Believing in Russia does not automatically mean believing in God and religious dogmas, belonging to the Orthodox Church does not necessarily mean attending liturgical celebrations, and supporting “traditional values” does not automatically translate into accepting the dictates of the catechism.
In a divided and conflict-ridden world, universal unity is Moscow's new religion. It relies on destabilisation, propaganda, and the financing of "friendly" elites and oligarchs loyal to Moscow, along with the Churches as tools of power. After Ukraine, Kazakhstan is the country most at risk, with the longest land border and the largest Russian diaspora. The US, the EU, and international partners will have to strengthen economic and diplomatic relations with the territories targeted by Moscow.
In his new book, writer Mikhail Zygar retraces the last thirty years of the Soviet Union through a gallery of characters, helping us to understand Moscow's present based on the idea that no dictatorship is eternal and that the future always offers a chance for change.
The 2025 military campaign, the most violent and systematic, is nearing its conclusion before the winter freeze. For one expert, “the strategic context of the war is [. . .] shifting," while Russia’s economy slides towards stagnation. Trump is tempted to conclude a "mutual deal" with Putin. Neither Russia nor Ukraine are truly capable of changing the course and nature of the war.
The creation of a platform at the Council of Europe for dialogue with the democratic forces in Russia that oppose Vladimir Putin's regime is hampered by internal divisions between the various groups, including criticism of the Anti-Corruption Fund created by Alexei Navalny. Vladimir Kara-Murza's appeal: ‘Every political prisoner must be able to count on not being forgotten’.
Unlike the Gaza deal, the summer drama surrounding the meeting between Putin and Trump in Alaska did not lead to a letup in military operations, but rather pushed both sides towards further escalation, in deeds and words. As in 1914, the "illusion of fate" is dangerously rising again, obliterating all possibilities for choice and diplomatic solutions.
By 31 December, another 135,000 young Russians will be called up for military service under increasingly stringent conditions to prevent loopholes. The aim is not primarily to expand the army, but to redefine the very fabric of society, making the entire population feel at the front, even if it is mainly Caucasians and Asians who are sent to be slaughtered.
Moldova, which is seemingly the closest target for Moscow's "hybrid war”, is headed to parliamentary elections tomorrow. Meanwhile, unidentified aircraft circling in the skies of Europe are like menacing totems, evoking the Siberian-rooted shamanism that, in today’s Russia, is one of the most radical expressions of its “defence of traditional values” against Western depravity.
There is an essential and original link between the Orthodox faith and power, as already shown in the 11th century by Metropolitan Hilarion's “Discourse on Law and Grace”, the “manifesto” of the Russian faith. Apart from Philip II of Moscow, who rebelled against the massacres of the first Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible at the end of the 16th century and was suffocated in his monastic cell as a result, there are no known cases of other ecclesiastical opponents of the monarchs' holy wars.
Novaya Gazeta documents how, since the 1990s and increasingly during Putin's quarter-century of rule, 213 new monuments have been erected to Stalin, along with hundreds of actions of various kinds to commemorate him. This tribute, instrumental to the cult of Victory, today allows Putin to crack down harshly on any form of dissent.
While in Ukraine the conflict is entirely internal to Orthodoxy, on the shores of the Baltic Sea it is the great Christian traditions of all Europe that are vying for a small piece of land and a small people, on which the destinies of all others are concentrated. Among the battlegrounds is the historic Pjukhtitskij convent, located just twe
In one of Russia’s most important cities, the local governor, Gleb Nikitin, made an unprecedented move by including the Catholic church among the historic buildings slated for restoration, and by returning it to the city’s small Catholic community of several hundred multiethnic believers. The goal is to show that in today's Russia, the "state religion," in addition to promote militant Orthodoxy, also aims to unite other confessions and religions.
Patriarch Kirill praises the “expression of goodwill” by the two leaders of "the most powerful countries on the planet." Meanwhile, Russian bloggers and propagandists praise the “magnificent achievement” of peace with America “while in Donbass we continue to advance”. And for Moscow, Zelensky can come to the Kremlin to acknowledge his defeat.
The ‘strategic’ value of the location chosen for the ‘inconclusive’ meeting between the Russian and American presidents. A territory far from Ukraine and “weak” Europe, confirming the prevalence of the ‘economic’ factor. No breakthrough in the war launched by Moscow against Kiev. It was the Kremlin leader's first visit to American soil since 2007.
Moscow celebrated the Russian variant of the feast of the Baptism of Kyivan Rus', with Patriarch Kirill also commemorating the "believing atheist", Stalin, to extol the "new Baptism" of post-Soviet Russia. Meanwhile, Metropolitan Tikhon of Crimea inaugurated a major exhibition in Sevastopol dedicated to Prince Vladimir, presenting it as a true “universal museum of Christianity.”
