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Vladimir Putin has effectively told Obama:
you're turning the USA Into a godless sewer....
“Many Euro-Atlantic countries have moved away
from their roots, including Christian values.
“Policies are being pursued that place on the same level a multi-child family and a same-sex partnership, a faith in God and a belief in Satan. This is the path to degradation.” Putin has criticised the "morally bankrupt" West, slipping into “chaotic darkness.” At the height of the Cold War, it was common for American conservatives to label the officially atheist Soviet Union a “godless nation.” More than two decades later, history has come full circle, as the Kremlin and its allies in the Russian Orthodox Church hurl the same allegation of godlessness back at the West. It is very serious when Russia is warning America of the danger of godlessness! What would Ronald Reagan say! |
INTERNET
SOURCE: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jan/28/whos-godless-now-russia-says-its-us/
Who’s ‘godless’ now?
Russia says it’s U.S.
Putin
seizes on issue of traditional values
- - Tuesday, January 28, 2014
MOSCOW
— At the height of the Cold War, it was common for American conservatives to
label the officially atheist Soviet Union a “godless nation.”
More
than two decades on, history has come full circle, as the Kremlin and its
allies in the Russian Orthodox
Church hurl the same allegation at the West.
“Many Euro-Atlantic countries have moved away from their roots,
including Christian values,” Russian
President Vladimir
Putin said in a recent keynote speech. “Policies
are being pursued that place on the same level a multi-child family and a
same-sex partnership, a faith in God and a belief in Satan. This is the path to
degradation.”
In
his state of the nation address in mid-December, Mr. Putin also
portrayed Russia
as a staunch defender of “traditional values” against what he depicted as the
morally bankrupt West. Social and religious conservatism, the former KGB
officer insisted, is the only way to prevent the world from slipping into
“chaotic darkness.”
As
part of this defense of “Christian values,” Russia has adopted a
law banning “homosexual propaganda” and another that makes it a criminal
offense to “insult” the religious sensibilities of believers.
The
law on religious sensibilities was adopted in the wake of a protest in Moscow’s
largest cathedral by a female punk rock group against the Orthodox
Church’s support of Mr. Putin.
Kremlin-run television said the group’s “demonic” protest was funded by “some
Americans.”
Mr. Putin’s
views of the West were echoed this month by Patriarch Kirill I of Moscow, the
leader of the Orthodox
Church, who accused Western countries of engaging in the “spiritual
disarmament” of their people.
In
particular, Patriarch Kirill criticized laws in several European countries that
prevent believers from displaying religious symbols, including crosses on
necklaces, at work.
“The general political direction of the [Western political] elite
bears, without doubt, an anti-Christian and anti-religious character,” the patriarch said in comments aired
on state-controlled television.
“We have been through an
epoch of atheism, and we know what it is to live without God,” Patriarch Kirill said. “We want to shout to the whole world, ‘Stop!’”
Other
figures within the Orthodox
Church have gone further in criticizing the West. Archpriest Vsevolod
Chaplin, a church spokesman, suggested that the modern-day West is no better
for a Christian believer than the Soviet Union.
Soviet
authorities executed some 200,000 clergy and believers from 1917 to 1937,
according to a 1995 presidential committee report. Thousands of churches were
destroyed, and those that survived were turned into warehouses, garages or
museums of atheism.
“The separation of the secular and the religious is a fatal mistake
by the West,” the Rev.
Chaplin said. “It is a monstrous phenomenon that has
occurred only in Western civilization and will kill the West, both politically
and morally.”
The
Kremlin’s encouragement of traditional values has sparked a rise in Orthodox
vigilantism. Fringe groups such as the Union of Orthodox Banner Bearers, an
ultraconservative movement whose slogan is “Orthodoxy or Death,” are gaining
prominence.
Patriarch
Kirill has honored the group’s leader, openly anti-Semitic monarchist Leonid
Simonovich, for his services to the Orthodox
Church. The Banner Bearers, who dress in black paramilitary uniforms
festooned with skulls, regularly confront gay and liberal activists on the
streets of Moscow.
Although
Mr. Putin
has never made a secret of what he says is his deep Christian faith, his first
decade in power was largely free of overtly religious rhetoric. Little or no
attempt was made to impose a set of values on Russians or lecture to the West
on morals.
However,
since his inauguration for a third presidential term in May 2012, the
increasingly authoritarian leader has sought to reach out to Russia’s conservative,
xenophobic heartland for support.
It
has proved a rich hunting ground.
