The "Russian world" religion saying farewell to Christianity

Photo: UOJ

The Congress of the World Russian People's Council (WRPC) was held on 27 March 2024 in the Hall of Church Councils of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour presided by Patriarch Kirill, the head of the WRPC.

Wikipedia reports that this organisation was established in May 1993 under the auspices of the Russian Orthodox Church. According to the Statute, its head is the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus, and the Presidium and Council of the WRRS includes prominent Russian politicians and public figures, representatives of science, culture and education, military leaders, and compatriots from abroad.

The annual congresses are traditionally attended by representatives of all branches of the Russian government, leaders of public associations, senior clergy of Russia's traditional religions, teachers and students of major universities and other figures. In other words, the WRPC positions itself as an organisation representing the elite of the country.

The current congress adopted the so-called Decree of the XXV World Russian People's Council's 'The Present and Future of the Russian World', called on the website of the Moscow Patriarchate a programme document and addressed to Russia's legislative and executive powers. That is, it is a recommendation for action to the authorities on behalf of the Russian elite, including the spiritual elite. We will not analyze in detail this rather extensive document here but will focus on specific theses that clearly prove the correctness of the assertion made in the title of the article.

Thesis No. 1: Russia is the "withholder"

A quote from the Decree of the XXV WRPC: "The highest purpose of Russia's existence and the Russian world created by it – their spiritual mission – is to be the universal 'Withholder', protecting the world from evil."

The mention of the "Withholder" is a reference to one of the most cryptic passages of the Holy Scriptures, specifically the second chapter of the Second Epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Thessalonians. Here is the passage: "For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one that now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way" (2 Thess. 2:7).

In other words, the Antichrist will not come into the world and the end times will not come until the "the one that holds back" is taken out. Who is this "withholder"?

The Holy Fathers themselves admit that they cannot say for certain but only express their opinion without insisting on it. For example, St. John Chrysostom writes: "Indeed, anyone can, first of all, ask what is meant by 'the one that now holds it back' (το κατέχων) (cf. 2 Thess. 2:7), and then discover a desire to understand why Paul speaks so unclearly about it? What is it that prevents it from being revealed to him, that hinders? Some say it is the grace of the Holy Spirit while others say it is the Roman state; I am more inclined to agree with the latter."

In fact, the Western Roman Empire fell in 455 AD, the Eastern or Byzantine in 1453 AD, and yet the Antichrist has not come. Tales that the Roman Empire moved to Moscow have no basis in either the teaching of the Holy Fathers or, even more so, in the Holy Scriptures, and have never been accepted by the Church. Although they are quite popular among those who do not believe in the words of Christ: "...My Kingdom is not of this world..." (John 18:36), and who try by all means to prove the opposite. Accordingly, of St. John Chrysostom's assumptions, only the grace of the Holy Spirit remains.

St Ephraim the Syrian believed that the "the one that holds it back" is the spreading of the Gospel throughout the world: "...until the apostleship fulfils the calling given to it: ‘Go and make disciples of all nations' (Matthew 28:19), and the teaching (of Christ) is spread, and its time is not ended, and people are not perfected through the preaching of the Apostles and the teaching of the priests: only then, finally, is the Apostate allowed to come to test the dignity of people."

The same is written by the 19th century Russian bishop, St. Theophan the Hermit: "His saving power has only begun to work since the descent of the Holy Spirit. It is necessary to give it time to penetrate everywhere and enliven all those who are able to accept its life-giving action. When it has done its work, then the son of perdition will be allowed to come forth.”

In the interpretations can be found that the "withholder" is an institution of state power in general, but nowhere in the teaching of the Holy Fathers is there any hint that the "withholder" is a state called Russia.

Thus, Russia's claim to the role of "withholder" is nothing more than speculation based neither on the Holy Scripture nor on the Holy Tradition of the Church and invented to justify goals very far from the Gospel. What goals specifically?

Thesis No. 2: Russia is a defender of the Russian world, which knows no boundaries

A quote from the Decree of the XXV WRPC: "...Russia is the creator, support, and defender of the Russian world. The boundaries of the Russian world as a spiritual and cultural-civilizational phenomenon are substantially broader than the state borders of both the present Russian Federation and the larger historical Russia. Alongside representatives of the Russian oikoumene scattered around the world, the Russian world includes everyone for whom the Russian tradition, the sanctities of Russian civilization and the great Russian culture are the highest value and meaning of life."

