“Pro-Russian Orthodox”: in Ukraine war is also about religion

KRIVNE (Ukraine) – Eastern rite monasteries are crowded, Ukrainian Orthodox Church which has never severed its relationship with the Moscow Patriarchate. In the afternoon masses, and it’s Saturday, the priests are down by the altar. The faithful, all around and nearby, cross themselves at every step of the biblical reading. The bishop alternates with the priests in hierarchical order: he recites a rhapsodic liturgy at least two hours long, continuously sung.