The Ukranian Orthodox Church

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is part of the Eastern Orthodox communion.  For centuries it has been organized under the Russian Orthodox Church, but with tensions between Russia and Ukraine continuing to increase, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has sought to sever its Russian connection.  The Ecumenical Patriarch leader for the Eastern Orthodox communion, Bartholomew I, supported the split and yesterday made an official decree granting the Ukrainian Orthodox Church its independence from the Russian Orthodox Church.  See this NY Times article.

Splits can happen for many reasons.  In the U.S.A., which has a strong separation of church and state, schism happens primarily for doctrinal reasons.  But in this case, the split is about the climate of national politics, not religious teachings.  Ukrainians are very critical of their treatment by Russia and see this as a step towards greater independence from Russia.  For that reason, they refer to this split not as a schism but as an alignment that assures independence.

The desire to gain this independence goes back thirty years to when Ukraine gained its independence from the Soviet Union.  But it finally happened yesterday.

There may still remain some conflict as this historical event plays out.  For example, there may be some conflicts over ownership of church properties.  The religious leaders have made their move, supported by the political leaders.  We will see if judges will be required to make moves as well.