Russian Orthodox Church's growing role in Kremlin's military agenda

During Vladimir Putin's first presidential term, I was living in Saint Petersburg. I was surprised to see that during many of his appearances, he was often accompanied by the then Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Alexy II. This did not surprise Russians. They explained that it was Putin who stood with Alexy, not the other way around, because presidential power, like the Tsar's, is thought to come from God, and the presence of the Patriarch legitimizes the president's statements.

Today, the same professor from the Saint Petersburg University of Education, when asked about the relations between the Danilov Monastery and the Kremlin, merely waves his hand. It is not only because he is wary of speaking to a journalist from the West, but because it is now the Patriarch who stands with the president, not the president with the Patriarch.

After the fall of communism, the Church hoped its position would be restored, allowing it to regain influence over spiritual matters. However, the alliance with politics has not been entirely successful. While Alexy II enjoyed more freedom in his actions and speech, his successor Kirill has consistently voiced the Kremlin's views. This is particularly evident in issues concerning Ukraine. In 2009, he undermined the independence of the Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate, which Moscow did not recognize. This position was similar to that with the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, established in 2018.

Kirill asserted that Kyiv had betrayed the "true faith" and aimed to reclaim it. Just prior to the full-scale war, he stated, "We call Kyiv the 'mother of Russian cities,' (...). This is where Russian Orthodoxy began, and it cannot be abandoned due to circumstances beyond the control of this historical and spiritual connection."

In Kirill's view, Ukrainians and Russians are one people, whom "foreign forces wish to divide." Therefore, from the outset, he has actively supported the "special military operation" and has called for prayers for Russian soldiers fighting against "the most powerful forces that effectively rule the world today."

"Every parish should assist those on the front line. We must mobilize our parishioners to gather supplies and food," Kirill declared a year ago at the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in Saint Petersburg. The Church responded swiftly. Not only did it start fundraising for soldiers' families and the soldiers themselves, but it also became directly involved.

By fall 2023, the Russian Orthodox Church had become integrated with the draft system. In hindsight, it was relatively tentative at that time. Now, as the pool of volunteers and "residents" of penal colonies is dwindling, priests have begun conducting campaigns in churches, urging defense against the "forces of evil."

The Church has long been engaged in propagandistic activities, labeling the war in Ukraine as "holy." According to the synod, it is a battle against the satanic, corrupt West, which veered from true Christian belief centuries ago. Soldiers on the front lines are seen as fulfilling a divine mission, fighting for the unification of Russian peoples under one authority.

Russia, and by extension the Church, has returned to the "trinity doctrine" born in imperial times, which proposes that the Russian nation comprises Great Russians, Little Russians, and Belarusians, forming one significant Russian nation. The Kremlin's propaganda has also become the Church's official stance, included in the document "The Present and Future of the Russian World."

Patriarch Kirill's actions are not solely motivated by love for Mother Russia. The Church gains financially from its cooperation with the Russian Ministry of Defence and seeks control over spiritual matters. The Kremlin promised Kirill that after victory, his influence would extend to Ukraine.

Already, the Ministry of Defence is enhancing the Church's role in the military. As part of the ongoing propaganda efforts, the deputy head of the Main Political Directorate of the Russian Ministry of Defence, Oleg Veselkov, announced at the beginning of December that the Russian army created the position of a religious assistant.

Veselkov described it as "a confessor for the commander, who is always with him — on the front line, at the command post, among the troops." He noted that priests in the Russian army will now work closely with soldiers on an individual level directly on the front lines.

The first 30 young priests completed their training at the end of November and have already been deployed to the front. One of the instructors was Roman Silantyev, a well-known Russian ideologist of Pan-Slavism and an advocate for Moscow's primary role in uniting all Slavs. He lectured on "neo-paganism and the roots of Ukrainian nationalism."

Since the war began, at least seven Orthodox priests have been killed on the front line. Among them, two were killed last month. This is, however, a sacrifice that the bishops are willing to endure.

In the occupied territories, the Russian Orthodox Church has taken control of temples, church buildings, and lands in the dioceses of Dzhankoi, Berdiansk, Rovenki, and Kherson. In these areas, Patriarch Kirill appointed Moscow-controlled bishops.

This occurred because the authorities claimed that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine had abandoned the properties and its followers. To supposedly protect them from destruction, the Church took them under its care, echoing the Soviet narrative following its invasion of Poland in 1939 or during the occupation of the Baltic states and Bessarabia a year later.

Any grassroots resistance against the actions of the hierarchy is quickly quashed. In early March 2022, over 300 clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church published an open letter calling for reconciliation and the end of the war, stating, "The Ukrainian people must decide their fate, not under the gun, and without pressure from both the West and the East." The bishops sent these clergy to monasteries, commanding them to remain silent.

In the occupied territories, only priests with special ideological training are deployed. For this purpose, an "inter-parish training centre for specialists of the Luhansk diocese" has been established in the Luhansk region, overseen by Metropolitan Panteleimon, who was appointed by Moscow.

In this manner, the Russian Orthodox Church has become a significant tool for Kremlin propaganda. Under the guise of religion, Russians disseminate propaganda, justify war crimes, and attempt to create an impression of legitimate authority in the occupied territories.