Ukrainian Orthodox Church Media: Caught Between Russia and Ukraine

In May of 2022, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) declared its independence from the Russian Orthodox Church in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Russian Orthodox Church's close relationship to the Russian state and its seeming endorsement of Russia's actions led many Orthodox Christians in Ukraine to demand a break from Moscow’s ideological influence. At the same time, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) does not recognize the legitimacy of the recently created Orthodox Church of Ukraine. Kennan Institute Title VIII Scholar Jacob Lassin analyzed this complex interplay of theology and national identity in a presentation that focused on the online media strategies that UOC has employed to define itself as a group patriotic to Ukraine that also upholds a Church structure associated with Russia.