Michael Cherenkov
While Operation World statistics indicate a continuing Christian boom in Ukraine, more fundamental and far-reaching studies point to slowed growth for new confessions.1 In fact, Ukrainian analysts document a decrease in church membership and quantity of churches, a loss of confessional identity, and the growth of “mere Christianity.”2
Confessional representatives are silent among sociologists, but boldly inflate their numbers in front of less competent listeners. For instance, Orthodox churches do not measure their membership in absolute numbers but as a percentage of the country’s population. It is easier to measure by subtracting those who “aren’t one of us,” and then simply consider the rest “one of us.” There also is not much clarity among Protestants. It is often difficult to verify data because of a lack of interest among denominations, whose leaders indulge in wishful thinking. Every neo-Protestant denomination claims to be the most dynamic. Every traditional church tries to show at least slow growth. On the whole, data confirm growth among Charismatic churches and a slowing of growth among Evangelical Christians.
Surprisingly, foreign researchers often rely on unconfirmed statistics of denominations. Therefore, in 2010 the membership of the Baptist Union was measured at 151,000. However, Razumkov Center statistics reveal a decrease in the percentage of Protestants from 2 percent in 2000 to 0.8 percent in 2013.3
In light of Orthodox strength in Ukraine, the number of atheists and non-believers continues to decrease. Apparently a number of freethinkers and agnostics have fit into the overly wide category of “Orthodox.” If, in order to be counted as Orthodox, it is enough simply to be called that, with no need to confirm one’s beliefs, then it is possible to be an Orthodox atheist or an Orthodox occultist.
Notes:
- Christianity in Its Global Context, 1970-2020: Society, Religion, and Mission (South Hamilton, MA: Center for the Study of Global Christianity, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, 2013); http://www.gordonconwell.edu/resources/GlobalContext-of-Christianity.cfm.
- “Religion and Authority in Ukraine: Problems in the Relationship,” presented at the roundtable on “Church and State Relations in Ukraine in 2013: A Movement for a Partnership between the State and the Church or towards a Crisis?” 22 April 2013— Kyiv 2013, p. 27.
- “The Number of Baptists in Ukraine is Decreasing”; http://www.religion.in.ua/news/ vazhlivo/22490-skorochuyetsya-chiselnist-aptistivukrayini.html.
Michael Cherenkov works for the Association for Spiritual Renewal, Irpen, Ukraine.