History of Protestantism in Ukraine

Abstract

This article examines the history and current state of Protestantism in Ukraine. The research explores the causes and consequences of the growth and decline of Protestantism in the country, as well as the development and situation of Protestant communities in modern Ukraine. The study utilizes general scientific methods of analysis and synthesis, including descriptive and comparative methods. The article finds that Protestantism in Ukraine has experienced periods of growth and decline in popularity among believers. It initially spread to Ukraine after Martin Luther’s Reformation in the 16th century and received considerable attention from the elite in the 17th century. However, the popularity of Protestantism in Ukraine declined in the 18th century. The second half of the 19th century saw a new period of growth in the popularity of Protestantism in Ukraine, which mainly spread among the poor strata of the population. The interwar period of the 1920s and 1930s presented new opportunities for the development of Protestantism in Ukraine, but repression by Soviet authorities forcibly stopped this process. The article also notes that the beginning of Ukraine’s independence in the 1990s and 2000s was a time of increasing popularity of Protestantism among various social groups of Ukrainians. Overall, the study provides theoretical significance in the systematization of the development of Protestantism in Ukraine during different historical periods. Additionally, the practical value of the article lies in its potential to contribute to further research on the role of religious searches in helping Ukrainian society during crisis historical times.

Keywords

• calvinism
• christianity
• lutheranism
• reformation
• protestantism
• stundism