“Western values, from liberalism to the recognition of the rights of
sexual minorities, from Catholicism and Protestantism to comfortable jails for
murderers, provoke in us suspicion, astonishment and alienation,” Yevgeny Bazhanov, rector of the
Russian Foreign Ministry’s diplomatic academy, wrote in a recent essay.
Analysts
suggest that Mr.
Putin’s shift to ultraconservatism and anti-West rhetoric was triggered by
mass protests against his rule that rocked Russia in 2011 and
2012. The unprecedented show of dissent was led mainly by educated, urban
Muscovites — many with undisguised pro-Western sympathies.
“This
is the government’s response to modernized Russians becoming more defiant and
independent,” said Maria Lipman, an analyst with the Moscow-based Carnegie
Center. “The government is pitting the conservative majority against the
liberal minority. As a result, raging anti-Western ideology has now turned into
something that is almost a state ideology.”
Ms.
Lipman, however, suggested that Mr. Putin may
be wary of expressing too much support for the Orthodox
Church — “a symbol of Russian statehood” — lest it someday challenge his
authority.
Some
70 percent of Russians define themselves as Orthodox Christians in opinion
polls, and opposition figures in the past have called on the church
to play a mediating role between the Kremlin and protesters.
“Because
of Putin’s shift
to conservatism, the church
may feel more emboldened,” Ms. Lipman said. “So Putin does not
overemphasize the church
in speeches, preferring to concentrate on talk of traditional values. He is
wary of boosting its support even higher.”
INTERNET
SOURCE: http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/49240
Congratulations on Orthodox Easter
Vladimir Putin congratulated Orthodox Christians
and all Russians celebrating Easter.
April 12, 2015
The President’s
message reads, in part:
“Easter celebrations bring joy and hope to millions of believers, introducing them to the spiritual sources and national traditions.The Russian Orthodox Church plays an enormous formative role in preserving our rich historical and cultural heritage and in reviving eternal moral values. It works tirelessly to bring unity, to strengthen family ties and to educate the younger generation in the spirit of patriotism. It is making a great contribution to resolving social issues and strengthening inter-ethnic and inter-religious accord in the country. Such multifaceted work is very important today and deserves deep respect.”
On Saturday
night, the President attended the Easter service conducted
by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia
in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour.
INTERNET
SOURCE: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/vladimir-putin/11530938/Vladimir-Putin-praises-Orthodox-Church-for-boosting-patriotism.html
Vladimir Putin praises
Orthodox Church for boosting patriotism
Russian president joins
Patriarch Kirill for Easter prayers in Moscow cathedral
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Russian Orthodox
Patriarch Kirill, left, greets Russian President Vladimir Putin during the
Orthodox Easter service at Christ the Saviour Cathedral, Moscow Photo: AP
Photo/Ivan Sekretarev
|
By
Tom Parfitt, Moscow
3:58PM
BST 12 Apr 2015
Vladimir
Putin praised the Russian Orthodox Church for creating a “spirit of patriotism”
among young people on Sunday as he joined its leader for an Easter service.
Mr
Putin, Russia’s president, attended overnight prayers at the Christ the Saviour
Cathedral in Moscow alongside Dmitry Medvedev, the prime minister, and the
latter’s wife, Svetlana.
Patriarch
Kirill exchanged kisses with Mr Putin as he presented him with a gift of
painted eggs.
Millions
of Orthodox believers around the world are celebrating Easter according to the
old Julian calendar on Sunday, as opposed to the Gregorian one used by
Protestants and Catholics who marked it last weekend.
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|
Putin was joined at the service by Prime
Minister Dmitry Medvedev and his wife, Svetlana (AP Photo/Alexander
Zemlianichenko)
|
Mr
Putin has revived the role of the Church in Russian society, disquieting some
who fear its conservative influence on government.
In a message
congratulating believers, the president said the Church played an “enormous
formative role in preserving our rich cultural and historical heritage and in
reviving eternal moral values”.
It
also worked “tirelessly to bring unity, to strengthen family ties and to
educate the younger generation in the spirit of patriotism”, he added.
A
poll by the Public Opinion Foundation last year indicated that 68 per cent of
Russian citizens identify themselves as Orthodox Christians, but only 13 per
cent got to church more than once a month and pray regularly.
Christ
the Saviour Cathedral was the setting in 2012 for the “punk
prayer” performed by a small group of activists from the feminist group,
Pussy Riot.
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The service was held in Moscow's Christ the
Saviour Cathedral (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
|
In
a protest at the Orthodox Church’s strengthening ties to the Kremlin, the women
rushed up to the ambo, where they danced manically, punched the air and cried:
“Mother of God, Blessed Virgin, drive out Putin!”
