Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Macedonian Orthodox Church-Archbishopric Of Ohrid And Its Arduous Road To Autocephaly, Gjoko Gjorgjevski, Ruzhica Cacanoska, Ivan Blazhevski, Aneta Jovkovska

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The aim of this paper is to examine the recent developments related to the Macedonian Orthodox Church–Archbishopric of Ohrid, the acceptance of the canonical status by the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and the conferring of status to autocephaly by the Serbian Orthodox Church in 2022. From the ecclesiological and the liturgical aspect, the MOC-OA is no longer in isolation and is part of the family of Orthodox churches through the restoration of Eucharistic communion. The final step, the granting of a Tomos by the Ecumenical Patriarchate is expected, which would make the MOC-OA the first by all recognized and accepted autocephalous church …

Frontmatter (Volume 42, Issue 5), Paul B. Mojzes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Church, State And Human In The Process Of Secularization, Metropolitan Luke (Andriy Kovalenko)

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article examines the processes of socio-cultural change under conditions of secularization. The conditions for the appearance of several secularization areas are considered, and the features of their formation and their current state are revealed. Analysis of the anthropological factor in the processes of secularization is carried out and its role in the process of desecularization is shown. Within the framework of secularization, there has been an expansion of the possibilities for a person to determine his or her understanding of the connection with God. As a result, a new socio-religious population stratum has formed: those who consider themselves believers, …

Landscape Design And Architecture Of Wooden Churches In Ukraine, Valentyna Kuryliak, Volodymyr Dudarets, Valeriy Bulatov

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article examines the features of landscape design and architecture of wooden churches in Ukraine. Analysis of literary sources shows that the sacred wooden architecture of Ukraine is a source of inspiration for artists, art historians, writers, and other people interested in church buildings made of wood. During the research process, it was found that the natural landscape exactly complements the architecture of wooden temples, creating a natural environment for worshiping God. It is important to emphasize the following features, highlighted in the study of temple structures made of wood on the territory of Ukraine. First, the builders carefully selected …

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church: Foundation And Beginnings In Post-War Germany, Vladyslav Fulmes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC) met many obstacles regarding its activities from the Soviet and German occupation regimes. Due to persecution and oppression, the hierarchy and clergy of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church decided to emigrate. Preserving the canonical episcopate, the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church began a new stage of existence in emigration, ushering a new period of activity of UAOC. This study is relevant to modern historical science since the study and introduction into the scientific sphere of new archival documents and memoirs of contemporaries gives an opportunity to establish a coherent picture of the activities of the UAOC …

Religious Beliefs Of World Boxing Champions As A Factor Of Influence On Ukrainian Society In The Context Of Social Responsibility, Bogdan Synchak, Petro Livak, Olga Kuvaldina

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The issue regarding the influence of mass media on the public consciousness is one of the priorities in the times of the digitalization of the information space. Great sports such as professional boxing are world-famous and have a wide resonance in the media. As a result, scientists are paying attention to the study of factors of influence that arise during the information coverage of sporting events. Religious beliefs are a conditional plane of differentiation of different worldview systems, but in the 21st century, they are harmoniously integrated into the colors of different cultures, nationalities, and states. Celebrities’ religious beliefs can …

Book Review: Anna Niedźwiedź And Kaja Kajder, Eds., Mapy Miasta: Dziedzictwa I Sacrum W Przestrzeni Krakowa / Maps Of The City: Heritages And The Sacred Within Kraków’S Cityscape., Christopher Garbowski

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The book Maps of the City is the result of an exhibition at The Seweryn Udziela Ethnographic Museum in Kraków that was held between November 2017 and February 2018. As the subtitle makes clear, the exhibition focused on the place of heritage and the sacred within Kraków’s cityscape, together with the relationship between the two, both for the city’s residents and visitors. The latter group includes pilgrims. The curator of the exhibition was Anna Niedźwiedź, a cultural anthropologist at Jagiellonian University and author of The Image and the Figure: Our Lady of Częstochowa in Polish Culture and Popular Religion (2010). …

