War and martial law have been going on in Ukraine for almost two years now. The validity of the latter was recently once again extended by the Verkhovna Rada for another three months, until February 14, 2024. This means that men will continue to receive summonses from military registration and enlistment offices.
But does this apply to clergy and can they refuse to serve for religious reasons — Lawyer and attorney Rostislav Kravets told the facts to ICTV.
Can a priest be mobilized
At the end of October, it became known about the situation with the mobilization of a man who refused to join the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine because of his religious beliefs. He wrote a receipt at the military registration and enlistment office that “due to observance of the word of God and God's commandments” cannot serve.
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Then The Ivano-Frankivsk Court of Appeal commuted the man’s sentence and, instead of one year in prison, sentenced him to 365 days of probation. < /p>
What is the situation with priests now and can they avoid conscription — Let's figure it out further.
As our expert in the legal field notes, now in Ukraine the mobilization of people who, due to their religious beliefs, cannot take up arms, has not been resolved.
— Of course, there is a corresponding list of religions that prohibit this. In addition, there are even communities in which people position themselves such that they cannot use murder weapons. However, this does not prevent the TCC from mobilizing them, — explains Rostislav Kravets.
He notes that in our state only one issue related to the conscription of priests is regulated.
— This is the availability of an alternative service. What concerns the mobilization of priests during martial law has not been decided, — adds a lawyer and lawyer.
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In the event of mobilization, priests can write a corresponding application, according to which they will be appointed chaplains or assistant military chaplains.
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Help. Chaplain or military chaplain — in Christian churches and some other religious organizations in different countries of the world, this is a representative of the clergy, who is entrusted with pastoral care over a community or a special group of believers on a permanent basis.
In the context of the material, we are talking about a military chaplain in the army. This position is equivalent to the deputy commander of a regiment or battalion, who is provided with a personal armed adjutant. The chaplain is responsible for the education of soldiers, sailors, officers and their families. Its functions include worship among military personnel, monitoring their morale, funeral services for the dead (dead), and the like.
But here, too, there are some nuances and it all depends on the specific unit commander into whose ranks this priest will be mobilized.
— And, of course, a question for the TCC, which mobilizes the priest, because even during the mobilization they are informed about this, they are provided with relevant certificates and extracts from religious communities. However, they do not pay attention to this, since the law does not provide any exceptions for such persons regarding their mobilization during martial law, — says the expert.
What responsibility is provided for the evasion of a priest
In particular, in the Constitution of Ukraine in Art. 35 directly and clearly states that a person has the right to refuse service for religious reasons.
— If the performance of military duty contradicts the religious beliefs of a citizen, the implementation of this duty must be replaced by alternative (non-military) service, — states in the above-mentioned article. 35.
But there is no corresponding law, so if a priest does not want to join the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, then theoretically he could be prosecuted for evading mobilization. And this, according to Art. 336 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, punishable by imprisonment for a term of three to five years.
Thus, in the law on mobilization there are no exceptions in relation to believers, which means that the priesthood is not a basis for avoiding military service. Moreover, religious leaders can sign a contract with the Ukrainian Armed Forces and become chaplains.
By the way, earlier Facts ICTV wrote, who has the right to check documents during the war in Ukraine.
