THE DISCOURSE OF WAR IN THE EVANGELICAL DOCTRINE IN THE CONTEXT OF CURRENT RUSSIAN AGGRESSION AGAINST UKRAINE (PROTESTANT VIEWPOINT)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15407/fd2023.01.075Keywords:
Christianity, Church, Gospels, Protestantism, war, pacifismAbstract
The range of issues related to the origins of Christianity, the formation of its doctrine, and its existence in the early, pre-Conciliar period has always been of concern not only to Christian scholars, not only to those scholars who were in one or another way involved in these researches, but also to society as a whole. However, in Ukraine, and especially in academic circles, these issues are still not sufficiently studied. The article examines the reasons that led the official Church to change the key provisions of Christian doctrine, including ideological positions about "this world," narratives about war, and the commandments "thou shalt not kill" and "love your enemies." The author argues that the final rejection of the original evangelical pacifism occurred after the conquest of Christianity by Emperor Constantine the Great, when the Church was transformed into an institution of secular power, changing its original status as the "Kingdom of God" to belonging to the "Kingdom of Caesar." Since the reign of Constantine, Christianity has essentially existed divided into two camps. – the first, to which belong all those who profess the church doctrine in its new, "conciliar" and different from the original form and who, in particular, has rejected Jesus' original idea of renunciation of earthly things and, accordingly, the pacifism and anti-militarism he proclaimed; the second camp are those who remained faithful to the apostolic tradition and who continued to practice Christianity according to the original New Testament standard. The latter camp today includes mostly Protestants, including in Ukraine. However, with the onset of Russia's full-scale aggression against Ukraine, their pacifist stance is changing. The solution of urgent socio-political issues and issues directly related to defense are increasingly leading Protestants in Ukraine to rethink their traditional pacifism, which may lead to a complete rejection of it in the future. The results obtained in the course of the study provide grounds to significantly adjust the current perceptions of Protestantism in Ukraine, in particular, its positive attitude to socio-political processes and active involvement in them.
References
"Today, the whole of Ukraine is praying not only for victory, but also for a new country" – Oleksandr Kushneruk (2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: Ukrainian Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith. December 22, 2022. URL: https://www.chve.org.ua/oleksandr-kuhneruk-risu/
Address (2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: AUCCRO. URL: https://vrciro.org.ua/ua/statements
Address of Valeriy Antoniuk to ministers and churches in connection with the outbreak of war (2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: All-Ukrainian Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians-Baptists. URL: https://www.baptyst.com/zvernennya-v-antonyuka-do-sluzhyteliv-i-tserkov-u-zv-yazku-z-pochatkom-vijny/
Adventists and military service (2020). [In Russian]. In: Religion in Ukraine. 26.02.2020. URL: https://www.religion.in.ua/main/analitica/46000-adventisty-i-voennaya-sluzhba.html
Appeal of the ministers of the pastoral conference of the WCC Baptist Union to the local churches of Ukraine (2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: All-Ukrainian Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians-Baptists. URL: https://www.baptyst.com/zvernennya-sluzhyteliv-pastorskoyi-konferentsiyi-vsts-yehb-do-pomisnyh-tserkov-ukrayiny-2/
Casper Jason (2022). Wartime prayers of Ukrainian evangelical Christians (11.03.2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: Christianity Today. URL: https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2022/march-web-only/ukrayina-molytva-bibliya-dopomoha-pastoriv-rosiyi-viyna-ua.html
Cherenkov Mikhail (2014). Evangelical Protestants in the conditions of war: who to be, what to do? [In Russian]. In: Religion in Ukraine. 1.09.2014. URL: https://www.religion.in.ua/main/bogoslovya/26726-evangelskie-protestanty-v-usloviyax-vojny-kem-byt-chto-delat.html
Kirill's “Russian World” is not for Ukraine (2014). Collection of scientific articles. Ed. by prof. A. Kolodnyi. [In Ukrainian]. Kyiv: UAR.
Manzhul Viktor. Protestantism in Ukraine in 2014. Events, trends, challenges, prospects (2015). [In Ukrainian]. In: RISU – Religious Information Service of Ukraine. 06.01.2015. URL: https://risu.ua/protestantizm-v-ukrajini-2014-roku-podiji-tendenciji-vikliki-perspektivi_n72365
Mykhailo Panochko: "I call for fasting and prayer from January 3 to 5 for God's protection, forgiveness and peace in Ukraine!" (2017). [In Ukrainian]. In: Ukrainian Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith. January 5, 2017. URL: https://www.chve.org.ua/post-3-4-5-01-2017-2/
Pastor Ruslan Polikrovsky: "We started by sewing pouches for first aid kits, now we deliver everything from bulletproof vests to cars to the military in need" (2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: Ukrainian Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith. November 18, 2022. URL: https://www.chve.org.ua/pastor-roman-polikrovskyy-2022/
Pentecostals and the UPA. About the little-known relations between Protestants and the underground (2011). [In Ukrainian]. In: Historical truth. January 3, 2011. URL: https://www.istpravda.com.ua/blogs/4d221ec990cc6/
Religious security/danger of Ukraine (2019). Collection of scientific papers and materials. Ed. by prof. A. Kolodnyi. [In Ukrainian]. Kyiv: UAR.
Small Protestant organizations provide powerful assistance to the army and war victims (2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: Seventh-day Adventist Church. URL: https://adventist.ua/news/ukraine/Nevelyki-protestantski-orhanizatsii-nadaiut-potuzhnu-dopomohu-armii-i-postrazhdalym-vid-viiny/
The Church in the conditions of war. The position of Protestants (2014). [In Ukrainian]. In: RISU – Religious Information Service of Ukraine. 22.09.2014. URL: https://risu.ua/cerkva-v-umovah-viyni-poziciya-protestantiv_n107213
The UCCEF Youth Movement addressed the President of Ukraine with words of support (2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: Ukrainian Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith. URL: https://www.chve.org.ua/gomolod-zvernennya-do-prezydenta/
Voices through the cries of air raid warning (2022). [In Ukrainian]. In: Eastern European Institute of Theology. URL: https://eeit-edu.info/appeal-2022-breaking-through-the-sound-of-air-raid-sirens/
Downloads
-
PDF (Українська)
Downloads: 333
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).