Even in Ukraine, people are dying, the horrors of the war are still going on, but we already believe in its soon end, we hope for the onset of peace. But what will our future be like? Which way will the country go? This needs to be thought about now.

The day after the start of the war in Ukraine, the Primate of the UOC, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry addressed the Ukrainian faithful. He urged “to show love for their Motherland and for each other” , blessed the Ukrainian soldiers to defend Ukraine, and compared the actions of the Russian Federation with Cain’s sin.

“The Ukrainian and Russian peoples came out of the Dnieper baptismal font, and the war between these peoples is a repetition of the sin of Cain, who out of envy killed his own brother. Such a war has no justification either from God or from people , ” said the Primate of the UOC.

The story of the first murder on earth is an archetype of what happens in many aspects of the life of both nations and states, as well as individuals. As a result of fratricide, Cain made his own, as we would now say, civilizational choice. And the same choice was made by Seth, who was born to Adam and Eve after the murder of Abel. History tells us that almost always after great upheavals, wars or other catastrophes, the people who endured them make a choice of their further development path. The fact that His Beatitude Onufry compared the attack of the Russian Federation on Ukraine with the sin of Cain is not accidental. The biblical narrative tells us not only about the causes of fratricide, but also about what happened next.

After the murder of Abel, God called Cain to repentance: “And the Lord said to Cain: Where is Abel, your brother?” This is very consonant with the call to Adam: “Adam, where are you?” But Cain rejected this call and answered God very boldly: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Gen. 4:9) . So Cain rejected repentance, rejected God and made his civilizational choice. After that, God spoke his sentence to him: “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground; and now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive the blood of your brother from your hand; when you till the land, it will no longer give its strength to you; you will be an exile and a wanderer (in the Church Slavonic translation – groaning and shaking) on the earth ” (Gen. 4:10-12) .

Civilization of Cain

The most important civilizational choice that Cain made was that he departed from God: “So Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden” (Genesis 4:16). Thus, he rejected God’s guidance and began to arrange his earthly life at his own discretion, to build a civilization in which God no longer had a place. Instead of worshiping God, Cain and his descendants became intensely concerned about their own comfort and entertainment.

“And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived and bare Enoch. And he built a city; and named the city by the name of his son: Enoch. Enoch was born Irad; Irad begat Mechiael; Mechiel begat Methuselah; Methuselah begat Lamech. And Lamech took two wives for himself: the name of one was Ada, and the name of the second was Zillah. Ada gave birth to Jabal: he was the father of those who dwell in tents with flocks. His brother’s name was Jubal: he was the father of all who play the harp and flute. Zillah also gave birth to Tubal Cain, who was the forger of all copper and iron tools. And Tubal Cain’s sister Noah” (Gen. 4:17-22).

In this description of the Cain civilization, we see the arrangement of earthly well-being: “he built a city” , we see manifestations of pride: “he named the city after his son” , we see a commitment to carnal pleasures: “took <...> two wives” , the desire for entertainment and amusements: “he was the father of all those who play the harp and flute” , the beginning of scientific and technological progress: “he was the forger of all copper and iron tools” and even, according to some interpretations, the birth of prostitution: “and the sister of Tubal Cain Noem” (the word “Noema comes from a Hebrew word meaning “pleasure”).

St. Demetrius of Rostov supplements this list with the appearance of the occult. He writes: “The tribe of Cain also learned magic, sorcery and conspiracies, as well as communication with demons. And this tribe was ungodly and ungodly, which is why it was subsequently exterminated by the flood .

Seth civilization

Another civilization that appeared on earth is the civilization of Seth. Here is how the Holy Scripture describes it: “And Adam also knew his wife, and she gave birth to a son, and called his name: Seth, because, she said, God put me another seed, instead of Abel, whom Cain killed. Seth also had a son, and he called his name: Enos; then they began to call on the name of the Lord (in the Church Slavonic translation – this is the hope to call on the name of the Lord God) ”(Gen. 4:25, 26).

