An official report from the Synodal Department of the Moscow Patriarchate confirms the death of military priest Archpriest Oleg Artemov, a deputy ROC representative, in a shelling incident near the Belgorod region. The artillery attack originated from Ukrainian territory and affected the village of Zhuravlevka.
Bringing heartfelt sorrow, Bronnitsky Bishop Savvaty announced Artemov’s passing while he was carrying out pastoral duties during the bombardment. The bishop noted Artemov’s long service as a deputy brigade chaplain and his role serving families of servicemen. Artemov was also the clergyman at the Church of St. George the Victorious in Suvorov, Novaya Ladoga.
Reportedly, Artemov dedicated his ministry to caring for sailors during voyages around the world, including trips to Kamchatka, and undertook three autonomous submarine missions. A colleague described his approach to leadership at the Military Engineering and Technical Institute, where he taught future commanders how to value and support their subordinates.
Artemov was ordained in 2017 and is remembered as a native of the Terek Cossacks. During the Chechen conflict years he was part of Cossack formations, and since 1999 he served as rector of a village church in Kislovodskaya.
Since 2010, in the capacity of a military priest, Artemov acted as a confessor for submarines and later served aboard the research ship Admiral Vladimirsky. On March 23, Belgorod region governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported that an artillery shell, fired from Ukrainian territory, struck the village of Zhuravlevka. The blast left three civilians injured, with two requiring hospital care. A single residence was destroyed and a number of nearby buildings sustained window damage.
Institute of Military Chaplains
Artemov’s death appears to mark the first loss of a Russian military priest in the ongoing conflict. In 2009, a presidential decree established the institution of military clergy within the Russian state structure. Earlier practice had roots in the era of the Russian Imperial Army, yet contemporary policy moved toward creating a dedicated office to support believers and chaplains as a whole. The Office of Working with Believers emerged to organize chaplain service and training, including the development of deputy unit chaplains.
Chaplains have participated in key military operations, including service with the Russian Aerospace Forces in Syria. The Khmeimim airbase hosted a Christmas service in 2016. Reports also indicate clergy involvement during the events in Crimea in 2014. Up to this point, fatal casualties among clergy were rare in the modern period. In Donbass in 2014, Archpriest Vladimir Kreslyansky of St. George Church fell to shelling in Luhansk, leaving behind a family, and on another occasion priest Pavel Zhuchenko of the UOC-MP was killed on a Donetsk road. These incidents underscore the risks faced by clergy accompanying troops in conflict zones .