Aspects Of The Holocaust During The Slovak Autonomy Period (October 6, 1938, To March 14, 1939), Madeline Vadkerty

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Antisemitism was not a new phenomenon in Slovakia and can be traced back to the Middle Ages and beyond. Looking at the more recent past, after the Austro-Hungarian Compromise in 1867, Jews became equal citizens in the eyes of the state. The Hungarian Parliament passed an Act of Emancipation for Jews that same year, mainly for the purpose of economic development, which was beneficial for the Jewish population. A year later, Hungary's Nationality Act was issued as part of an active policy of magyarization (Hungarianization). However, it did not affect Jews, who were considered a religious group and not a …

Activities Of The Jehovah's Witnesses Organization As A "Litmus Test" For Religious Freedom In Ukraine, Roman Bogachev, Yana Tsymbalenko, Olena Leovkina, Igor Bogdanovskiy

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article deals with the history and present stage of activities of the Jehovah's Witnesses organization in Ukraine. The attitude and actions of a state and the majority of its population towards the activities of the Jehovists and other non-traditional religious communities is viewed as a “litmus test,” which reveals how successfully the principle of religious freedom and freedom of conscience is implemented in public policy. It is emphasized that, unlike during the Soviet period, when the Jehovists were persecuted for their beliefs and missionary work, a required legal framework for free development of this religion has been created in …

An Appeal Of Covenant, Mustafa Ceric

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Mustafa Ceric, Grand Mufti Emeritus of Bosnia, calls on Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religious leaders in Russia to oppose the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The Ukrainian Immigrant Experience In South Carolina, Nataliya S. Vykhovanets, Alexander Lorenz

University of South Carolina Upstate Student Research Journal

The following paper focuses on the Ukrainian immigrant community living in the Upstate region of South Carolina and the vast differences in immigrant experiences of former and more recent Ukrainian Immigrants. Ukrainians have been migrating to the US since the late 1800s, but unfortunately, there are few studies available on this ethnic group.

To give readers a background on the topic, this paper first documents the history of Ukrainian immigration to the US by describing and comparing the four waves of Ukrainian migration to the United States. The following section introduces a questionnaire, created to collect data on the Ukrainian …

The Discursive Construction Of The Past: The 1686 Resubordination Of The Kyiv Metropolitanate, Ukrainian Autocephaly And The Conflict Of Moscow And Constantinople, Denys Shestopalets

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article focuses on the key historical aspect of the clash between the Moscow Patriarchate and the Constantinople Patriarchate in autumn 2018. It analyzes the conflicting representations of the re-subordination of the Kyiv Metropolitanate from the jurisdiction of Constantinople to the purview of Moscow in the second half of the 17th century. The study explores pivotal historical narratives and argumentative strategies employed by the two patriarchates (and, additionally, by the main ideologues of the Ukrainian autocephalist movement) for framing the events of 1686 and for shoring up their contemporary agendas with regards to the autocephalous status of the Orthodox Church …

A Declaration On The ‘Russian World’ Teaching

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

"The Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022 is a historic threat to a people of Orthodox Christian tradition. More troubling still for Orthodox believers, the senior hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Church has refused to acknowledge this invasion, issuing instead vague statements about the necessity for peace in light of “events” and “hostilities” in Ukraine, while emphasizing the fraternal nature of the Ukrainian and Russian peoples as part of “Holy Rus’,” blaming the hostilities on the evil “West,” and even directing their communities to pray in ways that actively encourage hostility."

