Expert calls suppression of UOC in Galicia a response to Uniates oppression

Liudmyla Fylypovych. Photo: uatv.ua

Doctor of Philosophy and professor at the Skovoroda Institute of Philosophy of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Liudmyla Fylypovych, commented on the report by Lviv regional authorities that 27 communities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) had joined the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), while another 27 dissolved themselves, reports Hromadske Radio.

Filipovych drew attention to the figures presented by Maksym Kozytskyi, noting that such changes are not accidental for the region. She linked this to historical events. “These communities may have been told: ‘Just as the Greek Catholics had to survive by joining the Moscow Church in 1946, so now we must survive by transitioning to the OCU,’” Fylypovych speculated.

She also highlighted that the transitions may not always have been voluntary and were accompanied by coercion, leaving believers in a state of uncertainty. According to her, this caused hesitation and resistance in people’s minds, particularly against the backdrop of the historical injustices endured by Uniates during Soviet times.

“These hesitations occurred alongside shifts in the party line. People lived as the party decided. Was this significant for believers? Yes. Although it’s clear that ideological matters may not have been explicitly discussed in the church, the awareness that one was forced to change jurisdiction against their will was oppressive.”

As previously reported by the UOJ, Fylypovych has criticized anti-church legislation, arguing that the mechanism for banning the UOC in this law is completely impractical and unenforceable.

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