Patriarch
Kirill condemned calls for leniency from some Christians when three of the
women were arrested. The trio were sentenced to two years in a penal colony,
although one was released on appeal.
In
2013, the patriarch said that Western countries passing laws allowing same-sex
marriage was a “very dangerous apocalyptic symptom” that would lead down a
“path of self-destruction” if applied in Russia.
 |
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Patriarch Kirill during the ceremony (Maxim
Shipenkov/EPA)
|
A
law banning loosely-defined “homosexual propaganda among minors” was approved
by Mr Putin the same year. He also signed off on a blasphemy law that
introduced punishments of up to three years in prison for “public activities”
that insulted the religious feelings of believers.
The
Church’s influence was apparent again last month when the director of a
Siberian theatre was fired for putting on a performance of Richard Wagner’s
opera, Tannhauser. The opera featured a poster of a crucifix between the naked,
open legs of a woman. Several thousand people attended a protest against the
director's sacking in Novosibirsk.
Mr
Putin, a former KGB officer, revealed in 2012 that he was secretly baptised by
his mother as a child, in order that his father, a Communist official, did not
find out.
 |
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Patriarch Kirill's crucifix on his mitre
casts a shadow on Putin's forehead (AP?Ivan Sekretarev)
|
Patriarch
Kirill said the same year that Mr Putin’s era of leadership since 2000 was a “miracle
of God”.
In
an address to believers on Sunday, the patriarch said that Easter was an event
of “enormous spiritual power” that displayed the “victory of good over evil,
and of God’s truth over the deceit of this world”.
INTERNET
SOURCE: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/nov/11/vladimir-putin-finds-an-ally-in-resurgent-russian-/
Putin finds an ally in
resurgent Russian Orthodox Church
 |
|
Amid a formerly strongly atheistic society,
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has lately been cozying up to the Russian
Orthodox Church. (Associated Press) more >
|
- - Wednesday, November 11, 2015
MOSCOW
— How times have changed in Russia.
Earlier
this year, on the 145th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Lenin, the head of
the present-day Communist Party compared the founder of the officially atheist Soviet Union to
Jesus Christ.
Speaking
at a ceremony on Red Square, where Lenin’s embalmed body remains on public
display, Gennady Zyuganov said both Lenin and Jesus Christ had preached a
message of “love, friendship and brotherhood.” Mr. Zyuganov also declared that
the Soviet Union
had been an attempt to create “God’s kingdom on Earth.”
Mr.
Zyuganov’s controversial statement was the culmination of a dramatic upturn in
fortunes for the Russian
Orthodox Church, which has seen its religious revival in the post-Soviet
era matched by a growing, behind-the-scenes political clout, most recently by —
literally — giving its blessing to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s
decision to escalate the country’s military mission in Syria.
Under
the Soviet authorities, at least 200,000 members of the clergy were murdered,
according to a 1995 Kremlin committee report, while millions of other
Christians were persecuted.
“The more representatives of the reactionary clergy we shoot,
the better,” Lenin once
said. Although Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin
permitted a carefully controlled revival of the Orthodox
Church to boost morale during World War II, anti-religion propaganda was
common until the mid-1980s.
Today,
with some 70 percent of Russians identifying themselves as Orthodox Christians,
no serious politician can afford to be seen as lacking in belief. Russian
President Vladimir
Putin, a former KGB agent, frequently attends religious services at the
reconstructed Christ the Savior Cathedral in central Moscow — the original was
destroyed by Stalin
in 1931. Mr.
Putin also seeks to depict himself as a defender of “traditional values,”
and accuses the West of abandoning its Christian roots on issues such as gay
marriage.
The
Russian
Orthodox Church has been happy to enter into an alliance with the Kremlin.
In
2012 the powerful head of the Orthodox
Church, Patriarch Kirill, publicly endorsed Mr. Putin for
a controversial third term, and described the ex-KGB officer’s rule as a
“miracle of God.” His statement came shortly after Mr. Putin had
granted the patriarch residence at the Kremlin and in the wake of a number of
lucrative real estate rulings in favor of the church.
Although
the Russian Constitution stipulates the separation of church and state, senior
church officials openly speak of their desire for an even closer relationship
with the Kremlin. Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, a prominent church spokesman,
has frequently called for a “harmonious” cooperation between the church
and the Russian authorities.
Signs
of the mutually beneficial relationship between the Russian authorities and the
Orthodox
Church are everywhere. Priests regularly sprinkle Russian space rockets
with holy water ahead of liftoff, while the Orthodox
Church has even held a religious service in honor of the nation’s stockpile
of nuclear weapons. In a development that would have made the heads of Soviet
space pioneers spin, Russian cosmonauts on board the International Space
Station are frequently photographed wearing religious icons.