Religious Leadership And Critical Junctures In The 2022 Russian Invasion Of Ukraine: 104 War Days Of Metropolitan Hilarion, Alar Kilp, Jerry G. Pankhurst

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The chairman of the Department for External Church Relations (DECR) of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) was dismissed from his office on the 104th day (June 7, 2022) of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Was Hilarion dismissed because of his ‘silence’ on the Russian invasion? We study the 104 ‘war days’ of Metropolitan Hilarion from four dimensions: leadership as position; leadership as process; leadership as result; and leadership as person. Our findings are multivocal: the Russian invasion of Ukraine did become a leadership challenge for Hilarion the way that previous military interventions (in Ukraine and Syria) and …

Soft, Sharp, And Evil Power: The Russian Orthodox Church In The Russian Invasion Of Ukraine, Alar Kilp, Jerry G. Pankhurst

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This paper examines the enactment of soft/sharp/evil power by the Russian Orthodox Church and its leaders during a month before the major exertion of hard power by the Russian military and one month after the invasion of Ukraine. In the period from January 25 until March 25, 2022, 27 messages of the leading actors in the Church–Patriarch Kirill and Metropolitan Hilarion, head of the Department of External Church Relations (DECR)–are closely examined. The results are presented and discussed in four thematic sections: 1) soft power: the religious approach to the Russian World; 2) Sharp power: the territorial expansion of the …

International Theological Conference “Orthodoxy And The ‘Russkii Mir’ (Russian World): The Threat To Orthodox Ecclesiology And The Ideological Basis Of Russian Neo-Imperialism, Vladyslav Fulmes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

In connection with the full-scale military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, which was largely based on the ideology of “Russian world,” on June 16, 2022, Volyn Orthodox Theological Academy (Lutsk, Ukraine) together with the educational platform “ETHOS / God Against War” (Kyiv, Ukraine) held an international theological conference “Orthodoxy and the “russkii mir” (Russian world): The Threat to Orthodox Ecclesiology and the Ideological Basis of Russian Neo-Imperialism.” Brief information about this international scientific conference is given.

The Restoration Of Church Orthodox Brotherhoods And Their Missionary Work In Right-Bank Ukraine, Ihor Opria, Oleksandr Fedkov

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article examines the process of restoring Orthodox church brotherhoods in the 1860s on the territory of the Right-Bank Ukraine, defines the goals and objectives of these organizations, and analyzes the content and consequences of missionary and related educational and charitable work. The subjects of the research are the Orthodox church brotherhoods and their missionary work. The analysis of historiography is carried out and the need for further scientific research in the study of the topic is indicated. The role of brotherhoods in interfaith encounters is clarified, as are the methods aimed at combating Late Protestant confessions. Despite a certain …

Ukrainian Interfaith Families In The Context Of Church, Marriage, And Social Relations Of The 19th Century, Olena Borodenko, Roman Sitarchuk

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The aim. In the article (based on the materials of church statistical books of Orthodox parishes in the Right and Left Bank of Ukraine, ego-documents, documentation of the directive and administrative direction, canonical and fiction), an imaginary collective portrait of interfaith families is created in the representation of marriage partners of the Orthodox and Roman Catholic faiths—in the context of marriage-social policy of the Russian Empire in the 19th century.

Research methods. The interdisciplinary direction of intelligence led to the use, in addition to general scientific methods, of special historical methods: quantitative, comparative, prosopographic and critical analysis.

Main results. Based …

Confessional Style Of The Ukrainian Language, Kostiantyn Kampen, Svitlana Romanchuk, Daniil Palij

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The scientific work presents the practical possibilities of stylistics in the development of the confessional variety of the Ukrainian language, covering its diachronic and synchronic planes of study. The authors raise the question of the classification of the confessional style, outline its problems, and to demonstrate the patterns of speech that highlight the characteristic features of this stylistic variety. The areas of use, the dynamics of development, the limits of influence, and the popularity of the style are considered; lexico-stylistic units are listed as an illustrative example. The temporal dimension encompassed by the style begins during paganism in the Ukrainian …

Letter To An Unknown Hero Of Kiev, Mustafa Ceric

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

A letter of solidarity to the besieged in Kiev, from Mustafa Ceric, Ph.D. Grand Mufti Emeritus of Bosnia.

Jenny Vorpahl And Dirk Schuster (Eds). Communicating Religion And Atheism In Central And Eastern Europe. (Book Review), Oleg Kyselov

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

A review of Jenny Vorpahl and Dirk Schuster (eds). Communicating Religion and Atheism in Central and Eastern Europe. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2020. 312 p. ISBN 978-3-11-054637-8 Hardcover $114.99.