The Duma is discussing marriage with war dead, to whom it wishes to attribute civil value even if it was not possible to make it official before they left for the front, raising the question of “moral relativism” based on war as a civil and religious value at the same time. This debate calls into question the Orthodox Church's role in indicating the level of ‘traditionalism’ of the values to be defended, as in a Russian version of medieval scholastic ‘casuistry’.
Kyiv just celebrated the anniversary of Prince Vladimir’s Baptism with a Synod that condemned the ideology of the “Russian world”. Conversely, in a few days, the Julian calendar will allow the Russians to celebrate it alone, boasting about their resistance to Western depravity and heresy, in that isolation that is the aspect that best defines the concept of “Orthodoxy” in Moscow today.
Looking back at Russia's past and present history and reality, Patriarch Kirill condemns those who ‘call for the purity of Islam or Orthodoxy,’ because ‘we may have different cultures and traditions, but we are one people.’ Meanwhile, in the Moscow neighbourhood of Kommunalka, a multi-religious centre is being presented where an Orthodox church, a synagogue, a mosque and a Buddhist temple are to be built in a shared space.
After leaving behind the Ottawa Treaty that banned mines, Ukraine is creating an impassable abyss with Russia, the new explosive "iron curtain" that will mark the destiny of peoples in times to come. In Rome the Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church discussed with Pope Leo XIV how to proceed with the "spiritual demining" of the hearts of men.
One of the most popular figures in the Orthodox Church, he died at the age of 65. A writer and poet, he was among those who championed Putin and the war in Ukraine, but was disliked by Patriarch Kirill. Pitirim became bishop of the capital of Komi in 1995, at the age of 34. His style was very popular for its informal communication, especially with young people. His odes were examples of Russia's “obedience to destiny”.
First established in Poland in 1885, the “new convent” eventually found a home in Normandy in 1950 after a long wandering. Its history and profile attract many Russians abroad, who intend to preserve their tradition without involvement in the war-patriotic initiatives of Patriarch Kirill and other Russian Orthodox hierarchs.
Pentecost and ‘Russia Day’ fell just a few days apart. ‘Where are you, my Church?’ asked Father Andrej Misjuk bitterly, calling for a return to a faith that ‘does not tolerate lies, does not bless those who cannot be blessed, and once again sets out on the path that leads from Jerusalem to the Eternal.’ Meanwhile, in his new ‘Fable,’ Vladimir Sorokin recounts a post-apocalyptic world.
Moscow recently marked the 1,700th anniversary of the first Ecumenical Council when the profession of faith was drafted. Coincidentally, Putin and Pope Leo XIV spoke on the phone, providing an opportunity to renew the dialogue between the Church of Rome and the Russian Orthodox Church. Like in the 4th century AD, after the end of the persecutions, the challenge today for the bishops of the East and West is to show modern emperors a truth greater than any claim to dominion.
In a new essay, Aleksandr Šipkov goes so far as to point the finger at the philologist who, in the 1990s, helped Russia rediscover both Eastern and Western Christian traditions through his lectures. Why does today's Russia reject any convergence with the Christian culture of Eastern and Western Europe, presenting itself as the only true Church entrusted with a universal mission?
Leo XIV, the first American pope, has somewhat overshadowed the popularity of the American emperor in Russia, acting in some ways as an alternative in the image of the "Anglo-Saxon" West so reviled by the Kremlin. After all, today the Russian Church has split from almost all the other Orthodox Churches, starting with the Patriarchate of Constantinople, while dialogue with Rome has never been interrupted.
As the parodies of peace negotiations between Russia, Ukraine and America continue—most recently marked by the failed attempt to bring Putin and Zelenskyy together in Istanbul—Pope Leo XIV has directed an appeal to the Christians of the East: “Who more than you can sing words of hope in the abyss of violence?”
Robert Prevost has never had direct relations with Moscow, but the name he chose evokes very important relations in the history of relations between East and West in the ancient and modern Church, from Leo the Great to Leo XIII, the pope of Rerum Novarum, who was inspired by the great Russian author Vladimir Solovyov.
The truce for the Great Victory is a game of roles, with Putin wanting to prolong negotiations and appear victorious. The fourth parade since the start of the invasion of Ukraine, on the solemn 80th anniversary of the end of the conflict against Nazi Germany. The ‘Russian mindset’ among the cardinals at the Conclave. The Orthodox Patriarch shows the ‘Russian paradise’ against the devastation of war.
With all his soul, the pope wished to rescue the face of Russia's "mad holiness", that of its monks and pilgrims, its great artists and musicians, its writers capable of opening horizons of true universal union. That is why he often quoted Dostoevsky. Now, in his death, he promises us that in this inextricable inner struggle between good and evil, the face of Christ is always revealed in the human soul.
For Orthodox Christians, Holy Week – which this year coincides with Catholic Holy Week – is the ‘True Week’, the week that speaks of the ultimate truth about the destiny of mankind. Perhaps this is why Putin's Russia has decided to unleash its full military might on Ukraine at this particular time. Meanwhile, the website of the Moscow Patriarchate links Easter to May 9, Victory Day.
