It is inaccurate to portray the Russian Orthodox Church as something separate and distinct from other Eastern Orthodox Christians. It is Christmas in the West, but the adherents to the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrate on January 7. I suspect that most Christians in the West do not realize that a majority of the Christians in Ukraine are part of the Eastern Orthodox Church while Ukrainian Christians in western Ukraine tend to be Roman Catholic (because of their past ties to Poland) and reject the Eastern Orthodox as an authoritative body. This religious divide is real and is an underlying source of tension in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
In addition to the openly violent war with Russia, Ukraine also is attacking the clergy of the Eastern Orthodox Church. ABC news recently reported on this:
The search by security service and police personnel at the Pechersk Lavra monastery, one of the most revered Orthodox sites in Kyiv, was unusual but did not happen in isolation.
The Ukrainian counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism service reported Wednesday that its agents searched more than 350 church buildings in all — also including sites at another monastery and a diocese in the Rivne region, 240 kilometers (150 miles) west of Kyiv.
And the service, known by its Ukrainian initials SBU, accused the bishop of yet another diocese of pro-Moscow activity last week after searching church premises and finding materials that allegedly justified the Russian invasion.
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/searches-ukraine-focuses-suspicions-orthodox-clergy-93860359
Eastern Orthodox is not confined to Russia. In fact, it is more Greek than Russian. I am going to dump a little Wikipedia on you to help understand the gulf separating Roman Catholics from the Eastern Orthodox faithful:
The Eastern Orthodox Church considers itself to be both orthodox and catholic.[66] The doctrine of the Catholicity of the Church, as derived from the Nicene Creed, is essential to Eastern Orthodox ecclesiology. The term Catholicity of the Church (Greek Καθολικότης τῆς Ἐκκλησίας) is used in its original sense, as a designation for the universality of the Christian Church, centered around Christ. Therefore, the Eastern Orthodox notion of catholicity is not centered around any singular see, unlike the Catholic Church which has one earthly center.
Due to the influence of the Catholic Church in the west, where the English language itself developed, the words “catholic” and “catholicity” are sometimes used to refer to that church specifically. However, the more prominent dictionary sense given for general use is still the one shared by other languages, implying breadth and universality, reflecting comprehensive scope.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Orthodox_Church#Relations_with_other_Christians
A reliable Ukrainian source who has been in contact with the head of the Lavra Metropolit, Vladyka Pavel, sent me the following tonight:
Pavel said that next week the radical church UPC Poroshenko Tomos church might take over the Kiev Lavra as the government of Ukraine Zelenskiy and his Ministers are ignoring the calls of the head of Lavra Metropolite Pavel to continue the contract for the Church service in Svyato Uspebskaya church and TrapeNaya church of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra.
The radicals from Azov and Pravin Secfor will come into Lavra and try to take control while the regime decides what to with Lavra next.
Whether you are Christian or not, this kind of a state attack on a religion smacks of the policies of Stalin. It is important to monitor what happens to the leaders of the Orthodox Church in the coming week.
I wish all of my readers a Merry Christmas, even if you do not celebrate Christmas. The point of wishing you a Merry Christmas is not a backhanded way of suggesting you should be a Christian. It is me saying I hope you experience the joy and peace I associate with Christmas.
In writing this I was reminded of an experience I had with a Jewish merchant in the Colon Free Trade Zone in Panama 20 years ago. His name was Jose and he was an observant Jew. The Colon Free Trade Zone is one of the largest trade hubs in the world and the merchants who manage the products that flow through the Panama Canal are primarily Jewish, Arab Christian or Arab Muslim. There are very few ethnic Panamanians who own those businesses.
I was investigating cigarette smuggling in the Colon Free Trade Zone (aka CFZ) and my company was hired by DEA to do an audit of this business because a container with goods sold by this merchant had been intercepted and cocaine was seized. The container contained goods from many merchants. Jose, who had a cardiac condition, was terrified that he would lose his visa to the United States and he begged the DEA to conduct an audit of the business to prove that he was not trafficking in drug proceeds. My partner, who had run DEA’s undercover money laundering operations in New York City in the 1990s, was contacted and we were asked to do the investigation.
When I first went to the CFZ I was told by the lawyers we worked with that Muslims and Jews hated each other. One told me the story about the night the U.S. invaded Panama in December 1989. The muslim merchants blocked the entrances to the CFZ (it is a walled city of sorts) and supposedly threatened to shoot the Jewish merchants.
So, while me and my partner were doing the audit I noticed that Jose was preparing gift baskets. It was the day before Eid. I asked him, “Who are you giving those baskets to?” Jose replied, “these are for my muslim neighbors.”
“Wait a second”, I said. “I was told that during the U.S. invasion that the muslims blocked the city and were going to use machine guns on you.” Jose laughed aan said, “Yes, they blocked the city gates with shipping containers and they had firearms, but that was to protect the CFZ from looters. My muslim neighbors were helping protect my business.”
I share this story on Christmas Eve in America as a reminder that regardless of religious differences, people can still find common ground to respect each other and do good to one another. For me, that is the spirit of Christmas. That is why I wish for you that blessing of Christmas — Peace.