Reissuing of Religion and Nation in Modern Ukraine

Since Ukrainian independence, the religious situation and religious relations in Ukraine have been the focus of international attention. The rebirth of Churches and religious institutions has been accompanied by vigorous competition for the loyalty of Ukraine’s believers. The visit of Pope John Paul II to Ukraine and current visit of the newly elected Patriarch of Moscow, Kirill, testify to the centrality of Ukraine both in the Catholic and Orthodox worlds. Ecclesiastical affairs, above all the allegiance of Orthodox believers, have greatly influenced the processes of state-building and nation-building in Ukraine.

CIUS Press has published a number of monographs and collections of essays on problems of religious history by authors and  editors such as Ihor Sevenko, Yaroslav Isaievych, Geoffrey Hosking, Andrij Krawczuk, Paul R. Magocsi, Bohdan Bociurkiw, and David Goa. To those interested in the current religious situation in Ukraine, the volume of essays by Serhii Plokhy and Frank E. Sysyn, entitled Religion and Nation in Modern Ukraine, has been especially welcome. The over 15 reviews of the volume have praised this edition as a greatly needed authoritative work on modern religious affairs in Ukraine.

 The internationally renowned specialist on religious affairs Michael Bourdeaux  evaluated the volume in the Slavic Review in the following manner: “Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine has been called the ‘sleeping giant’ of Europe—one of the continent’s most populous nations, but one that has so far had minimal impact on international affairs. Far too little is being published, whether in the realm of scholarly studies or in the press, about this vast new independent country. Religion and Nation in Modern Ukraine is, therefore, not only a welcome addition to the literature, but an excellent book in its own right. As scholars conversant with Ukraine will know, the names of Serhii Plokhy and Frank E. Sysyn guarantee the quality of the work. Each has a profound insight into the complex issues facing the country today.”

The specialist on religious groups in contemporary Ukraine, above all the Protestants, Catherine Wanner, characterized the topic and volume thusly: “It was not until the late 1980s that many scholars from a plethora of disciplines were forced to concede that they had underestimated the importance of nationality issues, and especially of religion, as forces shaping Soviet history. Few scholars engaged the dynamic interaction of nationality and religion as they played out historically in politics and the daily life of Soviet citizens. The two authors of this book went against this trend and have over the years amassed a distinguished record of scholarship in the fields of Ukrainian history and of religious life over the centuries in this strategically important borderland.”

These and over ten other reviews of this book can be read on the CIUS Press web site at www.utoronto.ca/cius/publications/books/religionnation.htm.

CIUS Press has decided to respond to the ongoing demand for this book by scholars and a wider public interested in religious affairs in Ukraine and the Eastern Christian world by reissuing Serhii Plokhy and Frank E. Sysyn’s Religion and Nation in Modern Ukraine. The book is available in a paperback edition for $29.95 and in hardcover for $39.95 (plus taxes and shipping; outside Canada prices are in U.S. dollars).

Readers interested in matters of Ukrainian religious life can also take advantage of a limited-time opportunity to purchase Bohdan R. Bociurkiw’s authoritative scholarly study of the process of dissolution of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Ukraine by the Soviet authorities: The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and the Soviet State (1939–1950), hardcover edition; discounted price: $23.97 (reg. $39.95). 20 reviews of this book can be found at http://tinyurl.com/mcd5e3.

      Orders for both books can be placed via the secure on-line ordering system of CIUS Press at www.utoronto.ca/cius or by contacting CIUS Press, 430 Pembina Hall, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2H8; tel: (780) 492-2973; e-mail: cius@ualberta.ca.

Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Press Release