The priest Georgy Edelshtein is open to debate with those who disagree with his opposition to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“I would like to see one or two of my opponents sitting here”says the 89-year-old priest in his room full of golden icons.
The priest with the white beard and black cassock is one of the few Russian Orthodox priests who have spoken out against the military operation in Ukraine.
With a trembling voice but without hesitation, he explains that “I am afraid of being a bad priest. I have not been against all wars but I have always been against an aggressive war of land grabbing..
Ukraine “is an independent state, let them do what they want”, he told AFP at his home in the village of Novo-Bely Kamen, on the banks of the Volga River in the Kostroma region, six hours from Moscow.
Since Russia launched its operation in Ukraine on February 24, only a few priests in the Russian Orthodox Church have spoken out against the Kremlin’s campaign.
The Russian Orthodox Church is headed by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and has some 150 million adherents worldwide.
Kirill has delivered a series of bellicose sermons calling on Russians to “join” the authorities to help defeat the “enemies” of the historical unity between Russia and Ukraine.
Since taking over as head of the church in 2009, Kirill has grown closer to the government of President Vladimir Putin, espousing conservative values opposed to a godless West.
The Russian Orthodox Church suffered severe restrictions in Soviet times.
Even after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, he never criticized the authorities, but some priests have begun to speak out.
– “Blood on his hands” –
On February 25, a day after the start of the military operation, Edelshtein signed a letter written by his priest friend Ioann Burdin, posted on the website of his parish in the village of Karabanovo, in the Kostroma region.
“The blood of the Ukrainians will remain on the hands not only of the rulers of Russia and the soldiers who carry out their orders. His blood will be on the hands of each one of us who approves of this war or simply remain silent.”noted the letter, later erased.
The head of the Kostroma diocese, Metropolitan Ferapont, a high-ranking hierarch, condemned the intervention, noting that the two popes were the only clerics in the region, which has 160, who protested against the offensive.
But their protests do not stop there.
On March 6, Burdin preached on the human cost of war.
That same day he was summoned for questioning by investigators.
On March 10, he was ordered to pay a fine of 35,000 rubles ($489) for “discrediting” the armed forces, punishable by up to three years in prison for a repeat offence.
Four people testified against him in court.
“During the sermon, Father Burdin … told us that he was going to pray for Ukraine,” a parishioner said, according to court documents seen by AFP.
– “Satanic” –
Burdin, 50, continues to condemn the military action.
“For me, the commandment ‘Thou shalt not kill’ is unconditional”told AFP at his home near Kostroma.
He says that few priests oppose the conflict because many are susceptible to propaganda”, combined with fear of sanctions and persecution.
He claims that the police photographed his house and his car.
Edelshtein assures that Burdin is “courageous than me, who is retired”.
He was not penalized for signing Burdin’s letter and was already withdrawn from the church.
Edelshtein, the son of a Jewish father and a Polish Catholic mother, converted to Orthodoxy in 1955 to escape the Soviet system.
“The leaders of our Church remain lackeys of the communist regime”drops Edelchtein, claiming that the Moscow Patriarchate was revived in 1943 by the “satanic” Stalin.
The two priests do not see themselves as dissidents, although they do not call on the faithful to disobey the patriarch to avoid divisions in the church.
Burdin’s recent setbacks have taken a toll on him. In early April he retired from active service and wonders if he will continue in the church.
The son of a priest, he was ordained in 2015 after a career as a journalist.
“If I am in church but censor myself for speaking out, if I am silent about a sin or how unacceptable bloodshed is, then gradually, without realizing it, I will stop being a pastor,” he said.
(with information from AFP)
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Source-www.infobae.com