RELATIONS BETWEEN THE ORTHODOX CHURCH AND THE STATE DURING THE UKRAINIAN CENTRAL COUNCIL

Abstract

The article analyzes the peculiarities of church life in Ukraine in 1917, clarifies the attitude of the leaders of the Ukrainian Central Council (UCС) and the General Secretariat to the internal life of the church in Ukraine. It is shown that in the spring of 1917 two currents became widespread among the clergy of Ukraine. Representatives of the higher clergy and a large number of priests seek understanding and support from the Provisional Government. In contrast, a small part of the clergy actively supports the national liberation movement in Ukraine and actively defends the idea of restoring the independence of the Orthodox Church in the Ukrainian lands. In April 1917, representatives of the first began active preparations for the All-Russian Congress of Orthodox Clergy and Laity, which began its work on June 1, 1917 in Moscow, and the minority took an active part in the formation of the UCС. The initiators of the idea of restructuring the Orthodox Church in Ukraine were the national intelligentsia and representatives of the lower ranks of the clergy. In the spring of 1917, pastoral meetings were held in almost all regions of Ukraine, at which it was decided to support the UCR and send representatives of the clergy to it. Priests and parishioners of Volyn, Pereyaslav, Podillya and Poltava asked the Russian leadership to create a special autonomous metropolis in the Ukrainian provinces. On January 7 (20), 1918, the All-Ukrainian Orthodox Church Council began its work in Kyiv, at which it was declared necessary to support the aspirations of the nationally clergy to establish a Ukrainian church independent of the ROC. However, the Bolshevik offensive on Kyiv did not allow its delegates to complete its work. At the Council, supporters of the Autocephalous Church of Ukraine did not find support from a large number of delegates, nor did representatives of the UCR and the Ukrainian government.