The decision of a church in Ukraine challenges Putin's newly religious Russia

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It is a region of the world where governments have spent decades trying to suppress religion, especially Orthodox Christianity which was the main religion for centuries. In the last quarter of a century, religion has reborn – and is now taking on enormous political significance.

A decision taken this week may raise tension between Russia and Ukraine. A synodal meeting in Istanbul authorized Ukraine to create its own Orthodox church – which allowed it to become independent of the Russian Orthodox Church.

For foreigners, this might seem to be an issue of particular interest to those concerned with doctrinal differences between or within denominations. This is not it. This seemingly spiritual matter carries a high political charge. The governments of Russia and Ukraine – neighboring countries that share centuries of historical, cultural and political ties – have been implacable enemies since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea, a part of Ukraine . For years, Russia and Ukraine have blamed each other for being responsible for bloody unrest in eastern Ukraine. thousands of lives.

Ukrainian leaders – both spiritual and political – clearly explained the scope of the decision. Reuters quoted Petro Poroshenko, President of Ukraine, said:finally dispelled imperial illusions and chauvinistic fantasies of Moscow. & # 39;

Patriarch Filaret, probably considered as the head of the independent Ukrainian church, has already sharply criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin, even going so far as to suggest that Putin is owned by Satan. & nbsp;

These words could be considered as those of a bitter opponent – that is, in a sense, what they are – but their meaning is greater than that. Although he was – as a KGB officer – a loyal servant of the atheist Soviet state, Putin has been very vocal in recent years about his willingness to adhere to the orthodox Christian traditions of his country – by making them enter the politics of the 21st century own public actions.

During his two decades at the top of Russian politics, Putin was often represented meeting prominent members of the clergy, especially the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill. This year, the Russian president has even been filmed to dive into a lake as part of a religious ritual marking Epiphany & nbsp; – which falls in what is usually the coldest part of the Russian winter.

Although Mr. Putin's public displays of faith may not have inspired his compatriots to visit the church regularly in greater numbers, opinion polls regularly suggest that since the Soviet period, more and more people consider themselves Orthodox Christians.

This author had a superficial way of noticing him as a correspondent based in Moscow for many years in the 1990s and early 2000s. In the 1990s, taxi drivers often had pornographic images on their dashboards or their mirrors. In the 2000s, reproductions of religious icons seemed much more commonplace (although it was simply an attempt to protect against the notoriously high rate of accidents in the road in Russia).

Religion has become an extremely important element of identity in the former Soviet Union and an integral part of how President Putin presents himself as a leader. It is therefore not surprising that President Poroshenko regards this week's decision as an end to what he called "imperial illusions".

In this sense, this announcement represents a victory for Ukraine and a loss for Russia – which reacted in declaring his opposition the decision also threatens to formalize a new division between the governments of two countries that have been allies of so much of their common history.

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It is a region of the world where governments have spent decades trying to eliminate religion, especially Orthodox Christianity which has been the main religion in this country for hundreds of years. In the last quarter of a century, religion has reborn – and is now taking on enormous political significance.

A decision taken this week may raise tension between Russia and Ukraine. At a synod meeting in Istanbul, Ukraine was allowed to create its own Orthodox church, thus offering the opportunity to become independent of the Russian Orthodox Church.

For foreigners, this might seem to be an issue of particular interest to those concerned with doctrinal differences between or within denominations. This is not it. This seemingly spiritual matter carries a high political charge. The governments of Russia and Ukraine – neighboring countries that share centuries of historical, cultural and political ties – have been implacable enemies since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea, a part of Ukraine . Since then, Russia and Ukraine have blamed each other for the bloody unrest in eastern Ukraine, which has claimed the lives of thousands of people.

Ukrainian leaders – both spiritual and political – clearly explained the scope of the decision. Reuters quoted Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko as saying:finally dispelled imperial illusions and chauvinistic fantasies of Moscow. & # 39;

Patriarch Filaret, considered probably the head of the independent Ukrainian church, has already sharply criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin, even going so far as to suggest that Putin is possessed by Satan.

These words could be considered as those of a bitter opponent – that is, in a sense, what they are – but their meaning is greater than that. Although he was – as a KGB officer – a loyal servant of the atheist Soviet state, Putin has been very vocal in recent years about his willingness to adhere to the orthodox Christian traditions of his country – by making them enter the politics of the 21st century own public actions.

During his two decades at the top of Russian politics, Putin was often represented meeting prominent members of the clergy, especially the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill. This year, the Russian president was even filmed immersing himself in a lake as part of a religious ritual marking Epiphany – which corresponds to what is usually the coldest part of the Russian winter.

While Putin's public expressions of faith may not have prompted his compatriots to visit the church regularly, opinion polls regularly suggest that since the Soviet period, more and more people have considered themselves Orthodox Christians.

This author had a superficial way of noticing him as a correspondent based in Moscow for many years in the 1990s and early 2000s. In the 1990s, taxi drivers often had pornographic images on their dashboards or their mirrors. In the 2000s, reproductions of religious icons seemed much more commonplace (although it was simply an attempt to protect against the notoriously high rate of accidents in the road in Russia).

Religion has become an extremely important element of identity in the former Soviet Union and an integral part of how President Putin presents himself as a leader. It is therefore not surprising that President Poroshenko regards this week's decision as an end to what he called "imperial illusions".

In this sense, this announcement represents a victory for Ukraine and a loss for Russia – which reacted by declaring its opposition to any measure ", which resulted in a deep split in the Orthodox world". The decision also threatens to formalize a new division between the governments of two countries that have been allies for much of their common history.