https://politicalresearch.org/ The latest research related to orthodox christianity en https://religiondispatches.org/2022/11/17/tensions-escalate-balkans-west-could-hand-putin-valuable-weapon Anyone who had “License Plates Start War” on their 2020s bingo card might be in for a pleasant surprise. Large crowds of ethnic Serbs recently gathered to demonstrate against a plan by the Kosovar government to gradually ban Serbia-issued license… Thu, 17 Nov 2022 01:25:30 EST Katherine Kelaidis 03cfffc7-bcfa-41de-825f-ff9e91805b6d https://religiondispatches.org/2022/09/23/sermon-birth-fatherland-putins-patriarch-kirill-equates-invasion-ukraine-defense If you’ve been educated in North America or Western Europe, you might be forgiven for having never heard of the Battle of Kulikovo, a battle between Russian forces and the Golden Horde, on September 8, 1380, in which the Russian… Fri, 23 Sep 2022 12:30:46 EDT Katherine Kelaidis f8ee2255-f7d7-4495-94b4-7c3b6fc0aef1 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/09/14/knighting-viktor-orban-defending-christianity-serbian-orthodox-patriarch-demonstrates On September 5, Patriarch Porfiry of Belgrade, the leader of the Serbian Orthodox Church, awarded the highest degree of the Order of Saint Sava (the Patriarchate’s highest chivalric order) to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán . According to a statement… Wed, 14 Sep 2022 04:34:08 EDT Katherine Kelaidis feb299d7-bfcb-4a27-b140-f12412004f0f https://religiondispatches.org/2022/08/23/if-theres-any-retaliation-next-months-europride-festival-serbia-its-likely-have-orthodox EuroPride is scheduled to take place in the Serbian capital of Belgrade next month . It’s the first time that EuroPride will take place in a Southeastern European country and the first time it will be held in a majority… Tue, 23 Aug 2022 03:35:56 EDT Katherine Kelaidis 5988ecf5-3961-48d9-9c7e-193e00f80a22 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/07/29/orthodox-churchs-authoritarian-anti-lgbtq-statement-poses-serious-threat-academic As discussed earlier this week on RD , the Orthodox Church in America recently released an encyclical that, on the surface at least, recapitulates the long-held doctrines of the OCA concerning same-sex marriage and gay rights, reinforcing heterosexual hegemony as… Fri, 29 Jul 2022 04:36:54 EDT Sarah Riccardi-Swartz 89f85464-36fc-45f1-b122-e3739b75efc4 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/07/25/unprecedented-anti-lgbtq-statement-orthodox-church-america-should-be-christian Late last week, the Orthodox Church in America , the second largest Orthodox church body in the country, issued an unprecedented statement seeking to silence any discussion about same-sex relationships and the sacramental inclusion of LGBTQ people in the life… Mon, 25 Jul 2022 01:48:17 EDT Katherine Kelaidis b2601e8b-1fe8-4244-9d67-42da4ea80245 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/06/16/republican-lauren-boebert-jokes-about-ar-15s-and-jesus-and-yes-shes-real-christian In the aftermath of the Buffalo and Uvalde shootings —and the 54 mass shootings ( and counting ) that have happened since—America’s right-wing Christians have been busy defending their “ god-given ” right to own AR-15s. Like they always do… Thu, 16 Jun 2022 04:39:05 EDT Chrissy Stroop 7d022ced-e789-401b-9b60-ae36f0735bef https://religiondispatches.org/2022/05/19/putin-theo-propaganda-minister-kirill-invokes-600-years-history-lay-claim-ukraine-heres On May 17, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow addressed the upper house of the Russian Parliament in a speech that highlighted the role of the Russian Orthodox Church and its primate as a propaganda agent par excellence for the Putin regime… Thu, 19 May 2022 01:33:01 EDT Katherine Kelaidis 6fdac85f-ffe8-432c-af26-effa39a6a791 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/05/05/tiny-divided-orthodox-nation-next-front-russias-religious-war I’m writing from Iași, Romania, which was the capital of the Principality of Moldova between 1564 and 1859 and the capital of Romania between 1916 and 1918, as well as the seat of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolitan of Moldavia and… Thu, 05 May 2022 09:36:18 EDT Katherine Kelaidis 9aa37c21-5c4c-4777-87e3-2de3d048207c https://religiondispatches.org/2022/04/22/sanctioning-patriarch-kirill-would-send-strong-message-problem-he-doesnt-wear-mullahs Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine , sanctions against Russian officials have been the most visible and powerful form of support offered by the global community to the Ukrainian people. These sanctions have targeted high-ranking Russian officials… Fri, 22 Apr 2022 01:29:31 EDT Katherine Kelaidis d1a7753e-048d-482c-82b7-2b53e7cdc219 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/04/14/be-careful-what-you-wish-downside-kicking-russian-orthodox-church-out-world-council Calls have grown for the Russian Orthodox Church to be expelled from the World Council of Churches (WCC) due to the support of the Moscow-based, Patriarch Kirill-led church for the Russian invasion of Ukraine . This effort has in recent… Thu, 14 Apr 2022 03:40:58 EDT Katherine Kelaidis da7a6748-0d4f-4ccc-bcb1-f85855e989f6 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/04/08/another-important-defection-russian-patriarchate-looms-fate-orthodoxy-west-hangs-balance As the rhetoric of the Russian Orthodox Church grew even more shocking and dangerous this week , an anonymous group of students at the famed St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris have sent a letter asking their local bishop… Fri, 08 Apr 2022 05:33:32 EDT Katherine Kelaidis de196715-b640-4f6a-b285-11ca800af67a https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/30/palestinian-orthodox-christians-desperate-help-have-caught-attention-russia In case you’re thinking that Ukraine is the only