Practicing Belonging Through Religious Institutions: Ukrainian Migrants in Warsaw

• Published in: Polish sociological review Vol. 222; no. 2; pp. 151 - 168
• Main Author: Głowacka-Grajper, Małgorzata
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Warsaw Polish Sociological Association 2023; Polskie Towarzystwo Socjologiczne; Polskie Towarzystwo Socjologiczne (Polish Sociological Association)
• Subjects: Activism; Catholic churches; Catholicism; Christianity; Denominations; Ethnic Minorities Studies; Migrants; Migration; Migration Studies; National identity; Political activism; Religion; Religious communities; Religious organizations; Religious orthodoxy; Society; Sociology of Religion; Poland; Ukraine; Jack Palmer; Dariusz Brzezinski; Mark Davis; Thomas P Campbell
• ISSN: 1231-1413; 2657-4276
• DOI: 10.26412/psr222.01

The article foregrounds Ukrainian migrants’ perception of their social situation as followers of various Christian denominations—Roman Catholicism, Eastern Catholicism, and Eastern Orthodox—who live in Warsaw. I analyze their narratives through theories of belonging and anchoring. Based on interviews with Ukrainian religious activists I analyze the Ukrainian migrants’ challenges regarding their religious and national loyalties. The article shows how religious divisions in Ukrainian society entered Poland along with the migrants and how Ukrainian national identity and place in Polish society are negotiated at the intersection of the three Christian denominations’ activities, which thus creates a triangle of religious-national-political relations, in which Ukrainian migrants constantly negotiate belonging to the Polish society, the Ukrainian nation, and the religious communities.