A Ukraine-based historian and publicist Andriy Ivanets is sure that Russia will use the UOC MP to brainwash the local population in the occupied areas, imposing Kremlin’s narratives on them. In his opinion, the scenario of an “alternative UOC” in the occupied territories will offer Russia the opportunity to more effectively exploit the local population in Moscow’s interests.
“They will fill people’s brains with fascist ideology and heresy of the ‘Russian world’ to then use part of these people for the war against Ukraine. But, from the point of view of canon law, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which has claimed independence, while de facto retaining canonical ties with the Moscow Patriarchate, strictly speaking, has no canonical legitimacy – that’s from the standpoint of global Orthodoxy. The “alternative UOC” will become even more conditional and just as non-canonical,” Ivanets emphasized in a comment for Radio Svoboda.
“We can predict that, if the occupation of Ukrainian territories continues, Moscow will continue to capture local churches and believers. The hierarch from Luhansk attended the ‘event marking the annexation of the occupied Ukrainian territories by Russia.’ This is rather telling because he allowed himself to violate Ukraine’s legislation so grossly. The UOC itself has not yet taken any measures against him. And it is expected that in the future the Russian Orthodox Church will act in line with the scenario applied to the Crimean dioceses. But, on the other hand, the situation at the front is so unpredictable that drastic changes could happen literally within a year, and the occupiers may have no time to implement such scenarios. And if they even try, these scenarios will be played back,” Ivanets said.
As the Russian Institute of Religion and Politics reports, its president Anton Ignatenko foresees significant changes in religious life in the occupied territories of Ukraine – in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhia regions.
The study claims that religious communities in these territories will be integrated into Russian religious organizations, while “Muslims have already divided the territories: the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Russia – in Donetsk, and the Spiritual Assembly of Muslims of Russia – in Luhansk. Other territories will also be divided.”
Earlier, the Spiritual Front of Ukraine reported that the Russian Orthodox Church is occupying the parishes of the UOC MP in the regions where the sham referenda were held. The ROC also hinted that there would be no UOC MP on the occupied lands as such.