These words contain an appalling substitution of concepts. In this definition, there is a universalism, according to which anyone who shares the Russian tradition, shrines and culture is a representative of the "Russian world" and thus subject to protection by Russia, whether they want it or not.

But Christian universalism is quite different: anyone who believes in Christ belongs to the Church, regardless of nationality, culture, tradition, etc.

"... Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all" (Colossians 3:11) – this is true Christian universalism. If the Gospel calls Christ the meaning of life and the highest value ("For to me life is Christ, and death is gain" (Phil. 1: 21)), then in the Decree of the XXV WRPC – Russian tradition, culture and sacred things. Some may say that the sacred things are also mentioned, but there is not a word about Christ in this definition.

Yes, many splendid churches and monasteries have been built in Russia, but can we say that Russia is a Christian country? Here, for example, is the testimony of the outstanding Russian pastor of the 20th century, Anthony of Sourozh: " If Christianity were the Christianity of the Gospel, realised, real, then everyone would say: Yes, it is the fullness of life, it is worth living... But who can say this about Russian Orthodoxy in Russia? <...> we let the whole world, millions of people, lose God – by not being Christians to the end so that no one, meeting us, sees Christ in our eyes; the radiance of divine life is not reflected in our image... Speaking of Russia, for example: the colossal apostasy from faith could be explained by the words of Leskov, who said that Russia was baptized but never enlightened?"

Let's repeat the last words: "never enlightened" (meaning with the light of the Gospel).

Here is another example, the book "The Priest in the Spiritual Life of the Russian Village" published in 2003, says that the priests of the 19th-20th centuries "agreed that peasants perceive only the external, ritual side of Orthodoxy, without delving into the meaning of the sacraments, prayers, and rituals, not understanding, sometimes distorting their meaning... Many peasants find it difficult to answer the question of how many gods there are... not receiving help from God, the peasant immediately runs to sorcerers and fortune-tellers, forgetting about the Lord and faith."

This is said about the peasantry, which made up more than 90% of the Russian population, but there was little Christian faith in the educated strata of society either. To be convinced of this, it is enough to read Russian church history, the works of Russian saints and Russian classics.

For example, during Peter the Great's reign, "The All-Joking, All-Drunken Synod of Fools" was established, whose members, representing the upper strata of society, were engaged in demonstrative mockery and ridicule of the Church, committing such abominations that it's shameful to mention them.

Here, for example, is one of the most "decent" rituals of choosing a jesting patriarch: "...they put the chosen 'prince-pope' in a bucket and carried the 'pontiff' in the company of the entire 'council' to a house, where he was undressed and plunged naked into a giant tub full of beer and wine. The 'prince-pope' swam in the tub. The guests, men and women belonging to the highest noble families, naked, drank wine from this tub and sang indecent songs to church tunes."

Characteristics of Russian society given by Russian writers themselves also do not allow Russia to be called a stronghold of not only Christianity but even abstract "good".

A. Chekhov: "Russia is a bureaucratic country. Drunkenness, illiteracy, stupidity, and wretchedness of the Russian man, who lags behind Europe by two hundred years, and cannot quite fasten his own trousers, once again shows that it is impossible to be friends with him, as he considers friendship as a weakness. <…> In Russia, an honest person is like a chimney sweep, whom nurses scare little children with. <…> The Russian man is a big swine. If you ask why he does not eat meat and fish, he justifies himself by the lack of supplies, communication routes, etc., but vodka is available even in the most remote villages and in any quantity. <...> If you look at this life: impudence and idleness of the strong, hypocrisy, lies... The Russian person is characterized by a tendency to spend the last money on all sorts of tricks when the most basic needs are not met."

M. Saltykov-Shchedrin: "If I fall asleep and wake up in a hundred years and someone asks me what is happening in Russia now, I will answer: they drink and steal..."

We are not saying that the situation in Ukraine is different. Yes, our country cannot be an example of Christian life and piety. And we have enough of everything mentioned above. However, we do not pretend to consider ourselves a model for Christians around the world, and even more so, we do not try to impose our worldview on everyone else. And most importantly, we do not plant Christian values with fire and sword.

The Decree proposes instead of the universalism of the Church, instead of Christ as the meaning of life, the universalism of the "Russian world", which, according to the testimony of prominent representatives of this world, has a huge number of shortcomings and, to put it mildly, is far from perfect.

