AUTOCEPHALY OF ORTHODOX IN UKRAINE: KEY ACTORS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE HISTORICAL DRAMA FROM THE LATE 20TH TO THE EARLY 21ST CENTURY

Abstract

Throughout a prolonged historical period, Ukrainian Orthodox believers sought to attain autocephaly for their church. The most significant historical epochs in this endeavor were the 20th and 21st centuries, witnessing three attempts to gain independence from the Moscow Patriarchate. This effort intensified notably in the last three decades, coinciding with the existence of an independent Ukrainian state. The process of gaining Orthodox independence in Ukraine culminated on the brink of 2018–2019 with the establishment of the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine. Alongside it, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, formed in 1686 during the temporary transfer of the Kyiv Metropolis from the Constantinople Patriarchate to Moscow, continues to exist. In the 1990s, steps were once again taken towards the independence of Orthodox believers in Ukraine. Leaders of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC) and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP) played a crucial role in this process. Notable figures in this endeavor include Patriarchs Mstyslav Skrypnyk, Dymytrii Yarema, Volodymyr Romaniuk, and Filaret Denysenko, as well as Metropolitans Mefodii Kudryakov and Makarii Maletich. Conversely, the hierarchical body of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, led by Metropolitans Volodymyr Sabodan and Onufrii Berezovsky, opposed these efforts. The institution of the presidency also played a key role in the independence of Orthodox believers in Ukraine. All Ukrainian heads of state, except Viktor Yanukovych, in one way or another contributed to the affirmation of Orthodox independence in Ukraine. Each president’s policy in the religious sphere had its peculiarities and affirmed corresponding values in the Ukrainian political landscape: “an independent church in an independent state” (Leonid Kravchuk), “a unified local Orthodox Church of Ukraine” (Leonid Kuchma), “autocephaly of the UOC-KP” (Viktor Yushchenko), “the ROC as a unifying force of Russia and Ukraine” (Viktor Yanukovych), “autocephaly for Ukraine as a factor uniting all Orthodox believers” (Petro Poroshenko), “the split of the UOC-MP from Moscow as a sign of Ukrainian identity” (Volodymyr Zelenskyy). Despite the establishment in 2018 of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine led by Metropolitan Epifanii Dumenko, the process of affirming Orthodox autocephaly in Ukraine is far from completion. Centuries of spiritual dependence on Moscow cannot be overcome instantly. We need to envision ways to break free from these bonds to ultimately restore territorial, spiritual, organizational, and political unity among Ukrainians. Despite the tragedy of the ongoing war, new prospects are emerging in this regard for Ukraine.