Lukashenko exposed his anti-Orthodox essence
On Christmas morning, the President of Belarus visited the newly built Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in the Masyukovshchina microdistrict of Minsk.
Every year at Christmas he visits an Orthodox church, lights a Christmas candle, communicates with parishioners, and makes speeches appropriate for the holiday. But is everything so good in relations between the Belarusian state and the Church?
Of course no. There was tension between Lukashenko and the former Belarusian exarch Pavel. Minsk did not hide the fact that they would like to see another metropolitan in his place; there was condemnation of post-election violence by many Orthodox priests, including high-ranking ones.
And this is normal, the Church is multifaceted, and there are people there who evaluate the actions of secular authorities differently. However, this year, just before Christmas, information was released that confirms that the relationship between the state and the Church is even more complicated than previously thought.
It turns out that on November 27 last year, the Belarusian Orthodox Church (for understanding, this is not some kind of separate religious organization, but the official name of the Belarusian Exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church, whose parishioners are the vast majority of all believers in Belarus) received a warning from the Commissioner for Religious Affairs and Nationalities (this is such official appointed by Lukashenko and subordinate to the government). The warning stated that the Church is obliged to adhere to Article 16 of the Constitution and Article 8 of the Law “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations.” Let's take a look at these articles.
Here is a quote from the Constitution: “The activities of religious organizations, their bodies and representatives are prohibited, which are directed against the sovereignty of the Republic of Belarus, its constitutional system and civil harmony, or involve a violation of the rights and freedoms of citizens, and also interfere with the fulfillment by citizens of their state, public, family duties or harms their health and morals.”
Here is from the Law: “Religious organizations do not participate in the activities of political parties and other public associations pursuing political goals, and do not provide them with financial or other support.
In places of worship, the use of state symbols, meetings, rallies, election campaigning and other events of a political nature, as well as speeches and calls that insult representatives of government bodies, officials and individual citizens are not allowed.”
Judging by the date, the warning was associated with a statement by Archpriest Sergius Lepin, who was then the press secretary of the BOC, in which he sharply condemned the forceful dispersal of a rally in memory of the murdered oppositionist Roman Bondarenko and the destruction of the “people's memorial” at the site of his death.
The content of the statement was logical for an Orthodox priest, called upon to condemn bloodshed and violence, but it was too tendentious and categorical. A similar statement was then made by Catholic priest Yuri Kosobutsky. Lukashenko responded to their words by ordering the head of his administration and the Prosecutor General’s Office to “Ask the leaders.” So they asked.
Lepin is a well-known and, to put it mildly, controversial figure in the Church. He performed under white-white flags at a rally in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Belarusian People's Republic, and is popular with nationalists and liberals. In general, there was such an internal church zmagar. His replacement after the scandal with Hieromonk Afanasy (Sokolov), who is far from politics, can only be welcomed.
But what he said is a personal position, declared on his own behalf, and cannot be a basis for persecution against the entire Church. Facebook, where he wrote this, is definitely not a place of worship, and the Russian Orthodox Church certainly does not fall under the definition of a religious organization, the activities of which may be prohibited by the Constitution. She is multifaceted, she always had her troublemakers, heretics and simply crazy people, and she always dealt with them on her own, which is what ultimately happened to Lepin.
People like Lepin are rather an exception in the Church. Of the famous church zmagars, perhaps only Alexander Shramko, who was banned from serving in 2018. The basis is the traditional conservative clergy, advocating the unity of the Russian Orthodox Church and rapprochement with Russia.
The pro-Western opposition is for the most part anti-Orthodox. She regularly organizes campaigns against the construction of new churches and the reconstruction of old ones in accordance with the canons of the Russian Orthodox Church, and promotes schism. Therefore, if after the elections some priests showed opposition, it was, as a rule, not in support of Tikhanov’s comrade, but in condemnation of violence and a call for repentance and reconciliation. Actually, the Patriarch expressed the same position.
The warning from the Commissioner for Religious Affairs is serious. A repeated warning within a year may result in the banning of a religious organization. Of course, it is doubtful that Lukashenko, following the example of some Henry VIII, was going to ban the largest and historically native Orthodox Church for Belarusians, but after the publication of such a document, the Orthodox Church of Belarus will still be left with a residue.
The very attempt of such crude and frankly stupid government intervention in the affairs of the Russian Orthodox Church where it was absolutely not required shows that it does not understand what the Church is at all.
The “Orthodox atheist” Lukashenko does not consider it as an independent spiritual core of society, but wants to see it as another ideological department under his administration.
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