Pope appoints Ukrainian bishop to College of Cardinals
When inaugurated, Ukraine-born Bishop Mykola Bychok will be one of the youngest members of the College and the only cardinal from the country.
Religion
Ukraine's chief rabbi mourns loss of adopted son, killed in combat
On Thursday, a memorial service was held in Kyiv for Anton Samborskyi, the adopted son of Ukraine's Chief Rabbi Moshe Azman, who was killed in combat.
Ukrainian bishop of Crimea who serves in military assaulted in Kyiv
Metropolitan Kliment of Crimea and Simferopol of the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine, who currently serves in the Armed Forces, was beaten up by unknown assailants in Kyiv on Sept. 10, a church official confirmed for Suspilne.
Jewish pilgrims warned against travel to Uman for Rosh Hashanah
Jewish pilgrims should refrain from visiting Uman for Rosh Hashanah, Jewish New Year, Cherkasy Oblast Governor Ihor Taburets warned on Sept. 10.
Ukraine's Muslims defiant after Russian attack damages mosque — ‘We will clean, restore, then beat them’
"They are barbarians," 80-year-old Mustafa Dzhemilev tells the Kyiv Independent on Sept. 2, as he assesses the damage caused to the Islamic Cultural Center in Kyiv by a Russian missile attack in the early hours of the morning. "If they targeted a children's hospital, why wouldn’t they destroy a
Pope Francis criticizes push to ban activities of Russian-affiliated religious organizations in Ukraine
Pope Francis criticized on Aug. 25 Ukraine's move to potentially ban the activities of Russian-affiliated religious organizations amid Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, saying that "churches are not to be touched."
Zelensky signs law potentially banning Moscow-linked church
The legislation could effectively prohibit the activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), which is legally subordinate to the Russian Orthodox Church.
Cutting ties with Moscow — What does Ukraine's church bill really mean
Editor's note: The article was expanded with comments by religious scholar Oleksandr Brodetskyi. Ukraine's parliament passed on Aug. 20 a much-debated bill banning activities of religious organizations with ties to Russia, a country whose armies are currently occupying large swathes of Ukraine's land. The legislation – falsely spun by pro-Kremlin actors
Ukraine's parliament adopts bill potentially banning Moscow-linked church
The Ukrainian parliament on Aug. 20 passed a bill banning activities of religious organizations connected to Russia.
Bill on banning Russian-linked churches postponed, MPs block parliament in protest
Lawmakers from several opposition parties – Holos (Voice), European Solidarity, and Batkivshchyna – blocked Ukraine's parliament rostrum on July 23 following the governing party's decision to not bring the bill on banning the Russian-linked church to the floor.
Russia begins dismantling Ukrainian Orthodox church in occupied Crimea
Former Deputy Prosecutor General Gyunduz Mamedov said, citing Metropolitan Klyment of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) Diocese in Crimea, that it was the last remaining OCU church in the occupied peninsula.
Islamic leader of Russia's Karachay-Cherkessia announces temporary niqab ban
The Muftiate of Karachay-Cherkessia, a republic of Russia in the North Caucasus, announced a temporary ban on the wearing of the niqab, a day after the Muftiate of Dagestan announced a similar ban.
Trump ally debunked: Ukraine not burning Russian-linked churches
When Tucker Carlson, a popular American right-wing conservative, released an interview with lawyer Robert Amsterdam titled “Ukrainian churches are being burned and priests beaten,” it quickly gained traction with the so-called MAGA movement seeking the return of Donald Trump as president. The April interview was reposted as a YouTube short
Muftiate in Russia's Dagestan introduces temporary ban on niqabs following terrorist attack
The ban will be instituted until "the identified threats are eliminated and a new theological conclusion is issued," a spokesperson for the Muftiate of Dagestan said.
Update: At least 15 police officers, 4 civilians reportedly killed in terrorist attack in Russia's Dagestan Republic
A counterterrorism regime was instituted after militants allegedly fired on an Orthodox church and a police post in Russia's Dagestan Republic, according to local authorities.
Zelensky: Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to attend Switzerland peace summit
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the archbishop of Constantinople and the most senior hierarch of the Eastern Orthodox Church, confirmed his participation in the upcoming peace summit in Switzerland, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 10.
UPDATED: SBU charges metropolitan of Moscow-linked church with inciting religious hatred
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) is carrying out searches on May 1 at Metropolitan Luka (Andrii Kovalenko) of the Moscow-linked Ukrainian church, a source in law enforcement agencies confirmed for the Kyiv Independent on May 1.
SBU suspects metropolitan of Kremlin-linked church of leaking information about Ukrainian forces
According to the investigation, Metropolitan Arsenii, who served in the Svyatohirsk Lavra in Donetsk Oblast, allegedly told parishioners the coordinates of Ukrainian military checkpoints in the Kramatorsk district in Donetsk Oblast during a liturgy.
Russian priest suspended after presiding over Navalny's funeral
The document posted on the website of the Moscow City Diocese did not give an official reason for Dmitriy Safranov's suspension, but it is believed to be connected to Alexei Navalny's funeral.
Sources: SBU carries out searches at high-ranking priest of Moscow-linked church
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) carried out searches at the premises of Archpriest Mykola Danylevych, a senior member of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), on the morning of April 12, sources in law enforcement agencies told the Kyiv Independent.
Opinion: What should Ukraine do about its Russia-linked church?
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), presented a "revolutionary" order on March 27: “The Present and Future of the Russian World.” The order claims: “From a spiritual and moral point of view, a special military operation (Russia’s term for its war against Ukraine)
Faith under fire: Russia's war on religion in Ukraine's occupied territories
Russia's war and occupation of large swaths of Ukraine have led to hundreds of churches being damaged or destroyed, dozens of priests killed or kidnapped, and entire religious groups that don't conform to Moscow's brand of Orthodoxy being banned. With entire Ukrainian cities being leveled by Russian artillery fire, religious
SBU uncovers pro-Russian disinformation group connected to Moscow-linked Ukrainian church
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) neutralized a pro-Russian disinformation group in Kyiv whose members included a senior cleric of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), the SBU's press service said on March 12.
Parliamentary committee backs bill on banning Russian-linked religious groups
The bill would prohibit the activities of any religious organizations affiliated with war propaganda or justifying the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Parliament passed the bill in the first reading in October 2023, and the secondary reading is to be held.
People plunge into icy water in Kyiv to mark Epiphany (PHOTOS)
Dozens of people plunged into the icy waters of the Dnipro River on Jan. 19 in Kyiv's northern district of Obolon to celebrate Epiphany. The tradition to bathe in the freezing water of a river or lake comes from a popular belief that on this day, the water brings health
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