Thinking about religion in Russia: Orthodox Christianity has declined, but also grown?

[Michie]

“Religion” is a complicated word, as I have noted many times at GetReligion.

Put the word “Byzantine” in front of “religion” or “Christianity” and things get really complicated, as in this secondary definition of that adjective: “ … excessively complicated, and typically involving a great deal of administrative detail.”

Frame Byzantine Christianity with the history of Russian culture and the complications are compounded. Toss in centuries of history — complex, bloody, mysterious and sacred — shared by the Slavic giants Russia and Ukraine and, well, you get the picture.

This weekend “think piece” comes from the Orthodox Christianity news website. This is an information source that, from the American point of view, is extremely conservative. This doesn’t mean that mainstream journalists should ignore it.

Why is that? Because it consistently offers direct links to online sources — documents, speeches, quotable analysis — that the vast majority of reporters and editors would not know about otherwise. This includes, for example, lots of material representing the leadership of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. That’s the historic church of Ukraine that is current caught up — along with millions of its Ukrainian members — in a violent collision between the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s current government, which is backed by the United States, the European Union and the tiny, but symbolic, Orthodox church in Istanbul led by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.

It’s easy, these days, for journalists to get government approved material from Moscow and Kyiv. The ancient Orthodox church being crushed by the two armies? Not so much. Thus, it helps to follow the Orthodox Christianity feed on X (the digital platform previously known as Twitter).

Consider the complex realities represented in this recent post: “Percentage of Orthodox is Down in Russia, but Percentage of Practicing Orthodox is up — Survey.” Read this carefully:

Continued below.

Thinking about religion in Russia: Orthodox Christianity has declined, but also grown? — GetReligion

“Religion” is a complicated word, as I have noted many times at GetReligion. Put the word “Byzantine” in front of “religion” or “Christianity” and things get really complicated, as in this secondary definition of that adjective : “ … excessively complicated, and typically involving a gr

www.getreligion.org

 

[Dogheaded]

“Religion” is a complicated word, as I have noted many times at GetReligion.

Put the word “Byzantine” in front of “religion” or “Christianity” and things get really complicated, as in this secondary definition of that adjective: “ … excessively complicated, and typically involving a great deal of administrative detail.”

Frame Byzantine Christianity with the history of Russian culture and the complications are compounded. Toss in centuries of history — complex, bloody, mysterious and sacred — shared by the Slavic giants Russia and Ukraine and, well, you get the picture.

This weekend “think piece” comes from the Orthodox Christianity news website. This is an information source that, from the American point of view, is extremely conservative. This doesn’t mean that mainstream journalists should ignore it.

Why is that? Because it consistently offers direct links to online sources — documents, speeches, quotable analysis — that the vast majority of reporters and editors would not know about otherwise. This includes, for example, lots of material representing the leadership of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. That’s the historic church of Ukraine that is current caught up — along with millions of its Ukrainian members — in a violent collision between the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s current government, which is backed by the United States, the European Union and the tiny, but symbolic, Orthodox church in Istanbul led by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.

It’s easy, these days, for journalists to get government approved material from Moscow and Kyiv. The ancient Orthodox church being crushed by the two armies? Not so much. Thus, it helps to follow the Orthodox Christianity feed on X (the digital platform previously known as Twitter).

Consider the complex realities represented in this recent post: “Percentage of Orthodox is Down in Russia, but Percentage of Practicing Orthodox is up — Survey.” Read this carefully:

Continued below.

Thinking about religion in Russia: Orthodox Christianity has declined, but also grown? — GetReligion

“Religion” is a complicated word, as I have noted many times at GetReligion. Put the word “Byzantine” in front of “religion” or “Christianity” and things get really complicated, as in this secondary definition of that adjective : “ … excessively complicated, and typically involving a gr

www.getreligion.org

Think if all the 'Catholics' who only attend church for their weddings decided to just stop pretending to be Catholic. But at the same time more people began actually attending weekly. The first group is already a false number but when scratched from the statistics, appears to make it seem like a lot of people left - but they weren't actually there anyways.

 

[ValeriyK2022]

“Religion” is a complicated word, as I have noted many times at GetReligion.

Put the word “Byzantine” in front of “religion” or “Christianity” and things get really complicated, as in this secondary definition of that adjective: “ … excessively complicated, and typically involving a great deal of administrative detail.”

Frame Byzantine Christianity with the history of Russian culture and the complications are compounded. Toss in centuries of history — complex, bloody, mysterious and sacred — shared by the Slavic giants Russia and Ukraine and, well, you get the picture.