Frontmatter (Volume 42, Issue 3), Paul B. Mojzes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Scholarly Study Of Religion In Ukraine, Vita Tytarenko, Liudmyla Fylypovych, Larysa Vladychenko

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article analyzes the specifics of religious studies of religious minorities (RM). This religious phenomenon needs a concrete applied methodology that would make it possible to study the RM in its entirety. It is proposed to rely on the materials, which, in this case were the materials of a sociological study conducted within the project "Religious Minorities of Ukraine and State-Religious Relations" (2021), carried out by the authors of the article. As a result, it was clarified which religious organizations should be attributed to the RM, and how they differ from the religions of the majority, who have specific needs …

Responses Of Christian Churches In Ukraine And Other Eastern European Countries To The Covid-19 Pandemic, Olga Nedavnya

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article examines the reaction of Christian Churches to the challenge of the Covid-19 pandemic. Attention is paid to the Churches in Ukraine and countries of similar political and cultural heritage (Moldova, Bulgaria, Serbia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Montenegro, etc.). The guidelines and practical activities of the Churches are analyzed, reflecting their response to various problems related to the pandemic. The corresponding differences occur not so much between different countries and peoples, but rather between different denominations. In general, more conservative, and sometimes fundamentalist, reactions are shown by the Orthodox Church, especially in parts of the Russian Orthodox Church in …

Alexey Starostin (Ed.) Muslims In Russia’S Far East: History And Contemporary Situation. (Book Review), Elena Glavatskaya

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

A review of Alexey Starostin (ed.) Мусульмане на Дальнем Востоке России: история и современность (Muslims in Russia’s Far East: History and Contemporary Situation). Kazan’ : Typografia “Algoritm+”, 2020, 656 pp, hardback. ISBN: 978-5-6042963-5-6.

Frontmatter (Volume 42, Issue 4), Paul B. Mojzes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

World Council Of Churches (Wcc) Should Raise The Visibility Of Ukrainian Orthodox At The World Assembly (Karlsruhe, Sept. 2022): Interview With Professor Katharina Kunter, Katharina Kunter

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

"I think, that the WCC Executive Committee meeting in June, will not be able to expel the ROC. In my view, that leaves only one reasonable solution, in order as ecumenical assembly to remain credible. The Ukraine must be made visible as Church in Karlsruhe. That means, the WCC (or the EKD) must immediately and officially approach the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OKU). They should offer it a “fast-track-membership in the WCC and offer it a visual public forum at the full assembly. The OKU is now already the largest Orthodox Church in the Ukraine, with nearly 50% of …

Appeal Of The Representatives Of Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Educational Institutions Regarding The War Of The Russian Federation Against Ukraine, Oleksandr Geychenko, Roman Soloviy, Taras Dyatlik, Olga Dyatlik, Ivan Rusyn, Valentyn Siniy, Kseniia Trofymchuk

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Statement of the “Evangelische Bildungseinrichtungen der Ukraine“ 20 April 2022.

"As the next phase of Russia-Ukraine war began with the full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, we, the representatives of Ukrainian evangelical theological educational institutions, have witnessed massive war crimes, including numerous acts of violence, irrational cruelty, and inhuman treatment of civilians, destruction of cities, executions of peaceful civilians, rapes, pillaging, and plundering."

Frontmatter (Volume 42, Issue 2), Paul B. Mojzes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Putin's Invasion Of Ukraine And Disintegration Of States, Paul Mojzes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Excerpt: "As of February 24, 2022, the history of Eastern Europe and perhaps the world is changing like it did during the implosion of communism in Eastern Europe in the late 1980s. The fall of communism brought a major geopolitical realignment. It is too early to know what catastrophes Vladimir Putin’s attempt to reverse that realignment will bring. After 1990 several of the countries of Eastern Europe faced fragmentation. During the decade of the 1990s, Yugoslavia broke up into seven states in an eruption of war which was replete with genocides. Two other countries also partitioned, but in contrast to …