ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the position of the Belarusian Orthodox Church with regards migrants and refugees after the beginning of the Russian–Ukrainian conflict in 2014 and during the European refugee crisis in 2015–16. Therefore, similarly to the position of the church in the Russian Federation, the Orthodox Church was grateful to receive formal privileges from the Belarusian state. Belarus is desirable for them because they can easily integrate into society and its reputation as a country of ‘order and stability’ among neighbouring states. As an institution, the Belarusian Church remains silent on the Ukrainian war and migration issues. Other Christian churches in Belarus are more interested in the ‘secular tendencies’ coming from the West than migration issues. The Belarusian Orthodox Church’s indifference to migrants and refugees has been affected by myriad complex factors. As a whole, anti-European rhetoric has been an important tool in the self-sustaining strategy of the Belarusian political elites.
