Religious Information Service of Ukraine

18/10/2025

"When I was a rookie Vaticanologist in the early 1990s, extensive conversations with the leaders of what was then the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity made me aware of a strategic concept that had become bureaucratically embedded in both the ecumenism shop and the Vatican “foreign ministry,” the Second Section of the Secretariat of State. That concept began to form in the mid-1960s and might be summarized in the phrase, “The road from Rome to Constantinople runs through Moscow.” In other words, the recomposition of Christian unity and the restoration of full communion between the Bishop of Rome and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople required, as a prerequisite, reconciliation with the Russian Orthodox Church, the largest of the Orthodox churches.
Whatever pragmatic sense that might once have made, “The road from Rome to Constantinople runs through Moscow” is now theologically absurd, because the leadership of the Russian Church has abandoned Christian orthodoxy, as demonstrated by Kirill’s heretical and blasphemous statements over the past three-plus years. Clinging to that strategy has also impeded the moral witness of the Holy See, as seen in the hesitancy (to put it charitably) of the Vatican to name and condemn the aggressor when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022"
- writes George Weigel in his new column on the need to reset relations between the Vatican and the Russian Orthodox Church, taking into account everything that KGB agent Patriarch Kirill does and says.
https://risu.ua/en/russian-reset-required-in-rome_n159612

16/10/2025

When we speak about ecumenical dialogue (from the Vatican’s perspective) in the context of our region — Ukraine and Eastern Europe more broadly — it is no secret that it has never been separated from politics. More than elsewhere, here the issues of interchurch relations have always been intersected with questions of geopolitics, national identity, and state interests. One may wonder whether Rome wanted it to be that way. But it is evident that it had to consider the circumstances dictated by reality. Therefore, every change in the political landscape — from the fall of communism to Russia’s war against Ukraine — has automatically affected ecumenical processes.

When we speak about ecumenical dialogue (from the Vatican’s perspective) in the context of our region — Ukraine and Eastern Europe more broadly — it is no secret that it has never been separated from politics. More than elsewhere, here the issues of interchurch relations have always been inter...

23/09/2025

❗️ Recently, the activities of the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (hereafter DESS as per Ukrainian abbreviation) have been at the center of public attention due to its actions in implementing the Law of Ukraine “On the Protection of the Constitutional Order in the Sphere of the Activities of Religious Organizations” and other government decisions.
We asked Vyacheslav Horshkov, Head of the Department for Religious Affairs of DESS, to clarify the situation regarding the next steps for implementing this law, whether the enforcement of the law threatens freedom of religion, about interfaith dialogue, and about international reactions to all this.

‼️Editor’s note: Our conversation with Mr. Vyacheslav took place following the issuance of the DESS's order to the Kyiv Metropolia of the UOC at the end of July 2025 and concluded when the UOC issued a response letter in mid-August. At that time, the Kyiv Metropolia of the UOC still had the opportunity to sever its ties with the ROC MP, as mandated by the State Service on Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience in accordance with current legislation.

Recently, the activities of the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (hereafter DESS as per Ukrainian abbreviation) have been at the center of public attention due to its actions in implementing the Law of Ukraine “On the Protection of the Constitutional Order in the Sphere of...

03/09/2025

We all desire peace, but true peace is always a just peace. Clearly, we will never be satisfied if any part of our people falls back into Russian domination. That would not be just. When we say we are people, not territories, we are emphasizing human rights.

Today, the future of Europe is being decided in Kyiv. This was stated by the Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, in the August edition of the program “Open Church” with Fr. Ihor Yatsiv. - RISU

02/09/2025

“The voice of weapons must fall silent, and the voice of fraternity and justice must prevail,” Pope Leo XIV concluded.

On Sunday, August 31, Pope Leo XIV called for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and dialogue. - RISU

29/08/2025

The Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, His Beatitude Epifaniy, compared Vladimir Putin to King Herod, describing him as a servant of Satan in response to shelling of Kyiv by the Russian aggressor.

The Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, His Beatitude Epifaniy, compared Vladimir Putin to King Herod, describing him as a servant of Satan in response to today's shelling of Kyiv by the Russian aggressor. - RISU

15/08/2025

Leo XIV replied: “We must always seek a ceasefire. The violence, the many deaths, must stop. Let’s see how they can come to an agreement. Because after all this time, what is the purpose of war? We must always seek dialogue, diplomatic efforts, not violence, not weapons.”

