Rev. Mykhailo Brytsyn

Mykhailo Brytsyn (MDiv, 2014, TCMI, Austria) has led the Religious Freedom Department of Mission Eurasia since 2022. He focuses on research, monitoring, and advocacy of freedom of religion or belief in the Eurasian region, as well as documenting Russian war crimes against Ukrainian religious leaders and communities.

Mykhailo provides expert support on interfaith dialogue and church–state relations and has contributed to international events hosted by the OSCE, IRF, the Council of Europe, and other platforms.

He is author of the updated report Continued War Against Faith: Religious Genocide in the Occupied Territories of Ukraine, 2022–2025, which builds on Mission Eurasia’s previous research—“Faith Under Fire” (2023), “Faith in Chains” (2024), and “Faith Under Russian Terror” (2025)—and synthesizes their findings while incorporating new evidence of violations of religious freedom in Ukraine’s territories occupied by Russia. This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the systemic repression carried out by Russian forces against Ukrainian religious communities, their leaders, and church infrastructure, as well as the broader efforts to eradicate religious identity in the occupied regions of Ukraine.

Since the late 1990s, Mykhailo has taught courses in practical theology in several countries. He is passionate about family counseling, leadership, and problem-solving in marriage and church settings, and has served as speaker at numerous retreats for pastors and conferences for families and youth.

Mykhailo serves as a pastor of the Grace Evangelical Christian Church and as secretary of the Interconfessional Council of Christian Churches of Melitopol, Ukraine. He also served as chairman of the supervisory boards of St. Petersburg Christian University and Tavriski Christian Institute.

Mykhailo and his wife, Svitlana, have four children and two grandchildren.

His life motto is: “It is better to wear out than to rust.”