Ukrainian MPs pave way for ban on largest Christian church

21.08.2024 09:52

Photo: Getty Images / Travel Faery

The Ukrainian parliament has approved a law that would allow authorities to ban the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), which Kiev has repeatedly accused of having ties to Russia, according to an MP. The legislation also outright bans the Russian Orthodox Church and all affiliated religious institutions.

In a series of Telegram posts on Tuesday, lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak said the parliament had passed a law banning certain religious organizations on the territory of Ukraine, particularly those linked to Russia.

“Among the people, it [is called] the law banning the Moscow Church,” he said. The law was approved by 265 deputies, with 29 voting against, and four abstaining.

The law, which will take effect in 30 days, bans the activities of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) and all affiliated religious organizations. However, it contains a caveat that gives the UOC nine months to sever all ties with the ROC.

While the UOC declared full autonomy from the Moscow Patriarchate several weeks after the Ukraine conflict broke out in 2022, Kiev continued to accuse its clergy of having ties to Russia, often raiding churches and making arrests.

Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stephanchuk acknowledged last week that the law would certainly result in “the Russian church in Ukraine” being banned, presumably referring to the UOC. Around the same time, Vladimir Zelensky appeared to refer to the imminent move, which he said would “reinforce Ukraine’s spiritual independence.”

Last week, the initiative was endorsed by the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations (AUCCRO), which represents all denominations in the country. It claimed that Russia remains the main “threat” to religious freedom in Ukraine. The Russian Orthodox Church, however, has dismissed AUCCRO’s decision as illegitimate, noting that UOC delegates had not been invited to take part in the meeting to discuss the matter.

Ukraine has long experienced religious tensions, with a number of entities claiming to be the true Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The two main rival factions are the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the Kiev-backed Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), which is considered by the Russian Orthodox Church to be schismatic.

The UOC remains the largest Orthodox church in Ukraine, with more than 8,000 parishes across the country. However, some of these parishes are choosing to transfer to the jurisdiction of the OCU under pressure from authorities in Kiev.