The ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war has deepened the rift and division in the Orthodox world that began with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church's demand for secession from the Russian ecclesiastical administration in 2018, 4 years after Moscow annexed the Crimea.
In October 2018, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church applied for secession.
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in Istanbul accepted the request, and it was an official declaration of the difference of views between the two churches.
The Russian Patriarchate objected to the decision of the Patriarchate of Constantinople to grant the Ukrainian Orthodox Church the status of "self-headed", a term belonging to the old Byzantine law, and it means churches that enjoy full legal and administrative independence, where they elect their leaders and bishops themselves.
The Russo-Ukrainian war further deepened the dispute between the Orthodox and this topic became a topic of discussion on the world stage.
support and neutrality
Following the start of the Russo-Ukrainian war, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mishotakis visited Istanbul on March 13, and the visit was interpreted as Athens' support for the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in its decision regarding Ukraine.
The Bulgarian Church tried to remain neutral in the dispute over the spiritual leadership of the Orthodox world between the Greek Patriarch of Istanbul Bartholomew and the Patriarch of Moscow Kirill, but the Church Committee and the bishops of the Church condemned the Russian war on Ukraine and explicitly supported Kyiv.
The Patriarch of Istanbul delivers the official decree to the new leader of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church in Ukraine in early 2019 (Getty Images)
After the attack on a church in Ukraine after the outbreak of the war, the Orthodox Church in the Netherlands announced its desire to secede from Moscow and be affiliated with Istanbul (the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople), citing the lack of a spiritually safe environment under the Moscow Patriarchate.
While the Serbian Church opposed the Ukrainian demand for secession and took a position in favor of Moscow, it preferred to take a more neutral stance after the outbreak of the war, and called on the brothers of religion in Russia and Ukraine to pray for peace between the two countries.
The relationship between the Orthodox Church and the Kremlin
The Orthodox Church had a great influence on social life and state administration during the reign of Tsarist Russia, and then suffered a difficult period after the Bolshevik Revolution.
The majority of Russians describe themselves as Orthodox, considering this a national identity. That is why the Kremlin, since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 until today, has been keen on rapprochement with the Church.
During Putin's presidency from 2000-2008, he refused to impose new taxes in order to finance the church, as well as its request to establish a federal television channel.
During the presidency of Dmitry Medvedev after that and the prime minister of Putin, the Orthodox Church flourished with the donations of business leaders.
During the 2008-2010 economic crisis, Medvedev spent 6 billion rubles on establishing churches in Russia. In return, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow supported Medvedev's political program, which included the allocation of more state assets and the inclusion of more parties in political life.
With Putin's election as Russia's president again in 2012, the relationship between the Kremlin and the Church deepened.
In the opinion of Moscow Patriarch Kirill, there are 150 million Orthodox in the world, especially within the borders of the ancient Russian Empire, so Orthodoxy can be a good way to strengthen Russia's position beyond its national borders.
Russian warplanes fly over a Russian church during a previous parade (Reuters)
As for Professor Emre Oktam, a faculty member at the Faculty of Law at Galatasaray University in Turkey, he said that the Orthodox Church enjoys a horizontal hierarchical organizational structure based on equality between partners, unlike the vertical organizational structure headed by the Pope in the Catholic Church.
He added that today there are 16 autonomous churches and 19 self-administering churches, and that the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Istanbul enjoys the status of "first among peers" among these churches.
He explained that with the increase of Russia's political influence, the Moscow Patriarchate was established in 1589 with the permission of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Istanbul.
Oktem pointed out that the Moscow Patriarch defines the scope of his spiritual authority as all the regions that used to belong to the former Soviet Union and whose residents embrace Orthodoxy, and that the Moscow Patriarchate has been seeking for years to strengthen its influence over the Orthodox in the Balkan and Middle East regions, and recently added to it the Far East and Africa, and that the Kremlin has sought to The same period to increase Moscow's political influence in the mentioned regions.
"Of course, there are complex geopolitical reasons for the Russian-Ukrainian war, but it can be said that the Ukrainian Church's announcement of its separation from the Moscow Patriarchate in 2018, and the recognition of it by the Istanbul Patriarchate, played a symbolic role in the war. Russia realized that it could neither politically nor religiously control Kyiv, so it resorted to to the military option.
Dispute over powers
Oktem stated that the dispute over powers and authorities had always existed in the relations of the Moscow Patriarchate with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople during the era of Tsarist Russia and during the Cold War period.
He went on to say that the Moscow Patriarchate did not deny the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople nor its "first among peers" status, but said that the Patriarchate in Istanbul - where there are only 3,000 Orthodox - would not be able to lead the Orthodox world.
He pointed out that the Russian-Ukrainian war could lead to results in favor of the Istanbul Patriarchate, because the Orthodox world feared the Russian invasion supported by the Moscow Patriarchate.
"The Istanbul Patriarchate does not have tanks, missiles, or fighters, but it plays an influential role in the international arena," he added.
The last Russian war on Ukraine destroyed a number of churches (Getty Images)
The professor added that Patriarch Bartholomew (the Greek patriarch in Istanbul) managed over the past 30 years to gain great popularity and support, not only in the Orthodox world, but throughout the world, so it is natural for the Orthodox in the world to rally around the Istanbul Patriarchate.
Patriarch Bartholomew had visited Poland at the invitation of its President Andrzej Duda, and there he met a group of Ukrainian refugees, and he also met with the Archbishop of Poland Stanislaw.
As for Professor Stefano Caprio, a faculty member at the Pontifical Oriental Institute known for his research on Russia and Russian history, he stressed that the Russian-Ukrainian war will increase discord and strife between the Orthodox Churches.
He added that the Ukrainian Church used to belong to the Moscow Patriarchate, but now it refuses to mention the name of the Moscow Patriarchate in any mass it holds because it supported Russia's attack on Ukraine.
He explained that the biggest problem lies in the difference of national churches in the Orthodox world over the "self-headed" status of the Ukrainian Church, and that only the Athens and Alexandria churches recognized the decision of the Istanbul Patriarchate, while about 12 churches abstained from expressing their opinion on the matter.
He continued by saying that the war prevented other churches from supporting Russia with the exception of the Orthodox Church in Antioch, due to Russia's great influence and control over Syria and the Serbian Orthodox Church, which has always been close to Russia.
Therefore, it is possible that other churches will recognize the independence of the Ukrainian Church, and of course this will deepen discord and division in the Orthodox world, according to Caprio.