Danyliuk O. Roman Catholic Religious Orders: Their Nature and Activities in Ukrainian History and Culture

The paper in a complete philosophic and religious research of activity of Roman Catholic religious orders in Ukraine. The paper research includes a complex analysis of formation and development of institute of religious orders of Roman Catholic church and its spread in Ukraine. It justified the influence of Roman Catholic religious orders on formation of Ukrainian spirituality and culture, their role and place on contemporary conditions of Ukrainian state. The paper researches the influence of Roman Catholic orders on various spheres of vital activity and in specific periods of Ukrainian national history through sources and references created by church and monastic activists. A further resolution that the formation of Roman Catholic religious orders in Ukrainian ethnical lands points out to a natural geopolitical direction of Ukrainians, and their activity assists to cultural and civilizational development of Ukrainian people. We detected such factors of spreading of Roman Catholic religious orders in Ukraine as tendencies for convergence and mutual enrichment of Eastern Slavic and Western European cultures, social orientation of Roman Catholic religious orders, their openness to interfaith and interreligious dialogue. We observed specifics of activity of Roman Catholic religious orders in Ukraine, which lies in social and practical activity, including evangelic activity in its social aspects. It is shown that the process of inculturation of the Roman Catholic religious orders in Ukraine promotes their Ukrainianization that increases the quantitative composition of the Roman Catholic clergy and faithful of Ukrainian - Roman Catholics. It proved that the influence of Roman Catholic religious orders in the formation of Ukrainian spirituality and culture lies in increasing educational activities, developing models of ascetic life, creation within moral theology programs improves human problem solving inequality by strengthening the role of the laity in the life of the church in terms of synthesis of Eastern and Western Christian teaching. It states that the development activities of Roman Catholic religious orders in Ukraine demonstrates compliance with Catholic spirituality spiritual needs of Ukrainian society. Profound understanding of the basic elements of spiritual education of Roman Catholic religious orders made by schools of spirituality: Augustinian (Augustinian Hermits), Benedictine (Benedictines, Cystercians), Dominican (Dominicans), Franciscan (Franciscans), Carmelite (Carmelites, Discalced Carmelites), Ignatian (Jesuits). It was found that the Roman Catholic religious orders incite religious activity that is on official character, which leads to improvement of the structure of society. The features actualization of mystical themes with regard to different areas of spiritual perception through the dissemination of spiritual practice of Christian meditation by Benedictine, Carmelite, Jesuit School of Christian meditation, The World Community for Christian Meditation (WCCM).