which means it is not a full-fledged European state.

Anonymous telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric spread information that Ukrainian priests bless water with a “trident” - as a canonized church element with which such rituals can be performed. In support of such theses, a video was attached to the messages, which showed the process of blessing the water. The authors of the fake add: “Ukrainian priests are engaged in blasphemy, schismatics are performing an incomprehensible ritual, plunging a devilish trident into water”. It's a lie.

The StopFake analysts took up this case and found that the video depicts a three-candlestick symbolizing the Holy Trinity. The fact-checkers also first approached the clergy for comment and explained that such a ritual mainly refers to the Western Galician tradition in Ukraine. That is, the video does not depict a Ukrainian trident. Actually, Russian propagandists hinted that Ukrainian churches were allegedly engaged in profanation and blasphemy, equating state symbols with “sacred”. They say, thus, the Ukrainian church is moving away from the canons, turning into a “pagan” one, when they worship various objects, natural phenomena, and the like.

However, this does not negate the importance of Ukrainian state symbols in people’s lives - for example, if water was blessed with the accompaniment (not direct use) of state elements, there is nothing wrong with that. People only express their patriotism and love for the Ukrainian state.

Read on Censor.NET: The Church of the “Holy Dog Patron” was allegedly created in Ukraine.

Information about an allegedly new tattoo on the hand of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi with the inscription “There is no God” was distributed by the Russian Foreign Ministry on the social network X (formerly Twitter). However, this is an absurd fake.

In the general photographs of Rishi Sunak with Volodymyr Zelenskyi and the military Armed Forces of Ukraine, which were published by the Russian Foreign Ministry, it is clear that in fact the tattoo belongs to the Ukrainian serviceman standing next to Zelenskyi. This is especially noticeable in the frame where the President of Ukraine stands opposite the military man and photographs him together with the Prime Minister of Great Britain, writes the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. In addition, one can make sure that Zelenskyi has no tattoos on his hands by watching any of his latest videos.

Russian propaganda continues to systematically discredit Zelenskyi in the hope that the Ukrainian people will rise up against the President of Ukraine. Moreover, these photos were tied to the fact that, supposedly, “hence the persecution of Orthodox Christians”  (obviously, believers of the UOC-MP) in Ukraine. However, let us recall that at the beginning of a full-scale invasion, Patriarch Kyryl of the Russian Orthodox Church blessed Russian troops for a bloody war in Ukraine. Subsequently, the SBU began to conduct searches at the facilities of the UOC-MP throughout Ukraine and identify there Russian passports, St. George ribbons, anti-Ukrainian materials, party cards of the Communist Party of the USSR, etc. And all these things are evidence of a threat to the national security of Ukraine.

On anonymous telegram channels they are distributing a photo of the church calendar of the OCU, which supposedly states: January 7, they say, one cannot celebrate Christmas, since then only “Russians and their accomplices” celebrate. And on January 25, the calendar allegedly (at the state level) marks the birthday of Volodymyr Zelenskyi. At the same time, May 25 is the “day of Saint Javelin”. It's fake.

Analysts from the StopFake project investigated the case and found out that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine did not publish such a calendar; it was created by Kremlin minions and then presented as the work of the Ukrainian church. The real church calendar was published on the official website of the OCU - and there is no mention in it of the Ukrainian president or the so-called Saint Javelin. The calendar indicates that on January 25, Orthodox Christians commemorate St. Gregory the Theologian, and on May 25, the Third Finding of the Head of John the Baptist.

Moreover, the false calendar contains numerous errors: the author of “Saint Javelin” is considered to be Christian Borys, and not Chris Shaw, as the fakes wrote; There was also a mistake in writing the surname of the head of Ukraine - they wrote “Zelinsky” instead of “Zelenskyi”. And the word “accomplice” is in most cases used in criminal or judicial contexts. The literary version is “supporter”.

And “Saint Javelin” was never canonized to mark the day in church life. Even during the creation of a mural in Kyiv dedicated to the concept of Our Lady holding a Javelin in her hands, the Ukrainian Council of Churches - an association of Ukrainian religious leaders - opposed its creation. Subsequently, they had to sketch the halo at the request of the local administration.

Telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric spread information that the Church of the Dog Patron was founded in Ukraine. As proof, the authors add a video in which a man allegedly wearing a priest’s robe and with a headdress in the form of a dog’s head invites parishioners to the Church of the Holy Dog Patron. It's a lie.

Analysts from the VoxCheck project investigated this case and explained that the news about the founding of the church was made up. At the same time, the primary source of the video is the humorous channel in the text. That is, propagandists replicated the satirical video and presented it as a true fact. Moreover, the Ukrainian media did not publish such news. Neither such information was published on social networks or on the website of the dog Patron itself.

Let us remind you that we previously documented a fake that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine canonized the dog Patron.

Read on Censor.NET: The OCU is allegedly praying for Ukraine to join NATO and the EU.

On social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric, information is being spread that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine has canonized the dog Patron. As evidence, the authors cite a “photo” of the iconostasis in one of the churches, which, according to propagandists, belongs to the OCU - and instead of the royal gate, an icon with the dog Patron was installed. At the same time, the publications add an alleged comment by the primate of the OCU, Epiphanius, who “stated” that such canonization would help attract more believers to the church, including children. However, this is not true.