This weekend “think piece” comes from the Orthodox Christianity news website. This is an information source that, from the American point of view, is extremely conservative. This doesn’t mean that mainstream journalists should ignore it.

Why is that? Because it consistently offers direct links to online sources — documents, speeches, quotable analysis — that the vast majority of reporters and editors would not know about otherwise. This includes, for example, lots of material representing the leadership of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. That’s the historic church of Ukraine that is current caught up — along with millions of its Ukrainian members — in a violent collision between the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s current government, which is backed by the United States, the European Union and the tiny, but symbolic, Orthodox church in Istanbul led by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.

It’s easy, these days, for journalists to get government approved material from Moscow and Kyiv. The ancient Orthodox church being crushed by the two armies? Not so much. Thus, it helps to follow the Orthodox Christianity feed on X (the digital platform previously known as Twitter).

Consider the complex realities represented in this recent post: “Percentage of Orthodox is Down in Russia, but Percentage of Practicing Orthodox is up — Survey.” Read this carefully:

Continued below.

Thinking about religion in Russia: Orthodox Christianity has declined, but also grown? — GetReligion

“Religion” is a complicated word, as I have noted many times at GetReligion. Put the word “Byzantine” in front of “religion” or “Christianity” and things get really complicated, as in this secondary definition of that adjective : “ … excessively complicated, and typically involving a gr

www.getreligion.org

About 17 years ago, in a resort town in Ukraine, I asked vacationers if they believed in God. Almost everyone called themselves believers and Orthodox. But I did not find a single person who knew his faith (the creed, the commandments, the main canons, etc.) and regularly attended church every Sunday. Maybe this is because such people do not go to resorts, but go to holy places. But nevertheless, everyone who was baptized in the Orthodox faith in childhood or was born into an Orthodox environment called themselves Orthodox. Now the situation is different. The Orthodox are slandered, churches are taken away from the Orthodox. Members of the UOC can be insulted by people who have been duped by television propaganda or by those who do not want to understand. Therefore, only those who are ready to suffer for their faith dare to call themselves Orthodox out loud.

The UOC, more than any other Christian denomination in Ukraine, helped refugees and helped the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Nevertheless, TV repeats like a mantra for the entire population: this is a Moscow church, not a Ukrainian one (that is, they are constantly slandering).

During World War II, it so happened that Catholics in Germany and Italy fought against Catholics in France, Poland and Western Ukraine. And no one called on Catholics to separate from the Vatican, because according to church canons you cannot secede on your own.

Now the Orthodox people UOC as part of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are fighting against the Orthodox people Russian Orthodox Church as part of the armed forces of the Russian Federation. The UOC regularly provides material support to soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, since almost every member of the UOC in the Armed Forces of Ukraine has either family members, or relatives, or friends, or comrades who fight. And still they continue to slander, insult UOC and continue to take away churches in the rear.

I no longer understand: Russian agents are arranging this or our allies want to divide the people of Ukraine among themselves and turn Ukraine into a European Afghanistan?

 

[Lukaris]

About 17 years ago, in a resort town in Ukraine, I asked vacationers if they believed in God. Almost everyone called themselves believers and Orthodox. But I did not find a single person who knew his faith (the creed, the commandments, the main canons, etc.) and regularly attended church every Sunday. Maybe this is because such people do not go to resorts, but go to holy places. But nevertheless, everyone who was baptized in the Orthodox faith in childhood or was born into an Orthodox environment called themselves Orthodox. Now the situation is different. The Orthodox are slandered, churches are taken away from the Orthodox. Members of the UOC can be insulted by people who have been duped by television propaganda or by those who do not want to understand. Therefore, only those who are ready to suffer for their faith dare to call themselves Orthodox out loud.

The UOC, more than any other Christian denomination in Ukraine, helped refugees and helped the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Nevertheless, TV repeats like a mantra for the entire population: this is a Moscow church, not a Ukrainian one (that is, they are constantly slandering).

During World War II, it so happened that Catholics in Germany and Italy fought against Catholics in France, Poland and Western Ukraine. And no one called on Catholics to separate from the Vatican, because according to church canons you cannot secede on your own.

Now the Orthodox people UOC as part of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are fighting against the Orthodox people Russian Orthodox Church as part of the armed forces of the Russian Federation. The UOC regularly provides material support to soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, since almost every member of the UOC in the Armed Forces of Ukraine has either family members, or relatives, or friends, or comrades who fight. And still they continue to slander, insult UOC and continue to take away churches in the rear.

I no longer understand: Russian agents are arranging this or our allies want to divide the people of Ukraine among themselves and turn Ukraine into a European Afghanistan?

What is your opinion of Metropolitan Onufriy?