All posts tagged: Russian Orthodox Church

Ukrainians urged to celebrate Christmas on Dec 25

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We are living in interesting times, and it may even impact when members of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine celebrate Christmas, Premier Christian News reports. During a church synod held in October, the leaders of Ukraine’s Orthodox Church encouraged its members to celebrate Christmas on December 25 this year, instead of January 7th as it has traditionally done. The group has approximately 7,000 churches in Ukraine. For centuries, Ukraine’s orthodox church was under the auspices of the Russian Orthodox Church. However, in 2019 it broke free from the Russian Orthodox Church due largely to Russia’s seizure of Crimea in 2014. The differences between the two groups have only grown since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine earlier this year. In September, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, likened Russia’s invasion to a Holy War and said any Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine would be absolved of their sin. In an interview with Premier Christian News, Christian historian Martyn Whittock explained the decision to move the celebration of Christ’s birth to Dec 25: “Orthodox believers …

Russia closing down non-orthodox churches and arresting pastors in its illegally seized territory

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According to a report by Release International based in the United Kingdom, Russian forces that have illegally occupied parts of Ukraine are shutting down non-Russian Orthodox churches and in some instance arresting their pastor, Premier Christian News report. This includes the closure of a Grace Baptist Church in Melitopol on Sept 11, 2022, which was raided by armed Russian troops during its Sunday morning worship service that was being broadcast live. Melitopol, located in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast region of East Ukraine, was occupied by Russian forces in late February. The Russian soldiers entered as church members were singing a hymn. They ended the service, took down the names of all the attendees and arrested several of those leading the service. The senior pastor, Mikhail Brisyn was ordered to leave the city within 48 hours. Other churches were also raided and shut down in August including Melitopol Christian Church, which has a 1,000 seat auditorium and is the city’s largest church. But the raid of a church in the small town of Chkalovo revealed what may …

Russian Orthodox leader says Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine invasion will be absolved of their sins

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In what can only be described as a bizarre move, the Russian Orthodox Church is essentially offering indulgences to any Russian soldiers who die during Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Premier Christian News reports. Patriarch Kirill, 75, is the head of the Russian Orthodox Church and in a sermon that he preached on Sunday, Sept 25, 2022, he stated that any Russian soldiers killed during the invasion will be absolved of their sins. According to Kirill’s theology, these soldiers no longer need Christ and can die for their own sins and receive eternal life. In his sermon Kirill stated: “… if a person dies in the performance of this duty, then they have undoubtedly committed an act equivalent to sacrifice. They will have sacrificed themselves for others. And therefore, we believe that this sacrifice washes away all the sins that a person has committed.” Of course, Russian soldiers should be a little concerned about this meaningless promise. Not only is it completely unBiblical, but the Russian Orthodox Church had tried similar tricks earlier, with unsuccessful results. …

Did the Russian warship, Moskva, have a piece of Christ’s ‘True Cross’ on board when it sank?

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You may have heard of the sinking of the Moskva, Russia’s flagship in the Baltic Sea on April 14, 2022. There are now reports that it had a piece of Christ’s True Cross on board when it sank. The high-tech missile ship provided protection to the Russian fleet trying to supply the country’s army that has invaded Ukraine. Ukraine’s military claimed it had hit and sunk the ship with land-based cruise missiles. The Russian military initially denied this stating there had been a fire onboard that ignited the ship’s ammunition resulting in a massive explosion. It also stated that the ship was still afloat, and being towed for repairs. The Russian media later stated the ship had sunk. The reaction by Russia since the sinking basically confirmed that it was indeed sunk by Ukraine’s military, and Russia was in damage control over this humiliating defeat. Moskva had a crew of over 500 men, and it is uncertain how many were killed in the attack. It is the largest warship sunk since World War II. There …

Has a religious ideology, ‘Holy Rus’, played a role in Putin’s invasion of Ukraine?

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Premier Christian News reports that a religious ideology associated with the Russian Orthodox Church headquartered in Moscow may be part of the driving force behind Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. In fact, several hundred people have already signed a petition organized by a group called Public Orthodoxy, condemning the weaponization of Christianity in the war. According to its website, Public Orthodoxy provides “scholarly research on a wide variety of topics related to the history, thought, and culture of Orthodox Christianity.” In its petition, Public Orthodoxy states that Russian President Vladimir Putin along with the senior leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church has embraced what is described as a Russian world ideology referred to as ‘Holy Russia’ or ‘Holy Rus.’ On its website, Public Orthodoxy described the fundamental principle behind this new ideology: The teaching states that there is a transnational Russian sphere or civilization, called Holy Russia or Holy Rus’, which includes Russia, Ukraine and Belarus (and sometimes Moldova and Kazakhstan), as well as ethnic Russians and Russian-speaking people throughout the world. It holds that …