Religion in Ukraine
Encyclopedia
Historically Ukraine was inhabited by pagan tribes, but Byzantine rite
Byzantine Rite
The Byzantine Rite, sometimes called the Rite of Constantinople or Constantinopolitan Rite is the liturgical rite used currently by all the Eastern Orthodox Churches, by the Greek Catholic Churches , and by the Protestant Ukrainian Lutheran Church...
Christianity was introduced by the turn of the first millennium. It was imagined by later writers who sought to put Kievan Christianity on the same level of primacy as Byzantine Christianity that Apostle Andrew himself had visited the site where the city of Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
would be later built.
However it was only by the 10th century that the emerging state, the Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
became influenced by the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, the first known conversion was by the Princess Saint Olga who came to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
in 945 or 957. Several years later, her grandson, Knyaz Vladimir baptised his people in the Dnieper River
Dnieper River
The Dnieper River is one of the major rivers of Europe that flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, to the Black Sea.The total length is and has a drainage basin of .The river is noted for its dams and hydroelectric stations...
. This began a long history of the dominance of the Eastern Orthodoxy in Ruthenia that later was to influence Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
.
Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
was present on Ukrainian lands for approximately 2000 years when Jewish traders appeared in Greek colonies. At the same time the neighbouring Khazar Kaganate was influenced by Judaism. Since the 13th century the Jewish presence in Ukraine increased significantly. Later on in Ukraine was established new teaching of Judaism - Hasidism.
Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
was brought to Ukraine by a long history of controversies with Golden Horde
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
and Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars or Crimeans are a Turkic ethnic group that originally resided in Crimea. They speak the Crimean Tatar language...
accepted Islam by being a part of the Golden Horde and later the vassals of Ottoman Empire.
Religion in Ukraine went through a series of phases, but one notably in the times of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Such was the rule of the official oppressive communist regime, when Christians were persecuted
Persecution of Christians in the Soviet Union
The history of Christianity in the Soviet Union was not limited to repression and secularization. Soviet policy toward religion was based on the ideology of Marxism-Leninism, which made atheism the official doctrine of the Soviet Union...
and only a small fraction of people officially were church goers.
Religious structure of society
Estimates compiled by the independent Razumkov CentreRazumkov Centre
Razumkov Centre , or fully the Ukrainian Centre for Economic and Political Studies named after Olexander Razumkov , is a Ukrainian non-governmental public policy think tank....
in a nationwide survey in 2003 found that 75.2 percent of the respondents believe in God and 21.9 percent said they did not believe in God. 37.4 percent said that they attended church on regular basis.
As of January 1, 2006, there were 30,507 registered religious organizations, including 29,262 religious communities; the Government estimated that there were approximately 1,679 unregistered religious communities. More than 90 percent of religiously active citizens were Christians, the majority Orthodox. Religious practice was generally stronger in the western part of the country due to Western Ukraine being part of Soviet Union for shorter period(1939–41; 1944–91).
The different confessions in Ukrainian society were estimated by the nationwide survey. The result differ from the official number of registered religious groups. Thus the Russian Orthodox church (today in Ukraine, it is called the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)
Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is an autonomous Church of Eastern Orthodoxy in Ukraine, under the ecclesiastic jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate...
) traditionally (since the times of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union) has enjoyed the favour of many local authorities.
The 2006 Razumkov Centre
Razumkov Centre
Razumkov Centre , or fully the Ukrainian Centre for Economic and Political Studies named after Olexander Razumkov , is a Ukrainian non-governmental public policy think tank....
survey indicates:
- 14.9 percent of believers identify themselves with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kiev Patriarchate;
- 10.9 percent are adherents of Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) (which has the largest number of churches in Ukraine and claims up to 75% of the Ukrainian population);
- 5.3 percent belonged to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic ChurchUkrainian Greek Catholic ChurchThe Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church , Ukrainska Hreko-Katolytska Tserkva), is the largest Eastern Rite Catholic sui juris particular church in full communion with the Holy See, and is directly subject to the Pope...
(sometimes referred to as the Uniate, Byzantine, or Eastern Rite Church); - 1.0 percent belonged to the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church;
- 0.6 percent belonged to the Roman Catholic Church;
- 0.9 percent identified themselves as Protestants (Pentecostal, Baptist, Lutheran, Mennonites, Adventists);
- 0.1 percent follow Jewish religious practices;
- 3.2 percent said they belonged to "other denominations".
- 62.5 percent stated they are not religious or did not clearly identified their church allegiance (many Orthodox Ukrainians do not clearly self-identify with a particular denomination and, sometimes, are even unaware of the affiliation of the church they attend as well as of the controversy itself, which indicates the impossibility to use the survey numbers as an indicator of a relative strength of the church).
Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is an autonomous Church of Eastern Orthodoxy in Ukraine, under the ecclesiastic jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate...
