The left-wing online journal “ПОСЛЕ” (in English, “After”) recently published an interview with religious scholar Andrei Shishkov about the state of affairs in the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC). While Patriarch Kirill - head of the ROC - came forth with his ardent support for the war in Ukraine, many ordinary clergy considered it a fratricidal sentiment, and directly said so. Many others remain defiantly silent. Similar information has been provided by the internet publication “ВЕРСТКА” (or “Layout,” which, just like “After,” is blocked in Russia). An article by Yulia Akhmetova cites statements by priests opposed to the authorities and notes of the existence of three trends, and also of a political split in Orthodoxy. The Nevoyna Telegram channel has prepared an summary of the situation for its readers, based on the materials of these two articles:
Like the rest of society, the Orthodox are divided into three camps. The one openly supports the war in Ukraine (officially referred to in Russia as the “Special Military Operation”), the other has publicly opposed it, and a third group is the “silent majority”.
In early March, about 300 clergymen appealed to “everyone on whom the cessation of the fratricidal war in Ukraine depends” and issued a call to stop the bloodshed. This was in February, the first and only time when representatives of the church spoke out en masse against the war. The Federal Security Service demanded that the bishops deal with the priests who expressed their dissatisfaction with the special operation.
Two dozen bishops (out of more than 300) publicly supported the military actions against Ukraine; some quite sincerely, some, like the patriarch, decided to show loyalty to the authorities just in case.
At least two current clergy are known to have been prosecuted for their anti-war statements. One of them is John Burdin, who invited parishioners to pray for peace. The second is Deacon Dmitry Baev from Kirov. Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, in his program “The Church and the World” on the state-run TV news channel "Russia 24,” also spoke out against the initiation of possible hostilities only weeks before the start of the invasion. As a result, he was removed from his prestigious post as head of the ROC’s Department for External Church Relations.
The special operation threatens to split not only Russian society, but the entire Orthodox world. At least 15 Ukrainian parishes belonging to the Moscow Patriarchate have stopped their customary commemoration of Kirill at divine services. Some Ukrainian communities began to leave the Moscow-affiliated Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) for the independent Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which is not associated with the ROC. On May 27, the UOC proclaimed its “full autonomy and independence” from the Moscow Patriarchate. Formally, it still remains a self-governing church within the Russian Orthodox Church.
The Russian Orthodox Church is losing parishes not only in Ukraine. For example, congregations in Amsterdam and in the Holy Cross parish of the Italian city of Udine announced that they were breaking off relations. In early March, Metropolitan Innokenty of Vilna and Lithuania also criticized Russia. He was supported by three Lithuanian priests, all of whom were summarily defrocked.
From 2009 to 2021, the number of those who consider themselves Orthodox fell by about 13%. This coincides with the reign of Patriarch Kirill. Many parishioners are dissatisfied with Kirill because of his dependence on the secular authorities. He is perceived not as a pastor, but as an official: he only repeats propagandistic clichés, and says too much about politics and too little about the spiritual. Public support by the patriarch of the military campaign is a demonstration of loyalty to the authorities, a means to ensure that the ROC continues to receive resources from the state. Those priests and laity who are opposed to the war will go into “internal emigration,” and some will break with the church and with the top leadership’s support for military aggression.
The high clergy of the ROC is building vertical power in the institution, deliberately destroying horizontal ties between believers and excluding them from any decision-making process. The modern ROC is a big bureaucratic machine that has sown alienation among believers and destroyed any form of autonomy and solidarity. Believers, by their reckoning, should be consumers of religious services, and the ROC is turning into a corporation serving their customers.
The reorganization of the church must begin with greater parish autonomy, as well as the expansion and protection of the rights of laity and ordinary clergy. One of the ways to foster self-organized life in communities is to discontinue the movement of priests from parish to parish at the whim of the church hierarchy. Only then will people be motivated to participate in parish life: to create communities and movements, and to build horizontal links between them.
The text first published on НЕВОЙНА Telegram channel.
The Divided Church
A really informative article.
Andrey Zvyagintsev's film, Leviathan, brilliantly illustrates the dichotomy in the Russian Orthodox church - between the devout ordinary priests and the corrupt higher echalons, in bed with the politicians
The Orthodox faith must transcend politics -- especially in a conflict of Slav against Slav, many of whom have suffered shelling and persecution by Azov and Nazi sympathizers for years now. The Roman Catholic Church self-promoted and instilled allegiance by guilt, fear and tradition. The mystical, spiritual wealth the Orthodox Church has had for centuries will be important in the healing of this lost generation. The neighborhood parishes have suffered from loss of priests - this is true in the States, too. We can only pray the human heart and soul turns to God and rises above the melee of war. May peace prevail.