Specifics of Work of Orthodox Churches of the EU with Ukrainian Refugees

Abstract

The article analyzes the role of the Orthodox Churches of the border countries of the European Union in resolving the humanitarian crisis associated with the movement in the shortest possible time (February – April 2022) of large masses of refugees from the territory of Ukraine to nearby Western countries as a result of the special military operation by the Russian Federation to liberate Donbass. The purpose of the article is to show the effectiveness, methods of work and target groups of non-state actors in world politics, which are religious organizations, in this case Orthodox, and non-governmental organizations interconnected with it, in the context of the humanitarian crisis unfolding in 2022. The research methodology involves an event-based chronological analysis based on the content analysis of an array of news coming from national Orthodox churches: the Autocephalous Polish Orthodox Church, the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, the Budapest-Hungarian Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, the Romanian Orthodox Church. It is shown that the Orthodox Churches, their social and charitable departments and non-governmental organizations affiliated with them acted as reliable partners of the central and local executive authorities in the reception of refugees and the settlement of issues of their livelihood, information, transportation and adaptation in the host country. They called for a healing of the conflict, appealing to the warring parties, a mission of compassion and consolation for the refugees. With their authority, they helped the horizontal complex interaction of local Orthodox communities to receive refugees and collect humanitarian aid, distribute it and send it to Ukraine.

Keywords

• refugees
• humanitarian crisis
• european union
• non-governmental organizations
• orthodoxy
• social service
• special operation to liberate donbass
• ukraine