Identity and Faith: The Church and the Euromaidan in Ukraine
Identity and Faith: The Church and the Euromaidan in Ukraine

Summary/Abstract: The present study analyzes the role of the Church in the context of the Euromaidan and the conflicts in Ukraine during 2013–2014, highlighting the interdependence between national identity, faith, and geopolitics. The religious events occasioned by the commemoration of the Baptism of and the anniversary of the Edict of Milan were, to some extent, politically instrumentalized by Moscow to reinforce the ideology of Pan-Slavism. This, in turn, generated additional tensions within an already divided Ukrainian society, split between pro-Russian and pro-European orientations. During the protests, the Churches responded differently: the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate initially adopted a neutral stance, while the Greek Catholic Church became actively involved, providing moral, logistical, and spiritual support to the protesters. At the same time, several monasteries and religious communities turned into spaces of refuge and civic resistance. Religious involvement thus contributed both to the consolidation of social mobilization and to the deepening of internal divisions, confirming that the Church—beyond its spiritual mission—had become a central actor in the confrontation between Russian expansionism and Ukraine’s pro-European aspirations.

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