Russian Orthodox Church in Calgary vandalized with red paint
Shortly after a Saturday evening service ended at the All Saints Russian Orthodox Church in Calgary, someone walked up and poured red paint on the building's front doors.
Priest Dmitry Grygoryev said security cameras at the church captured a man jumping a short fence to get onto the property, trying to open a locked door, then dumping paint on the church's front doors and steps. The footage has since been turned over to the Calgary Police Service's hate crimes unit, Grygoryev said.
"I feel very sorry for this guy. I kind of understand his motivation -- he probably feels pain of all the situation, the political situation, that is happening in Ukraine right now and probably he was just trying to express his emotions. But, again, church is outside of politics," said Grygoryev, who has been leading the church in the northeast community of Renfrew since 2018.
The priest said about 30 per cent of the members at his church are Ukrainian and he himself was born and raised in Ukraine before going to school in Russia.
"Pretty much everyone has either relatives or friends in Ukraine and we feel... worried, at least, for what's going on," Grygoryev said.
"We are not trying to spread the hate and anger," he added. "We're trying to keep the peace.
"Everyone felt shocked," he said, continuing. "Nobody expected what's going to happen like that. All of us, to the very last moment, was thinking of (a) diplomatic way (that) will bring some resolution."
"We are praying for the peace and unity of Ukrainian and Russian people."
Splashes of red paint remain on the concrete front steps and doormat, though it was scraped and washed off of the front doors over the weekend.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Minnesota grocery store clerk dies after customer impales him with a golf club, police say
A Minneapolis store clerk died after a customer beat him and impaled him with a golf club, police said. The 66-year-old clerk was attacked Friday at the Oak Grove Grocery, a small neighborhood store in a residential area near downtown Minneapolis. A 44-year-old suspect is jailed on suspicion of murder.
B.C. Amber Alert cancelled, 2-month-old child found safe
Mounties in Surrey, B.C., say the two-month-old child who was the subject of an Amber Alert Saturday afternoon has been found safe.
Shohei Ohtani agrees to record $700 million, 10-year contract with Dodgers
Shohei Ohtani has opted to stay in southern California, and the Toronto Blue Jays have missed out on landing a generational talent.
6 dead, nearly 2 dozen injured after severe storms tear through central Tennessee
Severe storms that tore through central Tennessee killed six people Saturday and sent about two dozen to the hospital as homes and businesses were damaged in multiple cities.
A pregnant Texas woman asked a court for permission to get an abortion, despite a ban. What's next?
Kate Cox, a mother of two in Texas, became pregnant again in August but soon after learned devastating news: Her baby has a fatal condition and is likely to either be stillborn or die shortly after birth.
Every phone call is a goodbye, says Vancouver resident with family in Gaza
Omar Mansour says every phone call with his family in the Gaza Strip might be the last.
Mideast ministers in Ottawa to discuss Israel-Hamas war with Joly, Trudeau
A group of foreign ministers from the Palestinian Authority, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye are in Ottawa today for a quietly planned meeting with Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly to discuss attempts to end the Israel-Hamas war.
Ibrahim Ali found guilty of killing 13-year-old girl in B.C.
A jury has found Ibrahim Ali guilty of killing a 13-year-old girl whose body was found in a Burnaby, B.C., park in 2017.
Nuclear fission may play key role in the creation of heavy elements when neutron stars collide: study
New scientific models are suggesting that nuclear fission may play a key role in the creation of heavy elements in the universe—which, if true, would be the first example of nuclear fission occurring in space.