On October 13, 2025, the Ukrainian National News Agency Ukrinform hosted a briefing of the Military Chaplaincy Service of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (MCS AFU) titled “The Current State of Development of the Military Chaplaincy Service of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”

During the event, participants discussed the current state of military chaplaincy within the Armed Forces of Ukraine, summarized the Service’s performance under conditions of full-scale war, and outlined the strategic priorities for its further development.

The Military Chaplaincy Service of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which provides for the spiritual and religious needs of service members and their families in both peacetime and wartime, is currently staffed at 45%, Colonel Oleksandr Vovkotecha, Head of the MCS AFU, reported during the briefing at Ukrinform.

According to him, as of October 2025, the total authorized strength of the Service is about 1,700 personnel — including approximately 70 individuals in leadership positions and around 800 military chaplains and 800 chaplains’ assistants. At present, staffing levels in the Chaplaincy Service are approximately 45% filled: 43% for chaplains and 40% for chaplains’ assistants.

Colonel Vovkotecha emphasized that the core principles guiding the activities of the Military Chaplaincy Service include respect for the constitutional rights of service members, equality among all faith representatives, and equal treatment of military chaplains regardless of their religious affiliation. The organization and implementation of chaplaincy activities within the Armed Forces of Ukraine are carried out in four main areas: pastoral care, advising commanders on religious matters, social and charitable work, and religious and educational activities.

Colonel Vovkotecha noted that chaplains serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine today represent 13 religious organizations, including the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the Roman Catholic Church in Ukraine, the All-Ukrainian Union of Churches of Evangelical Christian Baptists, the Ukrainian Pentecostal Church, the Ukrainian Evangelical Church, the Center of Christian Evangelical Churches of Ukraine “Peremoha,” the Spiritual Administration of Evangelical Christians of the Ukrainian Christian Church “New Generation,” the Union of Jewish Communities of Messianic Judaism, the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Ukraine “UMMA,” the Mukachevo Greek Catholic Eparchy, and the Council of Christian Churches and Religious Organizations “Skyniya.”

Representatives of the Chaplaincy Service also reported that chaplains perform pastoral care wherever possible — using any shelters, dugouts, or trenches protected from enemy fire — to ensure timely spiritual support for service members. Under the conditions of Russia’s full-scale military aggression against Ukraine, the chaplaincy ministry plays a crucial role in strengthening the spiritual resilience of soldiers and fostering moral and spiritual unity within military units.

A video of the MCS AFU briefing is available at the following link:

As a reminder, the Law of Ukraine “On the Military Chaplaincy Service” was adopted in 2021.

Photo by Information Department of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church