place in the world where Orthodox Christianity is entangled in a global hotspot, please turn your eyes to Jerusalem. Two days ago, following an eighteen-year struggle, members of the Israeli settler… Wed, 30 Mar 2022 05:26:06 EDT Katherine Kelaidis 8ad48250-1a76-42ad-9530-a5c8d9ef485f https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/24/holy-father-youre-not-helping-problem-popes-plan-consecrate-russia-and-ukraine March 25th is the Feast of the Annunciation, the celebration of the day that the Angel Gabriel is said to have appeared to the Virgin Mary to announce that she would bear Christ. It is a date of great significance… Thu, 24 Mar 2022 04:59:46 EDT Katherine Kelaidis 88513ae6-9435-4296-b082-bb78f6dbd7af https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/21/failure-grasp-distinct-character-and-history-eastern-christianity-compromising-our Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began three weeks ago, it’s likely you’ve heard the term Russian World (or Russkii Mir ). It’s easy to conflate this concept with nostalgia for the Soviet Union (it’s just another term for Russia… Mon, 21 Mar 2022 01:14:17 EDT Katherine Kelaidis 9dda69ec-56e9-4d8e-930f-e183c4100433 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/17/russkii-mir-russian-equivalent-blood-soil-ideology-heart-putins-war-explained-and A new statement by Orthodox Christian theologians—some of whom sign from Russia—dramatically illustrates what’s at stake in this war of (mostly) Christians against Christians, and what implications it has for the American scene. The statement sets its organizers in opposition… Thu, 17 Mar 2022 04:52:10 EDT Daniel Schultz 5eb0b277-8f63-4f09-8634-9afb427ff638 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/15/putin-real-christian-understand-conflict-we-need-ask-different-questions Vladimir Putin’s campaign of violence in Ukraine has brought to the fore questions about his longstanding religious connections, prompting scholars and journalists to challenge his well-marketed piety and seemingly deep devotion to Russian Orthodox spirituality — the latter of which… Tue, 15 Mar 2022 12:00:16 EDT Sarah Riccardi-Swartz, Robert Saler 3ad3244f-b812-465c-adb3-1206d99052f4 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/14/prominent-russian-orthodox-church-rejects-pro-putin-patriarch-kirill-raising-tensions The Russian Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas in Amsterdam has a rather prominent place in the Orthodox Christian pacifist movement, insofar as such a movement exists. St. Nicholas was, after all, the home parish of Jim Forest, an American writer… Mon, 14 Mar 2022 03:51:25 EDT Katherine Kelaidis 0956836a-fe21-4a55-a46a-35f0f0b41be8 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/07/if-kirills-bizarre-sermon-blaming-war-pride-parades-comes-surprise-its-time-learn Today is Clean Monday, the first day of the Orthodox Christian Lent. Yesterday was Forgiveness Sunday, a day traditionally dedicated to reflecting upon one’s own sins and preparing for and anticipating the long period of fasting and repentance encouraged by… Mon, 07 Mar 2022 01:38:42 EST Katherine Kelaidis 5adcf3dc-13f5-4cf7-b926-c5b21494503a https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/07/his-forgiveness-day-sermon-slightly-more-sophisticated-globohomo-rant-kirill-lays-out Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, has been complicit in the political rhetoric used by Vladimir Putin. In one of her first articles on the topic, Katie Kelaidis reminded… Mon, 07 Mar 2022 01:31:04 EST Sarah Riccardi-Swartz 1f11723d-b69e-4480-a3b3-7cc5f8418e2c https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/04/church-further-divided-putins-patriarch-now-faces-rebellion-within-russian-orthodox While the world waits for Russian oligarchs to tire of their yachts being seized and for them to turn against Vladimir Putin, it appears that Putin’s counterpart and accomplice in the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All… Fri, 04 Mar 2022 04:34:37 EST Katherine Kelaidis 6503bf81-ec29-4e63-bdff-4481f68bf73e https://religiondispatches.org/2022/03/02/twisted-love-story-how-american-evangelicals-helped-make-putins-russia-and-how-russia If someone from 1965 were to arrive in a time machine, there’s likely much about our current state of affairs that would shock them. But I cannot imagine anything that would be more confusing than the love affair between the… Wed, 02 Mar 2022 05:41:12 EST Katherine Kelaidis de0e1cc2-ea2c-42d2-96e2-bed3be2dc673 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/02/25/no-patriarch-kirill-moscow-not-calling-peace-fact-hes-putins-accomplice Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus is not calling for peace in Ukraine, and the fact that some in the Western media seem to think he has done so is evidence of how much the West has to learn… Fri, 25 Feb 2022 03:56:44 EST Katherine Kelaidis 9398d1c8-4be8-4f31-a9d3-9fdab37eebef https://religiondispatches.org/2022/02/21/make-no-mistake-if-theres-war-between-russia-and-ukraine-it-will-be-religious-war Putin has now ordered Russian troops into Donetsk and Luhansk. The first major conflict between two Orthodox Christian nations since the War of the Stray Dogs in 1925 has likely just begun. That conflict (the resolution of which was incidentally… Mon, 21 Feb 2022 05:16:09 EST Katherine Kelaidis e621f018-890b-469e-a997-05377d61c959 https://religiondispatches.org/2022/01/19/novak-djokovic-extraordinary-tennis-player-ordinary-orthodox-anti-vaxxer The Serbian tennis champion Novak Djokovic has become a perfectly likely hero in the international movement against Covid-19 vaccinations after his battle with Australian officials ahead of the Australian Open. The all-time great was successfully deported this week after Australia’s… Wed, 19 Jan 2022 05:26:13 EST Katherine Kelaidis 1ad80c5f-5e12-4a16-abac-4173741b7464