War and Autocephaly in Ukraine
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Date
2020
Authors
Hovorun, Cyril
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Abstract
A series of conflicts that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union culminated in the war
in Ukraine waged by Russia in 2014. The international community was taken by surprise,
and its reactions to the Russian aggression were often confused and inadequate. Even
more confused and inadequate were the responses from global Christianity. Russian
propaganda often renders the aggression against Ukraine as a quasi-religious conflict: a
"holy war" against the "godless" or "heterodox" West. It would be natural, therefore, for
the Christian churches worldwide to loudly condemn both propaganda and aggression.
However, in most cases, their response was silence. Such reactions came from most
local Orthodox churches, the Roman Catholic church, and international ecumenical
organizations such as the World Council of Churches. An exception was the reaction
from the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which decided to grant autocephaly to the Orthodox
Church of Ukraine. The article argues that the Tomos for autocephaly was, among
other reasons, a reaction to the war in Ukraine. The responses of other local Orthodox
churches to the Tomos also indicate their attitude to the war in Ukraine. These reactions
have demonstrated a profound crisis in inter-Orthodox solidarity and social ethics.
Description
Keywords
war, church diplomacy, Tomos, autocephaly, the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, article
Citation
Hovorun, Cyril. War and Autocephaly in Ukraine / Cyril Hovorun // Kyiv-Mohyla Humanities Journal. - 2020. - № 7. - P. 1-25.