Rusyns

Rusyns, also called Ruthenians, Ruthenes, Rusins, Rysins, Carpatho-Rusins, and Russniaks, are a modern group of ethnic groups that speak the Rusyn language and are descended from the Ruthenians that did not become Ukrainians in the 19th century.

Religion

The Ruthenes are an ethnic group that has never had a country of their own. As such, they have been pulled and influenced by larger powers (Hungary, Czechoslovakia/Slovakia, Poland, Soviet Union, Ukraine, Russia, etc.).

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When the Ruthenes accepted Christianity (and who or what they worshiped before) is a source of some debate, but it clearly occurred prior to the break between Orthodox (Eastern) and Catholic (Western) churches in 1054. Saints Cyril (for whom Russia's Cyrillic alphabet is named) and Methodius are referred to as the "Apostles to the Slavs" and many Ruthenian churches are built in their honor.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Author Paul Robert Magocsi provides one of the most detailed and balanced accounts of Ruthene history in "Our People: Carpatho-Rusyns and Their Descendants in North America" published in 1984. At the time, he recorded that there were approximately 690,000 Carpatho-Rusyn church members in the United States (320,000 in the largest Catholic affiliations, 270,000 in the largest Orthodox affiliations, with a remaining 100,000 in various other Protestant and smaller organizations).

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Eastern Rite Catholics

Many Ruthenians belong to the Uniate Church, acknowledging the Pope, since the meetings at Uzhhorod in 1508 and Lithuanian Brest in 1596, but retaining their Old Slavonic liturgy and most of the outward forms of the Greek or Eastern Orthodox Church.

Related Topics:
Uniate Church - Uzhhorod - 1508 - Lithuanian Brest - 1596 - Old Slavonic - Eastern Orthodox Church

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Ruthenes in the former Yugoslavia are organized in the Eparchy of Krizevci.

Related Topics:
Former Yugoslavia - Eparchy of Krizevci

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Eastern Orthodox Church

Although originally associated with the Russian Orthodox Church, the affiliation of Ruthenian Orthodox has been adversely affected by the Communist revolution in Russia and the resulting Orthodox diaspora. A number of emigre communities have laid claim to continuing the Orthodox tradition of the pre-revolution church while either negating or minimizing the validity of the church organization operating under Communist authority. For example, the Orthodox Church in America (OCA) was granted auto-cephalous (self-governing) status by the Moscow Patriarchate in 1970. Although approximately 25% of the OCA was Ruthenian in the early 1980s, an influx of Orthodox emigres from other nations and new converts wanting to connect with the "early" church have lessened the impact of a particular Ruthenian emphasis in favor of a new American Orthodoxy.

Related Topics:
Russian Orthodox Church - Orthodox

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~