RFE/RL on Orthodox Church in Ukraine

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Subject: RFE/RL on Orthodox Church in Ukraine

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RFE/RL on Orthodox Church in Ukraine


RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
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RFE/RL Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine Report
Vol. 2, No. 30, 22 August 2000
 
A Survey of Developments in Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine by
the Regional Specialists of RFE/RL's Newsline Team.
 
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UKRAINE
 
RUSSIAN BISHOPS TELL KUCHMA NOT TO INTERFERE IN THEIR REALM. Last week
in Moscow, some 150 bishops convened for the four-day Council of
Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church. The situation of Orthodoxy in
Ukraine was one of the topics discussed by that forum.

President Leonid Kuchma sent a telegram to the patriarch of Moscow and
All Russia, Aleksii II, asking him and the Council of Bishops to
consider the possibility of granting autonomy to the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church (subordinated to the Moscow Patriarchate). According
to Interfax, Kuchma's request was considered on 15 August and was
reportedly backed by "a number of bishops from Western Ukraine led by
Bishop of Vyshhorod Pavel." The forum, however, refused to consider
the petition, saying that secular authorities should not interfere in
Church affairs.

As reported in previous issues of "RFE/RL Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine
Report," the situation of Ukrainian Orthodoxy remains very difficult.
Currently, Ukraine has three Orthodox Churches: the Ukrainian Orthodox
Church (Moscow Patriarchate), the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Kyiv
Patriarchate), and the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. The
Moscow Patriarchate recognizes the Church subordinated to itself as
the only canonical Orthodox Church in Ukraine, viewing followers of
the other two Churches as "schismatics."

The official status of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow
Patriarchate) is unclear, however. In 1992 the Russian Orthodox Church
granted its Ukrainian branch the right of self-governance. The
Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) has its own Synod of
Bishops; it is empowered to consecrate new bishops without any special
authorization from Moscow; and it can also canonize its own saints.
Technically speaking, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow
Patriarchate) is an autonomous structure. But in this case it appears
that names do matter: the word "autonomous" does not appear in the
Church's name or in any of the documents related to that Church.

According to the Moscow-based "Segodnya," most believers of the
Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) - particularly from
Ukraine's eastern regions and Odesa - think that granting autonomy to
their Church will encourage those in Ukraine who want the full
independence of Ukrainian Orthodoxy from Moscow. And this, the
newspaper maintains, is what those believers fear.

Official Kyiv, on the other hand, has repeatedly voiced the opinion
that it wants Ukraine's three Orthodox Churches to be united into a
"Ukrainian Local Orthodox Church." Judging by the reaction of the
Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church, Kyiv's striving is
strongly supported by Constantinople Patriarch Bartholomew I, who
traditionally enjoys a special status among the world's Orthodox
patriarchs.

Ukraine's Metropolitan of Odesa and Izmail, Agafangel (Moscow
Patriarchate), told journalists on 17 August that the Moscow forum
condemned the Constantinople patriarch's "unprecedented interference"
in the canonical territory of the Russian Orthodox Church, meaning
Estonia and Ukraine. (In 1996, some members of Estonia's Orthodox
Church pledged juridical subordination to the Constantinople
Patriarchate, but the Moscow Patriarchate has refused to acknowledge
Constantinople's canonical rights over Estonia.)

"Patriarch Bartholomew declared Ukraine to be his canonical territory,
which is a gross violation of Church canons," ITAR-TASS quoted
Agafangel as saying. According to Agafangel, the "dissenters"
(followers of the Kyiv Patriarchate and the Ukrainian Autocephalous
Orthodox Church) are planning to convene an All-Ukrainian Council of
Bishops at which Metropolitan Volodymyr (Moscow Patriarchate) will be
forced to resign and his powers will be passed to the Constantinople
Patriarchate's representative. Agafangel expressed his regret that
Bartholomew is depending on the support of "Ukrainian nationalists and
politicians who, in violation of the law, meddle in Church affairs,"
Interfax reported.

Some Ukrainian media reported earlier this month that talks on the
unification of Ukrainian Orthodoxy were expected to take place in
Chambessy (Switzerland) on 20 August, with the participation of
representatives from Ukraine's three Orthodox Churches, government
officials, and Constantinople Patriarch Bartholomew. But this report
has not been officially confirmed.

Judging by the Russian Orthodox Church's position on Ukraine, which
was reaffirmed at its Council of Bishops last week, such talks would
be highly unlikely to yield any results. To put it bluntly, the Moscow
Patriarchate would allow the unification of the Ukrainian Churches
only in one way - namely, as the "return of schismatics" under the
wing of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which itself would continue to
be in "canonical unity" with the Russian Orthodox Church.

..........

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Copyright (c) 2000. RFE/RL, Inc. All rights reserved.
 
RFE/RL Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine Report is prepared by Jan
Maksymiuk on the basis of a variety of sources including reporting by
"RFE/RL Newsline" and RFE/RL's broadcast services. It is distributed
every Tuesday.
 
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