Number DOI: http://doi.org/10.33209/2519-4348-2707-9627-2022-10-127

VB. – № 10, 2022. – P. 289-303

Summary

In the wake of the outbreak of the incurable, unexplored coronavirus pandemic in 2020, the Church of Christ found itself in a very difficult situation. After all, she was faced with many new questions, to which she had to respond moderately. The pandemic crisis threatened the health and lives of the population. Many people suffered because of the death of loved ones. Some found themselves in financial difficulties, others lost their jobs. The precautionary measures taken around the world have also called into question church life in two different, albeit interrelated, areas: the forced enclosure of the faithful, which has consequences not only for the constitutional rights of religious people, their freedom, but also their identity, defined by the Eucharistic life as a community that gathers “in one place”. In particular, in Ukraine and many other countries, due to quarantine restrictions, the Church has been forced to impose strict regulations on joint services on Easter and other days in the form or suspension of services or only with the number of people allowed. The hierarchs found some solutions in conducting online broadcasts of services, but then a new question arose about the phenomenon of “online Communion”. Thus, a whole series of discussions revolved around the Holy Eucharist concerning the ways in which it can be presented to the faithful. There was also a general obligation to wear personal protective equipment (masks) when attending church, which people perceived as a restriction of their rights. All sacraments and ordinances were to be administered in accordance with «social distance» and other sanitary requirements. Subsequently, the question arose and the admissibility of vaccination against COVID-19. All these ecclesiastical definitions require a thorough theological understanding. Realizing this situation, which called into question the core of the Church’s identity and the freedom of choice in the constitutional law of Christians, we tried to come closer to conscious answers to the challenges that arose before it. The indisputable doctrinal teaching of our Church, from which parallels were drawn for our situations, served as a direction for finding ways to solve this problem. As a result, the Church’s position on new challenges in the pandemic and their theological understanding was united.

Key words: COVID-19, coronavirus, pandemic, lockdown, quarantine, christian rights.

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