Support for Syria
So
when the Kremlin ordered airstrikes in Syria in late September, the church
was quick to lend its support. Patriarch Kirill blessed the use of the Russian
armed forces to “protect the Syrian people,” while Rev. Chaplin, the church
spokesman, called the military operation part of a “holy battle” against
terrorism.
“The fight against terrorism is a moral struggle, if you like, a
holy struggle, and our country today is probably the most active in the world
that resists terror,” Rev.
Chaplin said recently.
“This
statement demonstrates the complete and final merger of the Russian
Orthodox Church and the state,” said Valery Ostavnykh, a theologian and
Kremlin critic.
Last
month it was the Russian authorities’ turn to return the favor, when the
Investigative Committee, an FBI-style law enforcement agency that answers only
to Mr. Putin,
ordered the exhumation of the remains of Czar Alexander III. The Russian
Orthodox Church said the move was necessary to confirm the identity of two
of his royal grandchildren, who were murdered alongside their father, Czar
Nicholas II, in 1918. Czar Nicholas II was canonized by the resurgent
church in 2000.
The
decision to exhume the remains of Czar Alexander III went against the advice of
respected historians, who said there were no grounds to doubt the identities of
the grandchildren, Maria and Alexei. But investigators made no secret about the
reason for the controversial move.
“At
the initiative of his holiness the Patriarch, a decision has been made to open
the tomb of Emperor Alexander III,” said senior investigator Vladimir Solovyov.
“The Investigative Committee is always ready to help the church.”
Russian
investigators say new DNA tests conducted at the request of the Orthodox
Church confirm that the exhumed remains of Russia’s last czar,
Nicholas II, and his wife, are genuine.
The
Nov. 11 statement by forensic experts from Russia’s Investigative
Committee creates a greater possibility that all seven members of the Romanov
czar’s family — who were executed by the Bolsheviks in Yekaterinburg in 1918 —
can be buried together.
The
Russian
Orthodox Church has also pitched in to support Mr. Putin’s
gradual rehabilitation of Stalin’s
reputation. In hotly debated comments earlier this month, Patriarch Kirill
praised what he called the “undoubted successes” in industry and the military
sphere during Stalin’s
rule. He made no direct mention of the gulags or the millions murdered by the
Soviet authorities.
“Yes,
Pontius Pilate also had undoubted successes,” responded Andrei Kurayev, a
controversial deacon who is often at odds with church leadership. “Plumbing was
installed in Jerusalem [under his rule].”
Others
warn, however, against an overexaggeration of Russia’s religious
revival since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Although vast numbers of Russians claim to be Orthodox believers, only a tiny
proportion actually attend church services. One public opinion survey by the
independent Moscow-based Levada Center suggested that around 30 percent of
“Orthodox Christians” do not believe in God.
“As
far as faith is concerned, there are precious few in Russia who attend
services, fast during Lent or draw on priests for moral authority,” said Maria
Lipman, a Moscow-based analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations.
“The
Russian
Orthodox Church itself is much more a pillar of the Russian statehood and a
loyal partner of the state than a source of moral authority [and] spiritual
comfort. For many, being an Orthodox Christian simply means being Russian.”
Vladimir
Putin's Christian Faith - in his own words
Published
on May 18, 2012
-Putin first speaks about his Baptism
/ -Putin's Faith and Cross 02:00
-Believes in traditional family 04:03
-Putin at a Christmas night service at the Church of Holy Martyrs Aleksandr and Antonina of Rome in the outskirts of Kostroma in Central Russia.04:49
-Patriarch Kirill blesses President Vladimir Putin 06:32
-Over 65,000 Russians defend the Church 08:02
-Putin's biker friends support the Church 10:52
-Putin's Russian faith knows about Christian Martyrs who were killed by the Communists 11:45
-These martyrs had overcome the BEAST 13:24 / Christ is Risen! 13:50
Communism: America / Russia
http://youtu.be/JJci5ElLOis
Zyuganov Communist Not Putin http://youtu.be/t8ws45SEJCI
Putin's Oath- Red Dragon Defeated
http://youtu.be/0TLDvlhtdcY
Putin and the Church
http://youtu.be/dRgWVAfHNZM
Russian Faith
http://russianfaith.wordpress.com/
Facebook:
"Vladimir Putin - Defender of Russia"
http://www.facebook.com/groups/258046...
