RTOC Priests: Currently, the Goals of Putin and Orthodoxy Align
October 09, 2014 (Source: http://internetsobor.org)
NFTU Editor’s Note: The following letter was written by a number of RTOC priests. RTOC is the acronym for the “Russian True Orthodox Church”, one of the well-known True Orthodox jurisdictions in Russia. They descend from the Free Russian Church started by ROCOR (ROAC being the other large descendant of the original united Free Russian Church); however, they refused to continue to ally with ROCOR as it became more amenable to the Moscow Patriarchate. Traditionally, they have been against the post-Soviet Russian government, and still largely are, after all, they are strict Orthodox monarchists; however, the conflict between Ukraine and Russia over Eastern Ukraine has led man RTOC clergy to support the fight of the Russian rebels against the new pro-Western Ukrainian government. Recently there was an issue about the inclusion of the phrase “the Orthodox Christ-loving army” into the Litanies of the Russian True Orthodox Church; the implication being it included all those True Orthodox in Eastern Ukraine that were fighting against the Ukrainian Nationalist forces. As I understand the document can be said to represent the views of the clergy of the Diocese of Gomel, in Belarus; it does not therefore reflect ‘official’ and ‘binding’ policy of the RTOC.
(warning google translate):
Your Eminence, Bishop Tikhon, appeal to you clergy and parishioners of the Diocese of Gomel.
It took less than a year since the start of the famous events in Ukraine, turning the bloody internecine war, the end of which is not visible. Many Orthodox people, a light to understand the historical movement, there is an inner feeling that the time terrible, tragic, entailing serious consequences not only for the Slavic world, but for all mankind. Against the background of an unprecedented scale information war carried out using sophisticated methods, the people directly involved in the confrontation, or sympathizers of any of the parties is growing bitterness fueled passions that prevent proper evaluation of the events. The so-called post-Soviet society is split into those who are for the Russian and Ukrainians who is behind, or rather those who for Russian and those who are against the Russian. Unfortunately, such a split of opinion occurs among the members of our church, and this fact is the reason for the our treatment.
In the course of communication with some members of our church who live in Ukraine (but not in the area of fratricidal bloodshed in the Donbass), we hear from them are widely distributed now official propaganda among Ukrainians opinion that all occurring after the “Maidan” to blame the troubles of [deleted censorship], “let Russia to leave us alone and then we will begin to live peacefully and happily together with civilized Europe.”
It is difficult to object to people who are, so to speak, in the conflict – the emotions and targeted information pressure prevented thoughtful and sober assessment of the situation. It is still possible to understand, but it is imperative to note the fact that the true Orthodox Christian, a member of the Russian True Orthodox Church, is bound to be faithful to the Russian Orthodox monarchist ideology, to know it and to distinguish truth from falsehood, as a partaker of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Particularly alarming facts intentional and deliberate activities of some members of our church, walking in unison with advocacy Russophobian campaign waged by the Ukrainian and international media. So on the website “Church sheets RTOC” contains documents entitled “Media Monitoring: The First Hierarch of ROCOR, Metropolitan. Anthony (Khrapovitsky) and the leaders of the White movement of Ukrainian statehood. ”
