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The first Christian bishop was sent to Novgorod from Constantinople by Patriarch Photius or Patriarch Ignatios (about 866-67). Prince Vladimir the Great of Kiev accepted conversion to Orthodox Christianity (988 AD). He made the Rus a Christian state. This brought the Rus under the influence of the Byzantine Empire and Orthodox Christianity. Vladimir ordered mass baptisms converting the Rus to Orthodox Christianity. Shortkly after the cionversion of the Rus, the Great Schism occured, formally duividing the Eastern (Byzantine) Orthodox and Western (Latin) Cathoklic branches of Christendom, referred to as the Great Schism (1054). Orthodox Christians converted scripture and the liturgy into Slavonic. This helped make he religion more accessible to the people. Today At the time, the population was largely iliterate. Thus most of the early converts had only the most basic understanding of Chritianity. Amd as often ocuured, elements of their pagan culture became incorporated in Ukranian Orthodox practice. This is most clearly seen in the Easter celebrations still commonly practised. Over the millenium that followed conversion, imense changes swept over the Ukraine. Ukrainians have, howver, through it all remained Orthodox Christias. There was, however, a split in the Church. Gradually political power shifted north from Kiev to Novogiorad and Moscow. Byzantine Greek monks Saint Cyril and Saint Methodius (from Greek Macedonia), translated parts of the Bible into Old Church Slavonic. This was a major step in Christianization of the Slavs and Slavicized peoples of Eastern Europe, the Balkans, Ukraine, and Southern Russia. The Mongols conquered the Rus (1230s) This was a major factor in Kiev losing its political, cultural, and economical leadership. Metropolitan Maximus moved to Vladimir (1299). His successor, Metropolitan Peter moved the residence to Moscow (1325). With the Union of Lublin and the formation of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Ukraine fell under Polish control becoming part of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland (1569). Many new cities and villages were founded. Links between different Ukrainian regions, such as Galicia and Volyn were significantkly extended. New schools spread Western ideas being generated by the Renaissance. Polish peasants migrated in numbers and quickly became mixed with the Ukranian Rus. Most of Ukrainian nobles became polonised and converted to Catholicism. This was essentially the beginning of the development of a Ukranian national identity. Unlike the nobility the Ukranian (Ruthenian) speaking peasants remained faithful to the Orthodox Church. Efforts to force the peasantry into serfdom gave rise to the cossacks who would play a role in struggle between the Ottomans, Tsars, and Polish Comminmwealth to control Ukraine. The Ukranian Church split with four out of nine bishops of the Ukranian Uniate Orthodox Church (Vilnius) gathered in synod in the city of Brest and signed what is now known as the Union of Brest (1585). They declared support for union with Rome and recioguined the authority of the pope. In return, the pope eventually agreed to permit Orthidox liturgy. The Tsarist regime began to gain control of Ukraine with the Treaty of Andrusovo (1667). By the time of the Polish Patutions (1772-95), Ukraine was fully under Trasrist control. Tsarist authorities were hostile to the Uniate Church and strove to force union with the Russian Orthiodiox Church. Here there were both religious and political issues as the Uniate Church was seen as a force for Ukranian nationalism. After the Revolution, the Bolsheviks promoted bith an atheism campaign forced union with the Russian Orthodox Church. This ould be intensified by Stalin. Church property was confiscated. Priests and bishops arrested by the NKVD were coindemnedd to the Gulag. The Church, however, survived because of the faifthful in the Western Ukraine.
The Byzantine practice Caesaropapism along with Orthodoxy became a principle of Russian/Ukraine society and would become one reason for absolutism to take root in Eastern Europe in contrast to the West.
Christianity is historically the main Ukraian religion, primariy Orthodox Christianity. The Ukranian Orthodox Church is split between Russian Orthodox in the east and the Ukranian Cathlic Greek Church in the west. There were both theological and ethnic issues involved. This created a cultural divide in the Ukraine which still persists to this day. There are several other religions, mostly other Christian faiths. One small group was the Mennoites who arrived after Tsarist Russia seized large areas of southern Ukraine from the Ottomans (18th century). Emperess Catherine was anxious to populkate ther area with more Europeans and was willing to grant special status to the Mennonites. The denomination
They suffered after the Revolution woth Soviet atheeism campaigns.
Russian Orthodox also tend to speak Russian. Ukranian Orthodox tend to speak Ukranian and have a more western outlook.
The split in the Ukranian Orthiodoxy is playing out in Ukranian politics today with Russian President Putin using it in an effort to maintain Russia's hold on the country. Notably democracy has had a more difficult time flourishing under Russian Orthodoxy which some say is more tolerant of political utocracy. And we see this playing out in the Ukraine today with the Ukranian Orthoox (Kiev Patriarchate) and Catholics in the west more committed to democracy and independence. Besides Orthodox Christians, there are Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Christians, Ukrainian Catholics, Protestants,Jews as well as a number of small religious groups. The Orthodox Church is not as dominant as in Russia. As a result there is a more tolerant religious atmosphere in the Ukraine. Minority religious groups seldom experience persecution. Few Ukranians today were brought up in the Church and taught elemenys of their faith, except by parents in the home.
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