Cuius Regio, Eius Religio? The Theopolitics of Ukrainian Autocephalies

Abstract

This contribution focuses on two Ukrainian autocephalies: the one granted on 6 January 2019 by the Ecumenical Patriarchate to the newly established Orthodox Church of Ukraine, and the de-facto one proclaimed on 27 May 2022 by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. The ecclesial situation in Ukraine depends on the ongoing war with the Russian Federation, and the Ukrainian dioceses under Russian control are likely to move under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church in line with Patriarch Kirill’s new policy, with huge repercussions for Orthodox theopolitics.