THE ORIGINS OF THE CULT OF THE VIRGIN IN THE UKRAINIAN RELIGIOUS OUTLOOK

Abstract

Introduction. Hard confrontation of Russian and Ukrainian Orthodox Church actualizes the issues related to the disclosure of their inner identity. The article emphasizes the historically formed uniqueness of Ukrainian Orthodoxy and highlights the philosophical grounds of the cult of the Virgin. Purpose. The purpose of the article is to clear up the importance of the cult of the Virgin in Ukrainian Orthodoxy and  actualize explorations that dedicated to the search of cultural and ideological factors that contributed to its strengthening. Results. The socio-cultural and ideological origin of Slavic culture are analyzed in the article and the author  substantiates the idea of a kind of synthesis of Indo-European and Balkan-Danubian cultures. The article says that in Slavic territory a specific cult of female deity Makosh was appeared. The specifics of the cult, as shown in the article, caused, on the one hand, by the dominance of cult of women in all peoples, who inhabited the territory of Ukraine in different historical periods, and on the other – Indo-European specificity of birth and interpretation of the meaning of God. Against this background was shown the illegality of the traditional for the domestic socio-humanitarian discourse view of a specific transformation of pagan deities of Christian saints. Originality. The author investigates the essence of the cult of the Virgin and its importance in Ukrainian Orthodoxy. He stressed that in the Rus territory there was organic synthesis of pagan and Christian traditions – dual faith that determined by external kinship with Christianity and internal unity with paganism. Within the latter, deity Makosh, that was formed on the basis of the cult of female beginning, transformed into the Christian Virgin. Conclusion. Interpretation of its meaningful and functional significance in the light of embedded, according to the natural cycle (sowing and harvest) Ukrainian rites on the one hand, and comparative analysis of disclosed at the same background content of the Makosh goddess on the other, gives all grounds to assert that within the Ukrainian Christian and especially popular tradition, there was a meaningful association of Makosh and Virgin.