The Russian Orthodox Church gains a larger political role, supporting Putin’s war in Ukraine. It pushes forth new laws that should prepare to project power abroad. The total and uncritical justification of the war allows the Patriarch of Moscow to present his requests for legislative changes to the Russian political world. A situation that, on […]
They will meet in St. Pölten (Austria, February 16–19) — the 56 bishops of the Armenian Church and their Catholicos, Karekin II — for a council that could prove decisive for that Church’s future. In a country precariously clinging to survival, the Armenian Apostolic Church must regain its unity to secure the nation’s future. The […]
Accusations levelled too strenuously at others often reveal the accuser’s own failings – a psychological defense called displacement or projection, what the New Testament (John 8:7) meant in warning against “casting the first stone.” Inflammatory selective accusations – “autocrat,” “aggressor,” “terrorist,” “authoritarian,” and other swear-words – are hurled at adversaries with subjective enthusiasm but little […]
Some in America might want to save Russia from itself, and rightly so. But the current deal only makes things worse. The US needs a clearer, more comprehensive plan to address the issue. There are few enough ways to state it: Russian President Vladimir Putin has not won on the battlefield. He has not conquered […]
Rome, December 4, 2025, Presentation of the Document Denouncing Persecutions by Sergei Chapnin Four Premises: · The limited competence of a religious writer (not an academic, not a geopolitical expert). · Never confuse the glorious, millennia-long history of the peoples of ‘Rus’ with the current historical segment of the war; never confuse the theological-spiritual heritage […]
Although there is no mention of it in the media, the Moscow Synod’s removal of Metropolitan Nestor of Chersonese and Western Europe (based in Paris) deserves attention. Although no reason is given in the official communication from November 8, the diaspora and dissidents point to his tolerance of priests expelled from Russia for their aversion […]
Does Russian President Vladimir Putin want to be canonized as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church? Could his canonization help his hold on power in war-torn Russia? The Russian Orthodox Church may be undergoing a shift in its religious orientation, further aligning its ideals with those of the Russian state, as was the case […]
