Russia’s Orthodox Church — but is it Russia’s?

Apart from everything else, Western spy agencies have exerted what may be the strongest and most destructive influence on Russia’s Orthodox Church (ROC).14 And this could have been foreseen, of course, if someone had only been assigned to foresee it. We know that major shifts in our country are always preceded by an ideological makeover. Could the departments of Western spy agencies responsible for the transformations in Russia required by their masters leave untouched such an important institution as ROC? Of course not! Otherwise their work would not be professional. Besides, the conditions in Russia at the time offered more than fertile ground for ide-ological diversion. Occupied with their own reorganisation, our spy agencies, to put it mildly, were busy with their internal ‘settling of accounts’, which I believe is still going on.

It is impossible to know about every single operation per-petrated by a Western spy agency through ROC structures. But one in particular has struck a chord in society as a whole. Millions of Russia’s citizens, including the Church’s own clerics, have felt and continue to feel its destructive conse-quences. I’m talking here about the agency formed under the aegis of ROC which labels as ‘sects’ a wide range of secular and religious organisations, thus provoking negative reactions to ROC on their part.

These ‘anti-sectarians’ have been acting in the name of the Church and even, as they claim, with the blessing of Patriarch Alexei II. In response to their actions people who formerly maintained a tolerant attitude toward the Church or even at-tended services as baptised members, have now simply torn off the crosses they used to wear around their necks.

One more ploy of the ‘anti-sectarians’: in working to expose their straw-man ‘sects’, they virtually criticised and brought shame upon Russia’s Orthodox Church itself, dealing it a se-rious blow. After that, they decided to take control of the higher organs of state power in the Russian Federation.

Having accepted the idea of a marvellous future for Russia (as shown in these books) with their heart and soul, people in various parts of Russia have turned (and continue to turn) to local administrations, asking them to grant them plots of land for the setting up of family domains. And, what is truly amazing, people for the first time are not asking for favours, or salary or pension supplements, but simply a small piece of their country’s natural landscape where they can create their own living (and not just survival) conditions.

It would seem that this impulse which has arisen among the public is something that ought to be welcomed with open arms. And this impulse is no fly-by-night whim, but a lasting, well-thought-through desire, as the past four years will attest. This idea has encompassed various segments of the population: school pupils, scholars and entrepreneurs, teach-ers, doctors and pensioners, soldiers and politicians, artists, poets and writers — including academicians, governors and the wives of presidents of former Soviet republics.

These people can help not only in solving many of the socio-economic problems our country is facing, but also in making drastic improvements in our country’s demographic situation, unemployment rate and national health, as well as in securing safe food supplies. But the main thing is to harness the mighty force of the people themselves, who, in creating their own Space, will strengthen their beloved country and nation-state which has afforded them the opportunity to do so.

Evidently, however, there is someone who is greatly dis-pleased by these positive aspirations which have emerged in the Russian people.

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