Ukrainian patriarch says ‘Russian jihadism’ hurts church survival

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine now 3 years old, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church told those gathered in Washington last week that his church will not survive if Russia succeeds, saying most parishes in occupied territories have been destroyed.

Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk joined a Thursday discussion at the Hudson Institute think tank to discuss ideas for lasting peace in Ukraine, warning about the end goals of the Russian worldview that he called “Russian jihadism.”

His visit preceded the President Donald Trump-led U.S. government voting Monday against United Nations resolutions condemning the Russian invasion and supporting Ukraine’s territorial integrity.

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Shevchuk declared that Russian President Vladimir Putin has a “clear” objective “to erase Ukraine, its people, and its church.” 

“If Russia succeeds in occupying Ukraine, our church will not survive. For us, it’s a matter of life and death,” the patriarch said. 

“History teaches us that whenever Russia takes control of territories with Eastern Catholics, it enforces them into the Russian Orthodox Church, drives them into exile, or sends them to perish in prison camps,” he continued. 

Borys Gudziak, the metropolitan archbishop of Philadelphia, and Archpriest Marc Morozovich also joined the discussion. Nina Shea, director of Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom, served as the event moderator. 

On Feb. 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, with Russian President Vladimir Putin claiming that the attack was aimed at securing the rights of pro-Russian communities in Eastern Ukraine regions like Donetsk and Luhansk. 

The U.S. State Department and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom both have warned that Russia “systematically” persecutes many Christian churches, except the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate.

In December 2022, Russian occupation officials formally banned the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in occupied territories, in addition to Caritas Ukraine and the worldwide Catholic brotherhood of the Knights of Columbus. 

In November 2022, the occupation authorities arrested two Redemptorist Fathers, Ivan Levitsky and Bohdan Geleta. Russian forces reportedly subjected the two priests to torture during their 18 months of captivity, with Shevchuk crediting the mediation efforts of the Holy See with the pair’s release. 

After their release, the patriarch said the priests were “unrecognizable,” similar to “a photo from Auschwitz.” 

At least 10 Protestant pastors are currently facing the same type of imprisonment, Shevchuk noted. He called on those listening to advocate for the pastors’ release from captivity. 

“Most of our parishes in occupied territories have been destroyed,” Shevchuk told Shea. “Churches and monasteries seized, property looted. … Some church property is closed down and sealed, some is given back to the Russian Orthodox Church as it was in the late ’50s.”

By spring 2023, “almost all non-Orthodox churches in occupied territories were stripped of their right to hold church services,” Mission Eurasia reported. 

The Ukrainian patriarch highlighted what he described as “the horrifying results of Russia’s imperial ambitions,” pointing to the destruction and loss of life that has only grown since Russia’s invasion began in February 2022. 

As of February 2025, approximately 12.7 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, and 3.7 million people have been driven from their homes, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency. Another 6.9 million people from Ukraine have crossed into neighboring countries, with Poland welcoming the largest number of Ukrainian refugees. 

As Shevchuk explained, Putin justifies the destruction through the Russian political concept “Ruskiy Mir,” or “Russian world.” The Ukrainian patriarch likened the idea to radical Islamism, saying that the ideology of “Russian world” is like “Russian jihadism.”

The ideology of “Russian jihadism,” according to Shevchuk, is based on three points. The first is the idea that the West is corrupt and the “embodiment of the antichrist.” The second is that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a “metaphysical” or “holy war” to defend authentic Christian faith and values. And lastly, there is the belief that a Russian soldier killed during battle will have the “remission of all [his] sins and immediately will go to Heaven.”  

Russian Orthodox Church leaders created the doctrine following the collapse of the Soviet Union in the late 20th century, according to Shevchuk. 

The patriarch’s remarks come as President Donald Trump and his administration have begun negotiations with Russia to try to end the war. The patriarch advocated for lasting peace in Ukraine “that does not appease dictators.”

Senior U.S. and Russian officials met in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 17, Reuters reported, with both sides agreeing to restore each other’s diplomatic missions. Ukraine officials were not included in talks between the U.S. and Russia. 

Previous administrations had restricted Russia’s diplomatic missions following the Ukraine invasion and other actions committed by Russia. The Biden administration sought to sanction and isolate Russia in response to the Ukraine invasion. Meanwhile, Trump is seeking to repair the U.S.’ relations with Russia, much to the dismay of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who expressed optimism that the Trump presidency could bring a swift end to the war. 

“We seek a just peace, not a temporary ceasefire that lets the aggressor return stronger,” Shevchuk said during the Thursday panel discussion.

While some congressional Republicans believe that Russia is “protecting Christianity,” Shea thinks that they are being “duped by Russian propaganda, including the claim that Russia’s war against Ukraine is against Satanism.” In reality, Shea has warned, Russia is persecuting Christian churches in occupied Ukraine. 

Gudziak noted that Russian propaganda often casts Putin as a “defender of traditional values,” based on his stance on gender issues.

“Russia is number one in the world in abortions,” Gudziak said. “It’s a country with one of the highest alcoholism rates — among men and women. One of the highest rates of suicide.”