1) Patriarch Kirill gave an important speech 3 days ago, in which he criticised the West and the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and lashed out against the cancellation of Russian culture.
2) Kirill began by recalling how Peter I “cut through” the window between Russia and the West, but added that now “this window remains open only for mutually respectful dialogue, and not ideological dictate and bossy shouts from outside”.
3) This is a constant refrain from Russian figures, and others in Eastern Europe. Even Pope Francis has spoken about the dangers of “ideological colonisation”, with the west wanting to impose its now godless values on the rest of the world.
4) We would do well to listen to these grievances, as history has shown they can easily morph into something much uglier.
For Kirill, the problems in Ukraine at the moment began a long time ago, and it is always the fault of external forces intent on weakening Russia.
5) So, for example, the Union of Brest, which created the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in 1596 is seen as part of this plot. “This act, aimed at destroying Orthodox unity, solved a very specific political problem for the Western powers” he says.
6) He also condemns what he considers to be Ukrainian revisionism of the Second World War, namely the rehabilitation of Ukrainian leaders who allied themselves to the Nazis. “Such attempts can only cause deep moral rejection and justified indignation.
7) Attempts to rehabilitate, in particular in Ukraine, those who were associated with the German Nazis, to perpetuate their memory – all this is a sign of contempt for the victims of the Great Patriotic War, including the victims suffered by the Ukrainian people.”
8) He reminds his audience that the war in Ukraine actually began in 2014 and stresses how the Church has always tried to mediate, including in organising prisoner exchanges. Now, things got worse because of, that’s right… The evil west!
9) “I am convinced that the division of the peoples of historical Russia, which has come down to a bloody conflict, as before in history, is the result of the intervention of external hostile political forces. It is well known that the colonial powers, guided by the principle of
10) "divide and conquer", also created points of military tension and internecine conflicts in other regions of the globe. Today, this shameful rule, unfortunately, is also used to escalate Russian-Ukrainian hostility.”
11) The schism within the Ukrainian church is also part of this plot, and here the actions of Constantinople “are worthy of historical comparison with Uniatism.
12) The ultimate goal of this project is the reorientation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in such a way that it can no longer serve the unity of the fraternal Russian and Ukrainian peoples.”
13) The goal, as always, is to weaken powerful messianic Russia. “The political goal of creating all these autocephalies, all these schismatic associations is to weaken the influence of the Orthodox Church, the one Orthodox Church of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.”
14) The speech includes appeals for respect for international law during war, and ends with criticism of the cancellation of Russian culture. “An attempt to eradicate the culture of a particular nation is the apogee of hatred.”
15) “Western classical literature, music and painting have always been highly valued by our compatriots who perceive European culture as an integral part of the rich Christian civilizational heritage. So we continue to perceive it now, despite everything that happens.
16) I hope that those who are now “fighting” with Pushkin and Dostoevsky, who are boycotting Tchaikovsky competitions and refusing to perform Rachmaninoff, will sooner or later come to realize the shamefulness and madness of their actions.”
1) This interview with Met. Hilarion, of the Department for External Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church, is from 13 May, but I only read it today.
Some interesting details to look at. actualidadereligiosa.blogspot.com/2022/02/war-in…
2) Perhaps the most important is his insistance that: "in the West the statements of the Patriarch are viewed through the prism of propaganda carried out in the media, and Western politicians cannot adequately assess these statements"
3) This might make sense, were the Patriarch's statements not made public on his website. All the statements I have collected on my blog are not read through the prism of Wester propaganda, they are lifted directly from the homepage of the ROC. And some of them are pretty grim!
1) Some interesting words by ++Shevchuk over this last week, but perhaps the most interesting was the document from the UGCC Synod on the war, curiously dated 13 May.
In it the bishops hint that the reason God allowed Ukraine to become independent, and the UGCC to be restored
2) was in anticipation of this fight against Russia: "the revived Kievan Rus rebelled & stopped the evil will of the aggressor, albeit at a high price. The price we continue to pay today on the altar for the liberation of our and other nations to stop the insatiable dragon"
3) Ukrainians are thus "becoming a nation of martyrs-heroes who give their lives, protecting not only our relatives but all European nations and their freedom"
I am only publishing statements made after the beginning of the conflict, and will be updating the list as the days go on.
If you know of any other relevant statements please add them in replies. Thank-you. Also please share with anybody you think might be interested.