Honoring the Millions of Russians Killed in WWII
http://youtu.be/vjgMM2msp48
Pat Buchanan - US Bias Against Russia & Christianity
http://youtu.be/ArYnjflfHjI
The Unknown Putin. Part 1
http://youtu.be/qCU4C6ajgBI
Russians Defend Christianity / защиту веры
http://youtu.be/oBXZ1nWyTZ0
Christianity Grows in Russia & Declines in the West
http://youtu.be/qzqnhj8W9Ac
-Believes in traditional family 04:03
-Putin at a Christmas night service at the Church of Holy Martyrs Aleksandr and Antonina of Rome in the outskirts of Kostroma in Central Russia.04:49
-Patriarch Kirill blesses President Vladimir Putin 06:32
-Over 65,000 Russians defend the Church 08:02
-Putin's biker friends support the Church 10:52
-Putin's Russian faith knows about Christian Martyrs who were killed by the Communists 11:45
-These martyrs had overcome the BEAST 13:24 / Christ is Risen! 13:50
Communism: America / Russia
http://youtu.be/JJci5ElLOis
Zyuganov Communist Not Putin http://youtu.be/t8ws45SEJCI
Putin's Oath- Red Dragon Defeated
http://youtu.be/0TLDvlhtdcY
Putin and the Church
http://youtu.be/dRgWVAfHNZM
Russian Faith
http://russianfaith.wordpress.com/
Facebook:
"Vladimir Putin - Defender of Russia"
http://www.facebook.com/groups/258046...
Honoring the Millions of Russians Killed in WWII
http://youtu.be/vjgMM2msp48
Pat Buchanan - US Bias Against Russia & Christianity
http://youtu.be/ArYnjflfHjI
The Unknown Putin. Part 1
http://youtu.be/qCU4C6ajgBI
Russians Defend Christianity / защиту веры
http://youtu.be/oBXZ1nWyTZ0
Christianity Grows in Russia & Declines in the West
http://youtu.be/qzqnhj8W9Ac
Putin Blessed by Patriarch Kirill http://youtu.be/6E_TgRPByPo
Easter 2012 President Medvedev & Prime Minister Putin
http://youtu.be/dH_s2lbmvmA
Putin Christmas, Jan 2012
http://youtu.be/ZrzAX4SJbKY
Patriarch grateful to Putin and Medvedev at Easter
http://youtu.be/tSFROD6Wjic
Putin, Patriarch Kirill and Archbishop Hieronymos
http://youtu.be/9KJwffcZSt0
Russia's Orthodox Church Today
http://youtu.be/yOzBdx1S9v8
Christian martyrs of Soviet persecutions - 1918 1939 †
http://youtu.be/IkFQGmOeGiE
Butovo, Christian Martyrs of the 20th Century
http://youtu.be/UvWgsoVpsbI
Song of Penitence for Russia
http://youtu.be/S5mkwoeUKKc
Persecuted Church
http://youtu.be/NwyPalBSQIc
President Medvedev Reforms in Russia
http://youtu.be/S7zTkAqzjvY
Russian Democracy (English subtitles) 2012
http://youtu.be/K5bVsx3nTio
Russia backs Putin with Victory!
http://youtu.be/nXxsvQqv1po
Putin Supported by Russia / За Путина!
http://youtu.be/V_iE3vISMOc
V. V. P. , (Putin) Saved the Country (English subtitles)
http://youtu.be/JKsAbne393Y
Why Americans Fear Putin
http://youtu.be/xNFmBJSAxUQ
article- "Why the West Fears Putin"
http://xlerma.wordpress.com/2010/12/2...
Patriarch Kirill Christmas Message 2013
http://youtu.be/TxlUq8yf8Sc
Russians Celebrate Baptism of Jesus
http://youtu.be/Rvzx1tZH3o4
Putin Christmas 2013
http://youtu.be/A_WaSwT6eVo
Putin- Defender of the Faith
http://youtu.be/22HkzDOc18k
Putin talks about Wailing Wall in Jerusalem
http://youtu.be/wJnIsbo5uMs
Putin at Site of Jesus Christ's Baptism / Путин - крещения Иисуса Христа
http://youtu.be/QiwEOfiMYe8
Putin Knelt & Prayed in Jerusalem 2012 Путин в Иерусалиме http://youtu.be/X3WM_x6ZDpM
Putin Blessed by Patriarch Kirill http://youtu.be/6E_TgRPByPo
Easter 2012 President Medvedev & Prime Minister Putin
http://youtu.be/dH_s2lbmvmA
VIDEO SOURCE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3d_yxJhmjk
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