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Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine: The Church should initiate a socio-cultural space in which the antagonism of Western and Eastern elements of culture would be creatively transformed into synthetic unity based on the Orthodox tradition

25.06.2008 · Архив 2005-2009, Религиозная ситуация на Украине, События  

While performing her salutary ministry in modern society, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church must take into account the socio-cultural specific features of Ukraine, His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine noted in his report presented at the Bishops’ Council-2008.

Metropolitan Vladimir believes that Huntington’s words, ‘the Ukraine is a split country with two different cultures’ is somewhat categorical but shows reality. ‘Today we must talk about the two poles of the Ukrainian culture and the two different orbits of civilization – Eastern and Eastern ones,’ the First Hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church stated.

‘The Eastern Ukrainian world, concentrated mostly on the left bank of the Dnieper, has shaped as a result of creative interaction of the Ukrainian and Russian cultures, while the Western Ukrainian civilizational community, located mostly on the right bank of the Dnieper, has shaped as a result of interaction with the Polish, Austrian, Romanian, Lithuanian and other European cultures. Therefore, cultural and civilizational orientation at the West is characteristic of the right-bank Ukraine.’

Yet, these two Ukrainian communities ‘are different, but inseparable. They have much in common: language, history, culture, and – most important – Christianity with just one source – the Baptism by the holy prince Vladimir,’ the Metropolitan is convinced.

He said: ‘the mission of the Ukraine is not exhausted by the function of a buffer strip between East and West. The Ukraine is a self-sufficient socio-cultural space facing the task of attaining the inner integrity of her own through the synthesis of the heritage of East and West.’

The archpastor believes that the Church should initiate a socio-cultural space in which the antagonism of Western and Eastern elements of culture would be creatively transformed into synthetic unity based on the Orthodox tradition.

Metropolitan Vladimir pointed out that ‘political forces both in the Ukraine and beyond its frontiers’ are trying to split Orthodoxy in the country along the lines that divide the civilizational and cultural entities within it and called this policy ‘disastrous’ for the unity in the Ukraine and threatening Orthodoxy in the world.

‘The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is the only church structure and one out of the few public institutions in the Ukraine that has firm foundations on both banks of the Dnieper. Therefore the Church can and must become a centre around which the ‘Eastern’ and ‘Western’ socio-cultural communities would unite. East and West, champions of the European choice or the Slavonic integration, all citizens of the Ukraine, irrespective of their political convictions and civilizational preferences, are beloved children for our Church as they need love, understanding and spiritual care. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church does all she can to protect freedom from political and ideological context,’ Metropolitan Vladimir underscored.