Why are UOC priests joining OCU? Part three, "non-patriotic"
The most common argument for priests switching to the OCU is the UOC being "non-patriotic": it does not serve the state and has no flags and tridents in its temples.
In the first two articles, we talked about some priests who switch from the UOC to the OCU either due to the "savior syndrome" or for moral reasons. Today, let's talk about those who leave due to the "non-patriotic" and "non-national" position of the UOC.
Where did the "patriotism" of the OCU come from?
Leaving for the OCU because of the lack of a patriotic vector in the UOC is probably the most common reason. In the sense that both those who feel they cannot realize themselves intellectually in the UOC ("savior syndrome") and those who feel that their moral-ethical state does not coincide with the Gospel and the position of the UOC on moral issues sooner or later resort to "national" or "patriotic" arguments.
This is not surprising because the OCU is a direct successor and continuator of the Filaret schism, which, apart from the "national constituent", had nothing to attract believers.
In the early 1990s and today in Ukraine, there was and is a canonical Church with a canonical Primate, recognized by all Local Churches in the world. Naturally, believing people did not look for any other Church on the territory of Ukraine. Why? Therefore, Kravchuk and Filaret Denisenko, the creators of the UOC KP, bet on unbelieving people, on those who at Christmas wished each other "tasty kutia" (traditional Christmas meal - Ed.), and went to the church to "bless the water" or "Easter cake." And today, such people in the OCU have not become more enlightened. For example, after switching to the new style, they popularly congratulate each other on Christmas Eve wishing "Generous Evening".
For such people, all theological arguments, canonical rules, or common sense are like Chinese. Therefore, Filaret came up with a simple slogan, "an independent state – an independent church", and as the main argument to "explain" to a person why they should support the UOC KP, he used national feelings and the language issue. Everywhere they could, both Denisenko himself and his closest assistants and practically all "priests" and "bishops" of the Kyiv Patriarchate said that their "church" is "national" because the "service" is performed in the Ukrainian language. People who abandoned the faith of their fathers could not provide our society with anything else. The same logic was adopted by the OCU, and mostly those who decide to "change jurisdiction" and leave the UOC rely on it.
But are the statements of Denisenko himself and many "priests" of the OCU, who talk about the "patriotism" and "national character" of their "church," justified? What is patriotism, and how much space can be given to national ideas in the Church?
Patriotism: In words and deeds
Being a patriot means loving one's homeland. This is a well-known thesis. However, love for the homeland should not be limited solely to words. Actions speak louder than words. If we compare the actions of those who are part of the UOC (Ukrainian Orthodox Church) and those who support the OCU (Orthodox Church of Ukraine), we will see many interesting things.
To avoid lip service, let's provide specific numbers.
In 2022 alone, based on information from open sources, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church provided more than 200 tons of humanitarian aid to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and medical assistance was provided to wounded soldiers in the form of purchasing medicines for over 4 million hryvnias. During the year, 80 vehicles were purchased and transferred to the military, with the total amount of military aid provided exceeding 30 million hryvnias. Again, these are figures that only speak of assistance to the military and only for the year 2022. Not assistance to the civilian population, not assistance to refugees, displaced persons, and everyone affected by the war, but to the military alone.
In 2023, the UOC raised 88 million hryvnias for the military and those affected by the war in Ukraine. Metropolitan Onuphry personally handed over 2 million hryvnias for the needs of the Armed Forces, and the charitable foundation of the Primate of the UOC collected a million for purchasing food for those in need. The clergy and believers of the UOC made about 40 humanitarian trips to the front-line and de-occupied territories, delivering about 100 tons of humanitarian aid.
Do we see something similar from the OCU? No. There is some humanitarian activity, of course, by Dumenko, but its scale does not compare with what the UOC provides. Moreover, there are cases where representatives of Dumenko, after seizing UOC temples, even ruined charitable projects that existed there before them. For example, in Khmelnytskyi, the raiders of the OCU seized the St. George and Kazan temples of the UOC and almost immediately ceased the operation of their dining rooms, which not only fed the needy residents of the city but also many displaced persons. The justification for such a decision was "no money". But the people who were expelled from these temples found the money and continued to feed those in need. This case is far from unique.
Furthermore, it is no secret that more than half of the personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine belong to the UOC. Also, our Church lost more priests and churchmen during the two years of war than all the other churches in Ukraine combined.
At the same time, the OCU has "bishops" who obtained Russian citizenship after 2014, that is, after the start of the war in Donbas (Clement Kushch), or who are agents of the LPR special services with corresponding "documents" (Tikhon Petraniuk). Neither the former nor the latter has been ever condemned by the leadership of the OCU. So if we talk about patriotism not in slogans but in deeds, such a conversation will clearly not be in favor of Dumenko and his organization.
Nation and Church
Equally problematic for our opponents from the OCU is the discussion of nationalism, which they often confuse with patriotism. For followers of Dumenko, being a nationalist is honorable and joyful. This is precisely why all those who joined the OCU and those who were there before transform the Church into some ideological appendage of the state.
During "worship" in OCU temples, not only prayers are heard but also the national anthem of Ukraine or Bandera songs. The altar may be "decorated" with the flag of our country, and a trident may adorn the Royal Gates.
Iconostasis with trident in the temple of Odessa. Photo: Informator
The same trident can be used by OCU "bishops" for "blessing" water, later explaining its origin with some "traditions". A Dumenko "priest" after the "worship" can shout "Glory to the nation!" and hear in response "Death to the enemies!" They are not disturbed when a person in priestly attire can declare that "Ukraine is above all!" or when he justifies Hitler and Nazism. And again, these cases are not isolated incidents but a whole system operating within the OCU.
Therefore, it is not surprising that for representatives of Dumenko's organization, the concept of "nation" becomes more important than the Gospel and Christ. They, consciously or not, sacralize nationalist symbolism, desacralizing or even destroying Christian symbolism in the process. And this is not an exaggeration. In Trebukhiv, OCU activists threw the Bible into a landfill after seizing it, simply because it was printed in Moscow. Christianity becomes a "folk religion", rather than the "religion of the people", losing its essence. Hence, the fight against "Russian saints," who are "alien" to Ukrainians, against "Russian holidays," and "slave-like Russian traditions".
As a result, in the view of Dumenko's followers, the Church acquires an exclusively "national character" and the same flavor as this OCU "hegumen", whose phelon depicts the map of Ukraine.
Conclusions
In Christ, "there is no Gentile or Jew", as the apostle tells us (Colossians 3:11). This means that if the Church is reduced to a group of national communities, it will lose its universal character, ceasing to be all-encompassing, embracing all tribes, nations, and countries. All those who have joined the OCU due to "patriotic" and "nationalistic" considerations must understand that boiling down the essence of the Church to serving the nation rather than God will turn the Church into a marginal structure. While it may not disappear in the blink of an eye, it will gradually fade away with the nation in the whirlwind of history.
On the other hand, serving the nation, people, or country transforms the religious community into something entirely alien to the Gospel. But the most terrifying thing is that by singing the anthem of Ukraine and patriotic songs in the church, you will still not prove your patriotism. In contrast, you may risk losing Christ.
