The World Council of Churches' Response to the Ukrainian Crisis (2022–2024)
https://doi.org/10.24833/2071-8160-2025-3-102-134-161
Abstract
The article examines the World Council of Churches' (WCC) response to the Ukrainian crisis (2022–2024) through the lens of critical international relations theory. The author conceptualizes the WCC as a distinctive form of transnational 'organic intellectuals' within global Christianity, operating via its established bureaucratic apparatus and relying primarily on financial resources provided by Protestant churches in Europe and North America. The methodological approach is based on qualitative analysis of the WCC’s official documents and public statements, highlighting how the Council, in its capacity as organic intellectuals, actively promotes and institutionalizes universalist values aligned with the Western liberal model of modernity. Particular attention is given to the Council’s decision to refrain from excluding the Russian Orthodox Church despite strongly criticizing Russia’s actions in the Ukrainian conflict. The author argues that this decision reflects the WCC’s aim to preserve interchurch dialogue and maintain influence over the Russian Orthodox Church, thus expanding its position and role within the global Christian community. The article concludes that the institutional characteristics and Western orientation of the WCC constrain its capacity to act as a neutral mediator.
About the Author
D. E. Arakelian
Department for External Church Relations of Moscow Patriarchate; WCC Commission «Young People in Ecumenical Movement»
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Danil E. Arakelian – Officer at the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, Vice-Moderator of the World Council of Churches' Commission on Youth in the Ecumenical Movement
22 Danilovskiy Val Street, Moscow, 115191, Russia
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Review
For citations:
Arakelian D.E. The World Council of Churches' Response to the Ukrainian Crisis (2022–2024). MGIMO Review of International Relations. 2025;18(3):134-161. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.24833/2071-8160-2025-3-102-134-161
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