Greek Catholic bishop in Ukraine: Only 37 parishes remain active

ACI Prensa Staff, Aug 14, 2025 / 15:57 pm

Maksym Ryabukha, the Greek Catholic bishop of the Exarchate of Donetsk in Ukraine, describes himself as a “bishop on wheels” because he frequently travels to visit parishes and accompany his faithful in the midst of war. “This allows me to see the depths of human life,” he said.

One of the youngest bishops in the world, the 45-year-old prelate explained in an interview with the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) that, before the Russian invasion, there were “more than 80 parishes” in the exarchate in east-Central Ukraine, “but more than half have been closed, occupied, or destroyed. Now we have only 37 active parishes.”

In the occupied zone, he lamented, “the laws of the occupation force forbid any affiliation with the Catho