The religious landscape amidst warfare in Ukraine: assessing the situation

Abstract

The purpose of the academic paper is to provide a general description of the milestone events in the religious and church life of Ukraine in the conditions of the Russian-Ukrainian war, with an emphasis on tendencies after the full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022. Given that the war is ongoing, we focused on issues related to the receipt of the Tomos by the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and the religious component of the “Russkiy mir” policy. Sociological indicators from monitoring the religious situation in Ukraine after the full-scale invasion demonstrate the following trends: war, especially a full-scale invasion, has impacted all spheres of life but religion continues to remain a significant factor in socio-humanitarian life; religious diversity is maintained with the predominance of Orthodox communities; regional differences on the religious map of Ukraine persist; after the full-scale invasion, there has been a slight increase in the number of people identifying as religious, and the number of citizens seeking communication with clergy has increased, primarily for psycho-emotional relief and support. The importance of religion and the Church in humanitarian missions, balancing society’s spiritual condition, and helping people in need of material and other support, such as volunteer labor or a refugee shelter, is becoming increasingly clear. The war has significantly forced many believers and spiritual leaders of denominations to reconsider their attitude to the war and civic engagement in the war. These tendencies are especially noticeable in the Protestant environment. In the territories occupied by Russia, believers of different communities and denominations continue to be harassed, religious freedom is violated, and a deliberate policy of incorporating religious space into the mainstream of Russian religious and church policy within the framework of the ideology of the “Russkiy mir” and the Russian Orthodox Church is being pursued.