(UOC) has 35 eparchies and 10,875 communities (approximately 68 percent of all Orthodox Christian communities in the country), most of which were located in the central, southern, and eastern oblasts. By 2007, the Church had 122 monasteries, 3519 monks and nuns, 7509 priests, 7755 churches with 840 churches being built.
The Church is headed by His Beatitude, the Metropolitan of Kiev and all Ukraine, Volodymyr (Viktor Sabodan)
Metropolitan Volodymyr (Viktor Sabodan)
Metropolitan Volodymyr is the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church . Metropolitan Volodymyr's official title is : His Beatitude Vladimir, Metropolitan of Kiev and all Ukraine...
. This Church uses predominately the Old Slavonic language for services.
Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kiev Patriarchate
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kiev PatriarchateUkrainian Orthodox Church - Kiev Patriarchate
Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate is one of the three major Orthodox churches in Ukraine, alongside the Ukrainian Orthodox Church , and the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church...
(UOC-KP) was formed after independence and has been headed since 1995 by Patriarch Filaret (Denysenko) with the title Patriarch of Kiev and all Rus-Ukraine, who was earlier the Russian Orthodox Metropolitan of Kiev and all Ukraine. The Church claims direct lineage to the Kievan Metropolia of Petro Mohyla
Petro Mohyla
Metropolitan Peter was a Metropolitan of Kiev, Halych and All-Rus' from 1633 until his death. He was born into a Moldavian boyar family — the Movileşti — one that gave Moldavia and Wallachia several rulers, including his father, Ieremia Movilă. His mother, Margareta, was a Hungarian noble lady...
.
The UOC-KP had 31 eparchies, 3,721 communities, and 2,816 clergy members. Approximately 60 percent of the UOC-KP faithful live in the western part of the country. The UOC-KP was not recognized by the Eastern Orthodox Communion.
The UOC-KP uses Ukrainian and Slavonic as liturgical languages.
Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church
Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church
The Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church is one of the three major Orthodox Churches in Ukraine. Close to ten percent of the Christian population claim to be members of the UAOC. The other Churches are the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kiev Patriarchate and the Ukrainian Russophile Orthodox...
(UAOC) was founded in 1919 in Kiev. Banned during the Soviet era, it was legalized in 1989.
The church has 12 eparchies and 1,166 communities, approximately 70 percent of them in the western part of the country. The UAOC has 686 clergy members.
In the interest of the possible future unification of the country's Orthodox churches, it did not name a patriarch to succeed the late Patriarch Dmitriy. The UAOC was formally headed in the country by Metropolitan Methodij of Ternopil and Podil; however, the large eparchies of Kharkiv-Poltava, Lviv, Rivne-Volyn, and Tavriya have officially broken relations with Methodij and have asked to be placed under the direct jurisdiction of the Istanbul-based Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
The UAOC uses the Ukrainian language.
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church , Ukrainska Hreko-Katolytska Tserkva), is the largest Eastern Rite Catholic sui juris particular church in full communion with the Holy See, and is directly subject to the Pope...
(UGCC) constituted the second largest group of believers after the Christian Orthodox churches. The Union of Brest
Union of Brest
Union of Brest or Union of Brześć refers to the 1595-1596 decision of the Church of Rus', the "Metropolia of Kiev-Halych and all Rus'", to break relations with the Patriarch of Constantinople and place themselves under the Pope of Rome. At the time, this church included most Ukrainians and...
formed the Church in 1596 to unify Orthodox and Roman Catholic believers. Outlawed by the Soviet Union in 1946 and legalized in 1989, the UGCC was for forty-three years the single largest banned religious community in the world.
The UGCC had 18 eparchies, 3,433 communities, and 2,136 clergy members. The UGCC's members, who constituted a majority of the believers in western Ukraine, numbered approximately four million.
Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk
Sviatoslav Shevchuk
Sviatoslav Shevchuk is the Major Archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church since 25 March 2011.-Life:Sviatoslav Shevchuk was born in 1970, in Stryi, Ukrainian SSR. He was ordained as a priest on 26 June 1994. From 2002 to 2005 he worked as head of the secretariat of Patriarch Lubomyr Husar...
is the present head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
The UGCC uses the Ukrainian language.
Roman Catholic Church
The Roman Catholic ChurchRoman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
is traditionally associated with historical pockets of citizens of Polish ancestry who lived mainly in the central and western regions.
The Roman Catholic Church had 7 dioceses, 879 communities, and 499 clergy members serving approximately one million persons.
The Church uses the Polish, Latin, Ukrainian and Russian languages.
Ukrainian Protestant Churches
Protestants make from 1% to nearly 3% of the population in Ukraine, but they constitute over 25% of the church network in the country. The biggest is the PentecostalPentecostalism
Pentecostalism is a diverse and complex movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, has an eschatological focus, and is an experiential religion. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, the Greek...
confession with over 2,500 churches and over 250,000 members that make several unions and also there are 1,560 Charismatic
Charismatic Christianity
Charismatic Christianity is a Christian doctrine that maintains that modern-day believers experience miracles, prophecy, speaking in tongues, and other spiritual gifts as described in of the Bible...
churches. There are over 2,500 Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
churches with over 150,000 members, plus Methodists, Mennonite
Mennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
s, Lutherans, Presbyterians, and others. There is also a Sub-Carpathian Reformed Church, which is one of the earliest Protestant communities in the country.
