The Ukrainian Orthodox Church's efforts to obtain autocephaly, or what can for all practical intents and purposes be regarded as independence, from the Moscow Patriarchate threatens to spark a spiritual civil war that could result in yet another schism within Christianity.
Kiev recently received permission from the Holy Synod of the Constantinople Patriarchate to go forward with its plans to break from Moscow and found its own church, which it claims will free the country from Russian influence. Moscow, for its part, fiercely objects to this hostile move and expressed serious concern over the fate of its church's property and the safety of its believers in an increasingly ultra-nationalist Ukraine. It also vowed to protect them through all legal means at its disposal.
The issue is extremely sensitive because Kiev is regarded as the historic cradle of Russian civilization, which is one of the reasons why the aftermath of the American-backed spree of urban terrorism popularly referred to as “EuroMaidan” was so painful for many Russians. Now, however, they're forced to confront the nightmarish scenario of potentially having the spiritual bonds with their ancient motherland severed for what appears to be nothing more than self-serving political reasons that are irresponsibly — though possibly even deliberately — widening the divide between these two brotherly people. This can't help…
