Orthodox Brotherhoods on Ukrainian autocephaly

Moscow— Respective members of the Union the Orthodox Brotherhoods of Ukraine and the synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate gathered at the residence of Patriarch Alexis II on 17 March 2008 to discuss the autocephaly. According to the Portal Credo news agency, The Ukrainian delegation consisted of a few dozen representatives from eight regions and was led by UOBU deputy head V. Lukiianyk.

The delegates expressed their concern over the “threat” of autocephaly and requested that the Patriarch come to Ukraine to promote administrative unity among UOC-MP churches and monasteries.

“We promote unity and will not allow division to take place,” assured Patriarch Alexis, before agreeing to a visit. “We will not leave our flock in Ukraine in trouble and will certainly come to Ukraine.”

Which begged the question for me of what a "Union the Orthodox Brotherhoods of Ukraine" is.

From the Encyclopedia of Ukraine: The origins of brotherhoods can be traced back to the medieval bratchyny, which were organized at churches in the Princely era (first mentioned in the Hypatian Chronicle, 1159). Brotherhoods as such appeared in Ukraine in the mid-15th century (the Lviv Dormition Brotherhood was first mentioned in 1463), with the rise of the burgher class. They adopted their organizational structure from Western medieval brotherhoods (confraternitates) and trade guilds. Initially the brotherhoods engaged only in religious and charitable activities. They maintained churches and sometimes assumed financial responsibility for them, ensured that church services, in particular parish feasts, were celebrated in a ceremonious way, arranged ritual dinners for their members, collected money, helped the indigent and the sick, and organized hospitals. Since these religious and charitable activities of the brotherhoods left no visible traces, some historians, such asKost Huslysty and Yaroslav Isaievych, do not consider the early period of the brotherhoods as being part of their history.