They suffered for their faith

Abstract

Integration of Ukraine into European socio-political institutions is accompanied by significant changes in social relations, including state-church ones. Combined with the reinterpretation of Soviet past, this actualizes the importance of study the experience of previous periods, including the 1920s and 1930s. The process of mass declassification of archival recording, including documents of the Soviet special services began in Ukraine together with the process of de-communization. This promotes the actualization of the repression of the 1920s and 1930s, particularly against the Orthodox Church. The study of this issue at the regional level, allows to establish the local government of repression, to explore the role of local authorities in this process. In addition, this problem shows the process of planting totalitarianism and its negative results. Today, the problem of state-church relations in Ukraine is also actualized by obtaining the Tomos of autocephaly of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine. And the complicated military-political situation of Ukraine, particularly the conflict with the Russian Federation, requires highlighting the negative Soviet past connected with the persecution of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.