Russian Church Declares Fallen Russian Soldiers in Ukraine “Saints”
The Russian Orthodox Church is using religion as a tool of propaganda. Russian military personnel who have died in the war against Ukraine are being portrayed as “saints,” giving their deaths a special religious significance. In this way, church structures attempt to present Russian aggression as a “holy mission” and justify the war in the eyes of believers.
This was reported by the Center for Countering Disinformation of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine.
The Russian church has begun the process of canonizing soldiers who died during the full-scale invasion. They are proclaimed “martyrs,” while the commandment “Thou shalt not kill” and the war crimes committed by the Russian army are ignored.
“The governor of Pskov Oblast, Mikhail Vedernikov, posted a video with new icons depicting participants in the war — paratroopers of the Russian 76th Airborne Division who died in the war against Ukraine in 2023,” the report states.
These icons were placed in a church. According to the Center for Countering Disinformation, such practices attempt to sacralize the war and give it a religious meaning. By using church symbolism, authorities aim to create moral and spiritual justification not only for the killing of Ukrainians but also for the high losses suffered by Russia on the front, in order to reduce public dissatisfaction with the war.
“Placing images of war participants on icons turns a religious symbol into a tool of political propaganda. This once again confirms that the Russian Orthodox Church has nothing to do with faith — it is merely one of the state institutions in the Kremlin’s war machine,” the center noted.
It should also be recalled that Patriarch Filaret was hospitalized in a Kyiv hospital due to a deterioration in his health. Patriarch Filaret was born on January 23, 1929, in the village of Blahodatne, Amvrosiivka Raion, Donetsk, into a miner’s family. On Friday, January 23, he celebrated his 97th birthday.
Additionally, Kenyans are reportedly being recruited to fight in Ukraine through church structures.