Other Christian Churches and Movements
There are also communities of Armenian CatholicsArmenian Catholic Church
|- |The Armenian Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic Church sui juris in union with the other Eastern Rite, Oriental Rite and Latin Rite Catholics who accept the Bishop of Rome as spiritual leader of the Church. It is regulated by Eastern canon law...
, Armenian Apostolics
Armenian Apostolic Church
The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest National Church, is part of Oriental Orthodoxy, and is one of the most ancient Christian communities. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion in 301 AD, in establishing this church...
and some others presented in Ukraine. The Embassy of God
Embassy of God
Embassy of God is a Charismatic Protestant church and parachurch organization in Kiev, Ukraine. It was founded and is led by pastor Sunday Adelaja, who is an immigrant from Nigeria...
of Sunday Adelaja
Sunday Adelaja
Sunday Adelaja is the founder and senior pastor of the Embassy of God, an evangelical-charismatic megachurch in Kiev, Ukraine. He immigrated to the USSR and Belarus as a scholarship student from Nigeria in 1986 to study journalism...
maintains a significant presence throughout the country, as do other neopentecostal groups. Jehovah’s Witnesses are strong, and in 2010 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints dedicated their Kyiv Ukraine Temple. Other active movements include Seventh-day Adventists and Branhamites.
Islam
According to a 2009 Pew Research CenterPew Research Center
The Pew Research Center is an American think tank organization based in Washington, D.C. that provides information on issues, attitudes and trends shaping the United States and the world. The Center and its projects receive funding from The Pew Charitable Trusts. In 1990, Donald S...
report, there are an estimated 456,000 Muslims in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. In the Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
, the Ukrainian Muslims make up to 12% of the population. A major part of the south steppes of modern Ukraine at a certain period of time belonged to the Turkic peoples
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...
, most of whom were Muslims since the fall of the Khazar Khanate.
The Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars or Crimeans are a Turkic ethnic group that originally resided in Crimea. They speak the Crimean Tatar language...
are the only indigenous Muslim ethnic group in the country. The Nogays, another Muslim group who lived in the steppes of southern Ukraine, emigrated to Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
in the 18th-19th century. In addition, there are Muslim communities in all major Ukrainian cities representing Soviet-era migrants from Muslim backgrounds. There are approximately 150 mosques in Ukraine. Many Muslim mosques use the Crimean Tatarian, Arabic, Azeri, Tatarian and Russian languages.
Judaism
The size of the current Jewish population varied. The State Committee of Statistics estimated that there were 103,600 Jews. Some Jewish leaders, said the Jewish population could be as high as 300 thousand. Observers believed that 35 to 40 percent of the Jewish population was active communally; there were 240 registered Jewish organizations. Most observant Jews were Orthodox. There were 104 Chabad-Lubavitch communities in the country. The Progressive (Reform) Jewish movement had forty-eight communities.Judaic congregations use Russian, Hebrew, Yiddish and Ukrainian.
See also
- History of Christianity in UkraineHistory of Christianity in UkraineThe History of Christianity in Ukraine dates back to the earliest centuries of the apostolic church. It has remained the dominant religion in the country since its acceptance in 988 by Vladimir the Great , who instated it as the state religion of Kievan Rus', a medieval East Slavic state.Although...
- Islam in UkraineIslam in UkraineThe majority of Muslims in Ukraine are ethnic Crimean Tatars and live in the Crimean peninsula. According to a Pew Forum study, the Muslim population in Ukraine is 393,000, while according to the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Ukraine there are 2 million Muslims in Ukraine.- History of...
- History of the Jews in UkraineHistory of the Jews in UkraineJewish communities have existed in the territory of Ukraine from the time of Kievan Rus' and developed many of the most distinctive modern Jewish theological and cultural traditions. While at times they flourished, at other times they faced periods of persecution and antisemitic discriminatory...
- Religion by country
- Roman Catholicism in UkraineRoman Catholicism in UkraineThe Roman Catholic Church in Ukraine is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome. The present Archbishop is Mieczysław Mokrzycki ....
- Ukrainian Bible SocietyUkrainian Bible SocietyUkrainian Bible Society - religious non-profit organization, established by representatives of different Christian denominations in Ukraine, who recognize the Bible as the Word of God...
- Bahá'í Faith in UkraineBahá'í Faith in UkraineThe Bahá'í Faith in Ukraine began during the policy of oppression of religion in the former Soviet Union. Before that time, Ukraine, as part of the Russian Empire, would have had indirect contact with the Bahá'í Faith as far back as 1847...