On August 15, on the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a solemn state-church ceremony was held at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve to mark the 975th anniversary of the shrine.
The event was attended by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk, Prime Minister of Ukraine Serhiy Koretsky, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov, Director-General of UNESCO Khaled El-Enani, Secretary-General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Sheikha Al Nuwais, Commissioner for Ukraine of the Swiss Federal Council Jacques Gerber, Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine His Beatitude Metropolitan Epiphany, and Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy – Minister of Culture of Ukraine Tetyana Berezhna. In total, more than 60 representatives of foreign states, clergy, cultural figures, scientists, restorers and philanthropists joined the celebrations.
On the holiday, the head of state signed Decree No. 726/2026 “On National Shrines of the Ukrainian People.” By August 24, the Cabinet of Ministers must prepare a draft law that will determine the criteria for granting the status of a national shrine, the procedure for forming a list of such objects, additional measures for their protection, and responsibility for destruction and demolition.
“So that this status of national shrines of Ukraine, which will be enshrined in law, will give more opportunities to the teams of our shrines, to all those who work to protect the Ukrainian heritage, so that it will be a strengthening for them in working conditions, in financial opportunities, and in political and legal opportunities to protect our Ukrainian shrines,” said President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The decree also provides for the preparation of new Ukrainian nominations for the UNESCO World Heritage List, increased international awareness of Russia’s crimes against cultural heritage, and raising funds for the protection, preservation, and restoration of Ukrainian monuments.
“The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List at the end of the 20th century. As an integral part of Ukraine’s heritage, it is also a heritage of the whole world, and its protection is our shared responsibility. Since September 2023, the Lavra has also been on the World Heritage List in Danger and requires enhanced protection. For 975 years, it has stood here and witnessed the most significant events in Ukrainian history. Today, the Lavra remains a symbol of resilience, pride and hope. On the way to its millennium, UNESCO will continue to support the preservation of this heritage and stand by the people of Ukraine,” emphasized UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enani.
The Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, His Beatitude Metropolitan Epiphanius of Kyiv and All Ukraine, blessed those present and congratulated them on the feast of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos and the 975th anniversary of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.
During the celebrations, the President of Ukraine presented state awards to employees of the National Reserve, researchers, artists, and philanthropists involved in the study, preservation, and restoration of the Lavra and Ukrainian cultural heritage.
The Director General of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra National Reserve, Maksym Ostapenko, emphasized the symbolism of the fact that the anniversary united representatives of the clergy, the state leadership, and the international community.
“It is a great honor and a great responsibility for our team and for the entire Ukrainian society that the Lavra should walk this path with dignity for the next 25 years until its millennium, that we restore, restore what needs to be restored, that we return to it the significance of a Ukrainian national shrine, and that in 25 years the whole world will know about this shrine,” noted Maksym Ostapenko.
The musical program of the ceremony was dedicated to the Ukrainian spiritual tradition, inseparable from the history of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. The Borys Lyatoshynskyi Choir performed ancient Kyiv-Pechersk chants and works by Mykola Dyletskyi, Mykola Leontovych, and Oleksandr Koshyts. The ancient music ensemble “Khorea Kozatska” led by Taras Kompanichenko, representatives of the Kobzar Brotherhood, and the Chamber Girls’ Choir of the Kyiv State Music Lyceum named after Mykola Lysenko also performed.
At the end of the ceremony, the spiritual hymn “God is Great, One” and the bells of the Lavra were played. The honored guests rang the commemorative bells, symbolically joining the beginning of the Lavra’s preparations for its 1000th anniversary.
The history of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra dates back to 1051. For almost a millennium, it was one of the main centers of Ukrainian spiritual life, chronicle writing, education, book printing, architecture, and art. In 1990, the ensemble of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The celebration of the 975th anniversary begins a 25-year journey to the shrine’s millennium. It involves the preservation and restoration of monuments, research of museum collections, implementation of scientific, restoration and cultural projects, and a broader presentation of the Ukrainian Lavra in the world.
