RUSSIA The theological dispute over political orthodoxy in Russia

The condemnation of Tkačev by influential figures such as Kuzmin and Dvorkin has uncovered Pandora’s box within the Russian Orthodox Church, where the “two towers” of the holy war and what was condemned as “the liberal sect” confront each other. linked to the memory of Aleksandr Men, the “spiritual father of dissent.”

Kazan () – A theological conference held between scholars and clerics of the Russian Orthodox Church in Kazan and Bolgar in Tatarstan in recent days, on the topic of “Spiritual Fatherhood and False Starčestvo”, on the spread of sectarian movements , unexpectedly became a heated dispute over “Political Orthodoxy” that spread far beyond the restricted group of specialists, into the broad community of “Orthodox bloggers.”

The conference was organized at a high level, with the participation of three bishops, including the director of the missionary department of the patriarchate, Monsignor Evfimij, several representatives of the civil and ecclesiastical authorities of the area, the inventor of “destructivism” (manifestation of destructive religious tendencies) Roman Silantev, and the leading Russian sektoved, “sect expert”, Professor Aleksandr Dvorkin. The debate was triggered by the statements of Father Andrej Tkačev (in the photo), one of the most fervent defenders of Orthodoxy in times of war, who described the victims of the Isis attack on the town hall of Krokus, and “unbelievers, who died because they did not know how to pray” to those who died in Belgorod under the Ukrainian bombs.

Priest Aleksandr Kuzmin, one of the organizers of the conference, responded to Tkačev, calling his words “scandalous and unacceptable, which offend common sense and attract hostility towards our Church.” Furthermore, violations of the liturgical canons were denounced by Tkačev, who replaced Father Aleksej Uminskij in Moscow, expelled by the Patriarch for his pacifist tendencies, and now passages from the Apocalypse are proclaimed during processions, even inserting threatening phrases in the Eucharistic prayers. Father Andrej is linked to a very radical movement, the National Liberation Movement, led by the ultra-conservative deputy Evgenij Fedorov, which finances his political-ecclesiastical activities.

Kuzmin continued the controversy by publishing a document from the association of scholars of the Razirs sects, in which Tkačev is denounced as a “false starets” who does not represent the Church and “causes enormous damage to the faithful and to society as a whole.” set”. The statement was commented on by Dvorkin, the most authoritative member of the association, who assured that Tkačev’s condemnation is shared “at the conciliar level”, an instructive opinion. The professor is also a long-time friend and collaborator of the expelled Father Uminsky, and now he confronts Father Tkačev in the same Moscow church of the Holy Trinity of Khokhly, stating that “the atmosphere in the church has become unbearable, not listen to no one.”

Andrej Tkačev, born in L’vov, had served for several years in kyiv before the war, and one parishioner at the time recounts: “I thought he was just a misogynist, then I realised that he hates everyone, and especially Ukrainians.” In Russia, the most exaggerated hailed him as a “victim of the Ukrainian Nazi regime” – Patriarch Kirill even invited him to preach during his services, and the militant Orthodox oligarch Konstantin Malofeev gave him space on his Tsargrad television channel, which made him very famous.

Now, the condemnation of Tkačev by influential figures such as Kuzmin and Dvorkin has uncovered Pandora’s box within the Russian Orthodox Church, where the “two towers” of the holy war and what was condemned as “the liberal sect” confront each other. “, linked to the memory of the priest Aleksandr Men, the “spiritual father of dissidence” of the Soviet era assassinated in 1990, of whom Uminsky was one of the closest disciples. If even the greatest cult specialist like Aleksandr Dvorkin condemns the vulgar brutality of war propaganda, it is clear that not all Orthodox in Russia are so convinced of the path taken in supporting the invasion of Ukraine.