Ukrainian Orthodox Church and Orthodox Church of Ukraine are now legal synonyms

Yesterday, the Ukrainian justice ministry officially registered the religious organization, “the Kyiv Metropolitanate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (the Orthodox Church of Ukraine)," thus making it official that the two terms, Ukrainian Orthodox Church and Orthodox Church of Ukraine, are legally synonymous. That new reality was underscored by a statement of Andriy Yurash, director of the department for religious and nationality affairs of the Ukrainian culture ministry who said that officials and Ukrainians will use the terms interchangeably, an arrangement that has been cleared with the Ecumenical Patriarch. For that to be possible, the former Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate must use a new name, and the Ukrainian culture ministry says it will unilaterally take action to rename that church if it does not change its name on its own to show its links to Russia.

Further Reading:

• New independent church and Moscow Patriarchate vie for parishes in Ukraine
• FSB, SVR divide control of Moscow Patriarchate church at home and abroad, Ukrainian intelligence official says
• Ukrainian autocephaly a defeat for Putin but a victory for a future Free Russia, Illarionov says
• Now-independent Ukrainian Orthodox church set to be major player internationally, Illarionov says
• Ukrainian Orthodox Church head says Russian Orthodox Church will remain in Ukraine as many want it and he’s not against that
• Are the Uniates about to make common cause with newly autocephalous Ukrainian Orthodox?
• New chances, new risks. Where Ukrainian Orthodoxy stands on the eve of independence
• A short history of the Ukrainian Church: infographic
• Ukrainian autocephaly destroys ideological foundation of Russian empire, Espresso says