Did priests of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine use tridents, national symbols of Ukraine, to bless water during a service? No, that's not true: The objects used by the clergymen for the consecration of water are three candlesticks, which were used together with crosses.
The claim appeared in a TikTok video (archived here) published by wagner_ad1 (archived here) on January 29, 2024. In comments translated from Russian into English by Lead Storied staff, the author says:
In Ukraine, a new way of blessing is found. To spite Russia and all Orthodox Christians, Ukrainians began sanctifying water with tridents, not crosses.
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Thu Feb 1 16:58:33 2024 UTC)
A reverse image search conducted by Lead Stories on January 31, 2024, returned (archived here) footage from the Ukrainian TV channel TV-4. The religious event shown in the footage took place on January 6, 2024, on the occasion of Epiphany during the consecration of water in Ternopil, Ukraine.
Ukrainian news outlet Suspilne also covered (archived here) the holy service, adding it was organized by the Orthodox Church of Ukraine together with the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. The images show priests holding three candlesticks together with crosses to carry out the ceremony.
The liturgical instructions for the Orthodox Church of Ukraine also mention (archived here) other rites requiring the use of three candlesticks and a cross, including Resurrection Sunday, Ascension Day, and Holy Tuesday among others.
