On May 30, the Lavra monastery in Donetsk was destroyed in a Russian attack on the city of Svatogorsk. The number of people killed and injured in the attack is not yet known.
C. Rubini CTC, Vatican News
The Russian Orchestra destroyed the historic Orthodox monastery “Holy Dormition” in the city of Svatogorsk in Donetsk Oblast on May 30.
The news was released by a site providing information on the Moscow Patriarchate. “I am deeply saddened to announce that the third and fourth monasteries in Lavra were damaged in the clashes on May 30,” said a statement from Mariupol, the Metropolitan of Donetsk.
Four were executed
In the attack, the Archbishop of Lavra, Archimandrite Galaxy Yon, the monk Aristocle, and the nun Warvara were killed, and other monks, Joseph Amphilocius and Alipi, were wounded.
Origin of the thirteenth century
Svyatohirsk “Lavra of the Holy Dormition of the Mother of God” (literally “Holy Mountain”) is an important and historical monastery, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarchate. There are various opinions in historical sources about the founding dates of the monastery. According to some, the monastery originated in the 13th century, when the monks of the Lavra Caves in Kiev, who had fled after the Mongol occupation, took refuge in the area.
Shelter
During the 100-day war, the complex was attacked several times, but the displaced civilians sought refuge in the ashram, the SIR news agency said. On March 12, 2022, Russia’s airstrikes on the Donnet Bridge near the monastery caused damage. There were about 520 refugees there at the time. The blast shattered windows and doors of monastery buildings, shattering windows and injuring several people. Seven others were injured in the May 4 bombing.
