Ukraine: Rotation of AUCCRO heads took place

08. Januar 2020
From January 1, 2020, for the next half a year, Vasyl Raychynets, senior Bishop of the Ukrainian Evangelical Church, will be the Chairman of the AUCCRO, according to the Institute of Religious Freedom. It should be noted that according to the regulation on the AUCCRO, the rotation of the chairperson takes place automatically according to the list of participants and does not require a separate vote. This principle allows maintaining independence and self-government in the AUCCRO.

It should be recalled that the AUCCRO was formed in 1996 on the initiative of religious figures and with the assistance of the government. At the time of its establishment, the Council comprised 13 denominations. Since 2005, the AUCCRO has been functioning as a non-governmental self-governing inter-confessional Council, and in 2019 it was registered as a public union. Currently, the AUCCRO consists of 17 religious associations of various faiths: Christian, Jewish, and Muslim.

In addition, Valery Antonyuk, President of the All-Ukrainian Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians-Baptists, was elected Chairman of for the entire year 2020 by the Council of the All-Ukrainian Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians-Baptists. The Council of Evangelical Protestant Churches of Ukraine is comprised of 12 Protestant denominations: Baptists, Pentecostals, Adventists, Evangelical Christians, Reformists, Charismatics.

The Council of Evangelical Protestant Churches of Ukraine was formed on the initiative of religious leaders in April 2005 with the aim of uniting the efforts of various Protestant denominations for the purpose of affirming and protecting the principles of freedom of conscience and religion, equality of all religious organizations in their rights, and the spread of Christian values and morals. (Quelle: www.risu.org.ua, 2. Januar 2020)