RNS: Religious conflicts in Ukraine could spark a civil war

Seizure of the UOC Cathedral in Cherkasy. October 17, 2024. Photo: religionnews

The international news agency RNS, which covers religious issues, has analyzed the situation surrounding the raider seizure of the UOC's St. Michael’s Cathedral in Cherkasy and published its conclusions on how the religious clashes could negatively impact Ukrainian society as a whole.

The events at the Cherkasy Cathedral occured in the wake of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signing a law that effectively bans the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), RNS notes. The article points out that this law has sparked criticism both in Ukraine and abroad, with commentators observing that Zelensky is impinging on the religious freedom of Ukrainians.

"The clash in Cherkasy points to a more dangerous reality: It is not just about a single city or church, but an indication of the brewing domestic tensions in Ukraine that have the potential to boil over into a religious and ethnic conflict that would be in no one’s interest, least of all the Ukrainian people’s," the article states.

As RNS highlights, Cherkasy, partly due to its mayor Anatoliy Bondarenko, has become a "ground zero for the friction between the two churches".

"In a now deleted video posted on Facebook in August 2023, Bondarenko said he would lead efforts to eliminate the UOC from the city, declaring, 'Get ready – in Cherkasy, there will be no Moscow priests, in Cherkasy, people will pray in the Ukrainian language.' Robert Amsterdam, a lawyer working for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, cited the video as evidence that the mayor is 'proud of this ethnic cleansing taking place,'" the news agency reports.

The article also emphasizes that the UOC remains the largest religious denomination in the country, still having 2,000 more parishes than the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).

Discussing the so-called "transfers" of UOC parishes to the OCU, RNS notes that there have been only three such transfers in the eastern regions, with none in the frontline Kharkiv region.

"The split along clear linguistic and geographic borders, however, presents a danger to the future of an independent Ukraine. A civil war driven by religion would be the culmination of a Russian strategy to 'divide and conquer' the country, exploiting pre-existing divisions and creating sympathy for Russia," the journalists argue.

The agency stresses that "it is crucial for the Ukrainian government to take steps to ease tensions and reassure UOC believers and Ukrainian Russian-speakers that their rights and freedoms are not under threat."

While there are isolated cases of collaborationism within the UOC, RNS notes that the vast majority of the UOC clergy and laity remain loyal to Ukraine.

"It is imperative that the Ukrainian government take action to relieve tensions and reassure UOC faithful, and Ukrainian Russophones in general, in Ukraine that their rights and freedoms are not in danger," the international outlet concludes, adding that "after all, that is the obligation of any government in a free and pluralistic society."

As the UOJ previously reported, the radical leader Karas had promised new seizures of UOC churches, saying priests should be killed and burned alive.

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