(ZENIT News / Kiev, 21.08.2024).-In a move that underscores the growing tension between Ukraine and Russia, the Ukrainian Parliament approved a law that prohibits the activity of any religious group with links to the Russian Orthodox Church or that supports the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This decision, taken on August 20, has generated an intense debate, given that many see the measure as a direct blow to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), notwithstanding its repeated efforts to distance itself from Moscow.
The new legislation, which was strongly supported by the Supreme Rada with 265 votes in favour and just 29 against, gives the Ukrainian Government the legal faculties to investigate and prohibit the activities of religious groups that have too close ties with Russia or that support the military aggression against Ukraine. Although the UOC has proclaimed its independence from the Russian Orthodox Church, the Ukrainian Government holds that the Church continues to be linked canonically with Moscow, whose Patriarch Kirill has justified the invasion of Ukraine as a “holy war.”
The approval of this law, which now awaits President Volodymyr’s signature, occurs after a long process of revisions and consultations. Zelenskyy, who has supported the measure since it was first proposed, has stressed that it is a national duty to guarantee Ukraine’s spiritual independence. “It is our common duty to guarantee the spiritual independence of Ukraine,” said the President at the beginning of August.
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which for centuries has kept a close relationship with the Russian Church, has been the object of growing suspicions and legal actions since the start of the large scale Russian invasion. The Ukrainian Security Service has investigated more than 100 clergymen of the UOC for alleged crimes related with the war, and has presented evidence that includes roubles, Russian passports and pro-Russian propaganda found in its churches.
The draft law is not only directed against the UOC, but also against any religious organization that promotes the ideology of the “Russian world” or that is linked to a State that acts aggressively against Ukraine. Robert Amsterdam, a lawyer that represents the UOC, has described the legislation as a “grotesque violation of religious liberty” and has promised to take the case to international courts, including those of the United Nations.
This law is also inscribed in the framework for a broader and more profound struggle that goes beyond the military ambit, touching the cultural and spiritual roots of the region. The concept of a “Russian world”, promoted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, has been used to justify the invasion and maintain influence over Ukraine. However, the Ukrainians firmly reject this ideology, recalling that Kiev was the spiritual center of the region long before the rise of Moscow.
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, who has openly supported the invasion, has characterized the war as a metaphysical battle against the West, assuring that Russia is protecting a “unique spiritual space” of the region. This position has led to a profound division within the Orthodox community, with the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, separating itself completely from Russian influence in 2019, after receiving the recognition of its independence from Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople.
As the war continues, the tensions between these religious factions do not show signs of diminishing, and the new Ukrainian laws will probably intensify the debate on religious liberty and national identity in a country that struggles to define its future far from Russia’s shadow.
