Ukrainian Orthodox split on Church allegiance to Moscow
February 04, 2022
» Continue to this story on Razumkov Centre
CWN Editor's Note: A new study of Ukrainian Orthodox believers has found a sharp increase in the number who identify with the independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church, rather than the competitive body allied with the Moscow patriarchate.
In 2020, a study by the Razumkov Centre found 29.8% of Orthodox faithful allied with the independent Orthodox Church (OCU); that number jumped to 40.6% in 2021, as tensions between Ukraine and Russia heightened. The number of Orthodox faithful aligned with the Moscow patriarchate (UOC-MP) remained fairly steady, moving from 21.7% down to 20.1%. A large number of those surveyed (43.3%) declined to state an allegiance, identifying themselves as “just Orthodox.”
The Razumkov survey did not distinguish between Orthodox believers who attend religious service regularly and those who do not. The (UOC-MP) has more parishes and priests, but the OCU boasts 32% more donors.
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