For the first time, the Supreme Court passed a decision recognizing the legal transition of a religious community from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC MP) to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).
This was reported by the press service of the Supreme Court.
Some residents of the village of Kalynivka (Zhytomyr region) decided to voluntarily change their canonical affiliation, switching to the OCU. However, this step was challenged in court. Since the courts of the first and appellate instances refused to grant the claim, the case went to the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court of Ukraine.
"Deciding on the limits of the stateʼs interference with the right to freedom of religion, the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court was guided as a fundamental provision by the fact that the task of the court is to determine whether the measures taken at the national level are justified and proportionate, as well as to what extent the courtʼs intervention in internal affairs of the religious community," the court said.
Among other things, in this case, conclusions were formulated regarding the concept of a religious community, criteria for membership in it, a way to exercise the right of a religious community to change its affiliation in canonical and organizational matters.