Thesis №3: War is a legitimate means of defending the "Russian world"

A quote from the Decree of the XXV WRPC: "From a spiritual and moral point of view, a special military operation is a Sacred War, in which Russia and its people, defending the unified spiritual space of Holy Rus', fulfill the mission of the 'Withholder', defending the world from the onslaught of globalization and the victory of the West that has fallen into Satanism."

We will not judge who has fallen into Satanism and who has not, we will only say that from the point of view of the Holy Scriptures, the blessing of same-sex couples, which the West is accused of, is fundamentally no different from the blessing of aggressive war (read - murder), which the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church is engaged in.

Regarding the "withholder", it has already been mentioned above. A few words about the "sacred war". On February 24, 2022, Russia attacked the sovereign state of Ukraine, waging an aggressive war that cannot be justified from a theological or moral point of view. Over the course of two years, Russia has killed thousands of civilians, destroyed hundreds of cities and villages, and deprived millions of people of homes, property and livelihood.

In the document "Fundamentals of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church," adopted in 2000, there is a whole section devoted to the theme of war, it is intitled "War and Peace". It unequivocally condemns the initiator of the war and justifies the side that defends itself. Here are some quotes:

"War is a physical manifestation of the hidden spiritual ailment of humanity – fratricidal hatred (Genesis 4:3-12)."

"War is evil."

"Murder, which is indispensable in wars, was regarded as a grave offence before God already at the dawn of sacred history. ‘Thou shalt not kill,' proclaims the Law of Moses (Exodus 20:13)."

"Those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword" (Matthew 26:52) - in these words of the Saviour, the idea of a just war finds justification. From a Christian point of view, the concept of moral justice in international relations should be based on the following fundamental principles: love for one's neighbours, one's people and Homeland; understanding the needs of other nations; conviction that the good of one's people cannot be served by immoral means."

The ROC's own document denounces the current position of its leadership. Russia acts by "immoral means" for the supposed good of its people. To realise its imperial ambitions, Russia violates the basic commandments of God: "Thou shalt not kill", "Thou shalt not steal", "Thou shalt not bear false witness" and believes that the goal justifies the means. But is this what Christ believed?

In the Gospel there is a description of a situation where the apostles wanted to use violent methods against people hostile to Christ.

This is how Luke the Evangelist describes it: "When the time had come for Him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, ‘Lord, do you want us to command fire down from heaven to destroy them?’ But Jesus turned and rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them” (Luke 9: 51-56).

The unequivocal assertion of the Gospel is that war can in no way be a means of preaching Christianity or a means of its defence.

Christ died for the whole world, almost all the apostles went to their deaths for the sake of Gospel preaching, but none of them or their followers killed anyone for this preaching or for the defence of truth.

The Decree of the XXV WRPC states the opposite directly: "During the SMO, the armed Russian people defend their lives, freedom, statehood, civilizational, religious, national and cultural identity, as well as the right to live on their own land within the borders of a unified Russian state."

How can one defend their spiritual and cultural values by killing people in another country? A quote from "The Diary of a Writer" by another outstanding representative of Russian culture, Fyodor Dostoevsky, will help to answer this question: "I said that Russians are not loved in Europe. [...] They see us more as barbarians, wandering through Europe and rejoicing that something, somewhere can be destroyed – destroyed only for the sake of destruction, for the pleasure of seeing everything collapse, like a horde of savages, like Huns, ready to pour into ancient Rome and destroy the sanctuary, even without any understanding of what precious thing they are destroying... ."

By waging war in Ukraine, Russia undoubtedly confirms such a viewpoint.

Thus, the World Russian People's Council, in defence of the "Russian world", uses and acknowledges as justified and legitimate sinful methods of violence, murder, robbery, and lies. The Gospel, on the other hand, allows methods that are directly opposite: love, persuasion, mercy and self-sacrifice.

Conclusion

The Decree "The Present and Future of the Russian World" adopted by the Congress of the World Russian People's Council, indicates that the ideology of the "Russian world" has begun to acquire the features of religion. And this religion is a substitute for Christianity:

- the universalism of the Church of Christ is replaced by the universalism of the "Russian world";

- this new universalism is planted by methods that are directly opposed to the Gospel;

- the state of Russia is put in the place of the Holy Spirit as the "withholder".

If before the war the question of the relation between Christianity and the "Russian world" could still be discussed and debated, the war shows that their paths diverged.

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