15 April 2025, 09:44

By David Kirichenko

When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, it didn’t just redraw borders and shatter homes – it fractured churches.

Ukraine’s Protestant believers found themselves in a more complicated position. Their faith, often rooted in pacifism and the universality of brotherhood under God, was suddenly at odds with the brutal reality of war.

As Russian missiles fell and soldiers mobilized, some Protestants picked up rifles. Others held onto prayer and hesitated.

Protestantism in Ukraine, which includes Baptists, Pentecostals, and Seventh-day Adventists, saw a revival after the fall of the Soviet Union.

Today, Protestants make up around 2-4% of Ukraine’s population, but their influence, especially in central and western regions, has grown through missionary work, youth programs, and humanitarian aid.

Many of these churches have long emphasized peace, reconciliation, and service, making the pivot to wartime roles uncomfortable for some.

In a sign of the changing times for Ukrainian Evangelicals, Petro Dudnyk, pastor of the Evangelical Good News Church in Sloviansk, recently prayed before his congregation: “We bow to you, Lord. You are our only hope for our soldiers so that they protect our borders, that they stay strong in this fight.”

“The war has seriously forced Ukrainian Protestants to reflect on their historic pacifism,” said Eddie Priymak, a researcher who focuses on religion in Ukraine. “Although conservative denominations retain their pacifism, larger evangelical groups – such as Pentecostals, Baptists, and Seventh-Day Adventists – and Charismatics have been more open to scrutinizing this teaching.”

Some churches now provide seminars on just-war theory, discuss patriotic slogans, and encourage Christians to become active members of society.

“Although pastors don't generally urge their congregants to take up arms, they permit individuals to make this decision based on their conscience,” Priymak explained.

“Some Protestants have taken the call and joined the Armed Forces, others have become chaplains, volunteers, or travel abroad to advocate for aid and support for Ukraine.”

Priymak noted that internal divisions remain. “In general, many churches are split half-and-half between those who are pacifists and those who aren't,” he said.

“But all are urged not to be passive but to be active members of society.” The shift is significant for a community that has historically prioritized service over confrontation.

“From an outsider’s perspective, evangelicals might be seen as only those who provide humanitarian service,” he added. “But to an insider, the steps they have taken to get away from their pacifism are noteworthy.”

Russia’s war against Ukraine is not just about territory, it’s also a spiritual and historical crusade rooted in centuries of imperial mythmaking.

Serhii Plokhy’s book "The Russo-Ukrainian War: The Return of History", describes how the myth of Russia as the rightful heir to Kyivan Rus dates back to Ivan the Terrible's era.

This narrative, promoted through the Russian Orthodox Church and reinforced by the myth of “Moscow as the Third Rome,” casts Russia as the spiritual center of Eastern Orthodoxy.

By absorbing the legacy of Kyivan........

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