War and Church

A war is no good if you conduct it without the approval of your church.  As it happens, Vladimir Putin can count the Russian Orthodox Church on his side.

Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill has been dispensing firm messages of support for the invasion of Ukraine.

“If we see Ukraine as a threat, we have the right to use force to ensure the threat is eradicated,” Patriarch Kirill recently preached to his church’s 90 million faithful followers. “We have entered into a conflict which has not only physical but also metaphysical significance. We are talking about human salvation, something much more important than politics.”

There is speculation that Patriarch Kirill opposed the invasion, but Putin has the same special relationship with the Church Patriarch he has with others in the Russian spotlight.

The special relationship works like this; if you publicly contradict Putin, you experience a mysterious and untimely death.

—Mitchell Hegman

Sources: thedailybeast.com, cruxnow.com