Many interpreters of the Bible say that the words “then they began to call on the name of the Lord” mean that in the time of Enos there arose such a form of worship as public worship, and before that sacrifices were performed individually. But be that as it may, the civilization that Seth founded was not distinguished by earthly power, worldly comfort and the presence of entertainment, but true worship of God was preserved and developed in this civilization. Blessed Augustine in the book “On the City of God” writes: “Then these two distinct generations, one is Seth, the other is Cain, each enter in a special order into the composition of these two cities: one is heavenly, wandering on earth, the other is earthly, striving and clinging to earthly joys.”

What do these two civilizational directions, these two archetypes mean in relation to today’s situation?

Cain or Seth?

If the Ukrainian people forget about seeking “first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matt. 6:33), and fully concentrate only on restoring and returning the former comfort, if we do not bring repentance to God and strive to fulfill His commandments, then this will be the way Cain. And this path leads nowhere.

Union with the Catholics

The most characteristic feature of Cain’s civilization, as we see from the Holy Scriptures, was the rejection of true worship of God ( “And Cain departed from the presence of the Lord…” (Genesis 4:16)). Under our conditions, such a refusal could be a betrayal of Orthodoxy, to which our people swore allegiance more than a thousand years ago, and the forced imposition of Catholicism in the form of a union. There are prerequisites for this.

On April 2, 2022, NBC News reported that Pope Francis was considering a visit to Kyiv. On the other hand, the “Metropolitan” of the OCU Mikhail Zinkevich said that after the war he expects the unification of all Ukrainian Orthodox denominations, together with the Uniates, into one structure. According to Zinkevich, “it should be one Kiev church in the status of a patriarchate.” There are significant statements from the Ukrainian authorities. On March 30, the mayor of Ternopil Serhiy Nadal called on Ukrainians to “free themselves from Moscow’s mental occupation” and celebrate Easter “in the family of the free peoples of the world”, that is, with Catholics and Protestants.

Perhaps all these statements are interconnected. And if this is so, then we can expect a repetition of the Brest Union of 1596. What unification with Catholics can lead to, and why this is a betrayal of Orthodoxy, can be read in the articles “Orthodox must unite with Catholics and Uniates!” , “The Church and the Simulacrum – 2: what awaits those who submit to the authority of the Phanar” and other materials.

UOC ban

A ban on the UOC can also become a rejection of true worship. Two relevant bills have already been submitted to the Verkhovna Rada . As the true Church of Christ, the UOC prayerfully intercedes before God for Ukraine, for its rulers, and for the whole people. If the people refuse such intercession, then there will be nothing left for them but to follow the path of Cain and build a Cain civilization on our land.

The course for the promotion of LGBT

The increased promotion of gender ideology and the popularization of LGBT people can also become a rejection of true worship of God, which is incompatible with the biblical understanding of sin and virtue.

What will happen if Ukraine follows the path of Seth?

The most important thing is that Orthodoxy must be preserved in Ukraine as a true religion, a true service to God. At the same time, in modern conditions, the state should not force people to accept this or that faith, to join this or that confession, as it sometimes happens. The state can and should enable all people to exercise their right to freedom of conscience without dividing confessions into “patriotic” and “non-patriotic”.

The true Church of God by the action of the Holy Spirit will itself reveal its strength and spiritual beauty. People will reach out to her not out of compulsion, but out of their hearts. If the state does not engage in the oppression of the UOC, but allows it to live freely and carry out its saving mission, this will be the contribution to the fulfillment of true worship of God that is available to the state as a public institution. And our society, the Ukrainian people, each person individually will decide for himself what confession he belongs to. And it must be assumed that the people will prove loyalty to their roots, loyalty to the civilizational choice of the holy prince Vladimir, loyalty to Orthodoxy.

In this case, if Ukraine chooses the path of Seth, then the words of Christ will surely be fulfilled in it: “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all this will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). Economic well-being, cultural development, and many other good things will follow. The choice is ours.