Analysts of the VoxCheck project analyzed the case and came to the conclusion that there is no information about the creation and placement of the icon with the dog Patron in the church on the official pages of the OCU on the Internet. At the same time, Epiphany did not give any comments about the icon, which is probably just a fiction of Russian propaganda. Experts also checked the photographs using special tools and found that the images were created by artificial intelligence with a 99.9% probability.

The analysts further explained that propaganda publications do not indicate in which church such an icon was supposedly installed. But a reverse search on Google did not produce any results. It is most likely that these photographs were created using AI technology and passed off as photos of the OCU.

Read on Censor.NET: The OCU is praying for Ukraine to join NATO and the EU.

An eight-second video is being circulated on social networks in the Russian segment, allegedly showing a prayer for Ukraine’s accession to NATO and the EU being read in a Ukrainian church. “God, don’t send us to Heaven, but send us to NATO and the EU”, is allegedly written in the text of such a “prayer”. Anonymous telegram channels began to claim that the OCU was engaged in blasphemy and discrediting Orthodox believers. It is not true.

The StopFake analysts studied the case and found out that the video is not real, because there is no information that is located in Ukrainian churches about reading such a “prayer”. Moreover, information is disseminated only in pro-Kremlin media or anonymous telegram channels.

As experts explained, according to church rules, the texts of new prayers are approved by the Holy Synod of the OCU - this is the governing body of the OCU. All their decisions, including the texts of newly approved prayers, are published on the official website of the OCU. However, StopFake analysts did not find among the decisions of the Synod the statement of “prayer for Ukraine’s accession to NATO and the EU”.

They also contacted the press service of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The department told them that this was an obvious fake, and they did not approve such a prayer.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric in the media and social networks claim that Halloween was celebrated in the churches of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which the authors of such posts call “the holiday of evil spirits”. Like, proof of this is a video where one can see a church choir performing a song dedicated to this holiday. It was allegedly filmed in the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Lutsk. However, this is a fake.

Analysts of the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that the video was not actually shot in Lutsk, but in the Church of the Holy Mother of God in Lviv on October 8, that is, before Halloween. Moreover, it is a temple of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, not the OCU. In addition, in the original video, the choir does not perform a song about the holiday, but the church song “How Beautiful is in Your Temple, Mother of God”, which has nothing to do with Halloween. The “celebration” of Halloween in Ukrainian churches is impossible, as the Orthodox Church of Ukraine publicly opposes this holiday, as explained on its official Facebook page.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists want to portray Ukrainians as schisms who destroy their faith for the sake of ideology. He said that even the churches in Ukraine were invaded by Western influences, which is why Russia introduced troops to protect “true values”.  Detector Media has repeatedly refuted messages and fakes related to the OCU.

Pro-Russian resources claim that a prayer book for children has appeared in Ukraine, in which they are invited to pray to God, saying the following words: “Protect my father near Donetsk, as you protected my great-grandfather in Galicia”. This is manipulation.

The case was investigated by the fact-checkers of Gvara Media. They contacted one of the places where this prayer book was sold, the Church Store of the Lviv Archdiocese of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, with a question whether such a text existed in the book. In response to a request from the fact-checkers, store employees responded that there was no such text in the prayer book and added that it was published back in 2011, that is, long before the start of Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine.

Propagandists are trying to demonize Ukrainians in the eyes of ordinary Russian citizens in order to justify Russia's war crimes in Ukraine. We recently published an extensive article about Ukrainian children suffering as a result of Russian aggression.

On October 19, 2023, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine approved in the first reading the “Bill on Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on the Activities of Religious Organizations in Ukraine”. This happened after six months of disputes between state deputies and “curses” of supporters of the UOC-MP in Ukraine. The adopted law may force the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to be more willing to compromise with the authorities on a number of issues - from leaving the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra to more constructive cooperation of the church leadership.

The Moscow Patriarchate is one of the largest centers of Russian influence on the territory of Ukraine. The Center for Countering Disinformation reported that Russian propaganda negatively perceived the bill banning religious organizations associated with Russia, and Russian ex-President Dmytro Medvediev described such a policy of the Ukrainian government as “heavily involved in cocaine and Satanism”.

Ukraine, having adopted the corresponding bill in the first reading, neutralizes another level of influence on the Ukrainian population through religion. Previously, we wrote about whom adherents of the Moscow Patriarchate call “sinners”.

Pro-Kremlin telegram channels are distributing a screenshot of an alleged petition from the website of the official Internet representation of the President of Ukraine calling for “recognition of Israel’s war crimes against the people of Palestine”. The author of the petition is Ahmed Tamim, Chairman of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Ukraine, Supreme Mufti of Ukraine. It is not true.

As the fact-checkers of the Center for Countering Disinformation note, in fact, there is no such petition either on the website of the President of Ukraine or on the official pages of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Ukraine.

Thus, Russian propagandists are trying to discredit Ukraine, create a religious conflict on the territory of our state and worsen relations with Israel. Previously, we refuted the fake news that a Temple bar was opened for Satanists in Kyiv.