On August 13, His Holiness responded to questions from journalists at the Papal Residence in Castel Gandolfo, where he would spend the second part of his summer vacation until August 19. - RISU

13/08/2025

On August 14, 2025, on the eve of the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Christians around the world will observe the World Day of Prayer and Fasting for Peace. The Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, called on the faithful to join this international spiritual initiative.

On August 14, 2025, on the eve of the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Christians around the world will observe the World Day of Prayer and Fasting for Peace. The Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, called on the faithful to join this internation...

12/08/2025

The Security Service has detained two more pro-Kremlin agitators in Odesa. The suspects disseminated hostile propaganda, justified Russia's war in Ukraine, and praised ruscists.

The Security Service has detained two more pro-Kremlin agitators in Odesa. The suspects disseminated hostile propaganda, justified Russia's war in Ukraine, and praised ruscists. - RISU

11/08/2025

The Russian Orthodox Church not only inspires the killers of Ukrainians but also participates directly in these killings. This is why the said church has been banned in Ukraine, and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has been instructed to sever ties with the ROC. This was noted in an interview with Radio Culture by Viktor Yelensky, head of the State Service of Ukraine on Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience.

The Russian Orthodox Church not only inspires the killers of Ukrainians but also participates directly in these killings. This is why the said church has been banned in Ukraine, and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has been instructed to sever ties with the ROC. - RISU

05/08/2025

Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the propaganda of the “Russian world,” and the overall system of state-church relations in Russia have sparked a growing interest in the history of Russian Orthodoxy, particularly in the 20th century. A now widespread phrase, which has practically become a meme, claims that the modern Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) was founded by Stalin in 1943.
It is evident, however, that the process of the state absorption of the Moscow Church began much earlier, when, in the mid-15th century, it unilaterally separated from the Kyiv Metropolis and, with the help of tsarist authorities — through violence and bribery — secured patriarchal status. Its representatives developed the idea of the “Third Rome,” which has become a foundational myth of the “Russian world.” Stalin’s actions in September 1943, however, launched a new era. From the highest levels of leadership down to parish structures, the ROC-MP fell under the control of the USSR’s security services, often becoming their active agents.
The issue of the Russian Orthodox Church’s collaboration with the KGB drew significant attention in the final years of the Soviet Union, and interest in it has only grown since, especially in light of efforts by the Moscow Patriarchate’s senior clergy to preserve that alliance. In post-Soviet Russia, as calls to revive the USSR re-emerged, this collaboration began to be reinterpreted — not as a shameful legacy, but even as something "necessary," particularly amid the resurgence of Stalin’s cult of personality. At the same time, access to archival evidence was increasingly restricted, and much of it was deliberately destroyed, especially given that many of the individuals featured in those files are still active as agents today. In Ukraine, after a burst of archival research during President Viktor Yushchenko’s term, the process was again obstructed under the pro-Russian Yanukovych regime. Still, the groundwork laid during that earlier period was not lost — over the past decade, research has resumed and even intensified.
One of the most prominent historians specializing in NKVD–KGB archives related to church affairs is Roman Skakun, deputy director of the Institute of Church History at the Ukrainian Catholic University. Now in his third year of military service with the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Skakun has just released a new book focused on Soviet secret police infiltration within the Kyiv Exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Roman Skakun. The NKVD–MGB–KGB Agent Network in the Orthodox Episcopate of Ukraine (1939–1964): Formation, Functions, and Behavioral Models. Lviv: Ukrainian Catholic University Press, 2025 – 360 pages.

Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the propaganda of the “Russian world,” and the overall system of state-church relations in Russia have sparked a growing interest in the history of Russian Orthodoxy, particularly in the 20th century. A now widespread phrase, which has practically become a ...

04/08/2025

President Maia Sandu stated that Russia is preparing for unprecedented interference in Moldova's parliamentary elections to gain control. 😕

President Maia Sandu stated that Russia is preparing for unprecedented interference in Moldova's parliamentary elections to gain control. - RISU