Protests against Madonna's concert in Moscow

A rally against Madonna's upcoming concert in Moscow on September 12 was held on Pushkinskaya Square in Moscow. Participants - about 200 people - members of Orthodox-patriotic organizations with banners and monarchist banners.

The protesters declared their intention "to do everything to prevent Madonna's concert in Moscow from taking place." The indignation of the audience is caused by one of the numbers of the program, during which the singer appears crucified on a cross with a crown of thorns on her head. In addition, at first the concert was scheduled for September 11 - the day of the Beheading of John the Baptist, which caused protests from the Orthodox.

The chairman of the Union of Orthodox banner-bearers, Leonid Simonovich-Niksic, announced the creation of a "holy inquisition", which "will fight against the desecration of crosses, icons, Russian Orthodox symbols, including at the concert of the cabalist Madonna." Inquisition" is, "certainly not the killing of people, but the fight against blasphemy."

Religious and patriotic organizations began to oppose the concert back in August.

to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II On August 12, the Public Committee "For the Moral Revival of the Fatherland" sent an appeal with a request to consider the issue of anathematizing the organizers and participants of the show.

Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, deputy head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, commenting on this appeal, expressed the hope that the Moscow authorities and the concert participants "will listen to the believers." Madonna herself, according to the priest, "really needs not nourishment from a crowd of fans, but spiritual help, pastoral advice and a prayer that she finally correct her life."

On August 25, several representatives of the Georgievtsy Orthodox youth organization handed out leaflets near the monument to Marshal Zhukov in Moscow calling for a boycott of Madonna's performance because she "offends the religious feelings of Orthodox believers."

Metropolitan Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, who joined the protests, advised Catholics about to attend the show "to read Church documents and talk to a priest first."

Priest of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church Alexy Lopatin sees no need to protest: "Why are we going to be indignant - to speak out against gays, against fascists - what? We should not just be involved in this ... We must not protest, but we must pray," the priest said.

The chairman of the KEROOR, Rabbi Zinoviy Kogan, on the contrary, supported the protests of the Orthodox and Catholics.

On September 4, participants in a rally on Pushkinskaya Square pierced a poster of the Madonna with an aspen stake, tore it to pieces and trampled on it.

PR manager of Madonna's Russian tour Anton Atrashkin, commenting on the protests of the Orthodox, said: "We have repeatedly stated that we respect the opinion of those people who urge not to go to Madonna's concert, but we have no doubt that tens of thousands of people have an alternative opinion ".

On September 7, the "Information Agency of the Yekaterinburg Diocese" reported that 45 public organizations of the Middle Urals supported the appeal of the Congress of Teachers of the Yekaterinburg Diocese to the Prosecutor General and the Government and the Mayor of Moscow "about the forthcoming anti-Christian, blasphemously insulting the feelings of believers performance of the singer Louise Cicone ('Madonna') in Moscow )".

"The public imitation of the crucifixion instead of Jesus Christ by a singer professing an anti-Christian philosophy is undoubtedly regarded as a desecration of the main subject of the ideological symbolism of Christianity, which, according to the legislation in force in the Russian Federation, is an administratively punishable offense," the appeal says.

In connection with the above, we kindly ask you to ban the performance of this song "Live to tell" in this stage design, which is associated with the desecration of religious symbols.

We also ask you to take all measures to ensure that in the future such events related to the desecration of religious symbols are not held in public places where children and youth are present, since these events negatively affect the psyche of children, and their impact on the younger generation is extremely negative. in terms of education."

on the website of the Orthodox Society (Brotherhood) "Radonezh" Also on September 7 , another document was published , the authors of which urged to prevent the Madonna's concert in Moscow. "We are appealing to all those who cherish Russian culture, to the Orthodox community, with an appeal to support our demand for the organizers and organizers of such pernicious 'shows' to save us from the invasion of trans-Okanese pop-modernism with the garbage smell of 'second-hand'. It cannot but cause extreme surprise and the position of the authorities in connection with the announced scandalous concert, which, it seems, is only concerned with ensuring security measures, while not paying due attention to the obvious public danger of the consequences of such 'shows'," the text of the document says. Under it are the signatures of the SPG, the Regional public organization "Club 'Realists'" and the society "Radonezh".

On September 8, "Interfax" published the document "Spare us from second-hand!", signed by the same three organizations, but sustained in even harsher terms.

On September 11, the Orthodox-patriotic public organizations "People's Protection" and "People's Cathedral" issued a statement regarding Madonna's concert. "Russia is the home of the Most Holy Theotokos, and the mockery of Orthodox shrines by a woman who blasphemes the name of the Mother of God, identifies herself with the Babylonian harlot and arranges in our holy city on the day of its patron, the holy noble Prince Daniel of Moscow, a blasphemous parody of chapters 17 (1-18 quotes the document ) and 18 (8-10) of the Apocalypse of the Holy Apostle John the Theologian is unacceptable," the National News Agency .

"If this blasphemous spectacle takes place, then we, Orthodox Christians, will demand that its organizers and organizers, as well as the authorities of Moscow, be held accountable for actions for which liability is provided for in Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, as well as the Federal Law" On counteracting extremist activity," the People's Protection and the People's Cathedral say.

On the same day , the National News Agency reported that a group of Orthodox Kaluga residents refused the services of the Beeline company, which organized Madonna's concert. The believers stated this in an open letter to the director of the Kaluga branch of the company, published on the pages of the Kaluga Week newspaper.

On the eve of the concert, Sergei Chapnin, editor-in-chief of the newspaper Tserkovny Vestnik and director of the Orthodox media festival Vera i Slovo, once again appealed to the Orthodox to refuse Beeline services in protest against the singer's arrival. For the first time, he called for this on September 2, Blagovest-info reports with reference to the Church Bulletin.

On September 12, the Orthodox youth movement "Georgievtsy!" held another action in Moscow against Madonna's concert. According to Interfax , "the protesters acted out a small scene with the participation of the 'Madonna', which was played by a representative of the Orthodox movement, wearing a mask with horns.

When asked why she came to the Russian capital, the 'star' replied: 'Well, it's cool, I came to cut down the dough. Moscow is so big. I wanted to offend the Orthodox and decided to do a show on the cross.

'We, Madonna, made you a surprise and launch the airship. We hope that a real singer will see him and think about it, ”said another participant in the impromptu production in turn.

After that 'Georgievites!' launched into the sky a large yellow airship, on which is written in large black letters: 'Madonna', go home', as well as yellow balloons.

On the evening of the same day, at the entrance to the Luzhniki Stadium, where the singer's performance was to take place, the police detained five Orthodox believers who were trying to "reason" the concert visitors with the help of a prayer. "The detainees - four women and one man with icons in their hands stood at the entrance to the Luzhniki stadium and loudly sang prayers. They were taken to the 135th police station," an unnamed source in the capital's law enforcement agencies told . Interfax

On September 13, Interfax specified that on the eve of the concert, 23 participants in an unauthorized protest picket were detained, 12 of them were representatives of the Orthodox community.

The concert, according to the Central Department of Internal Affairs, was attended by about 50 thousand spectators.

Anatoly Greshnevikov, a member of the Motherland faction (Narodnaya Volya - SEPR), instructed the security committee to send a request to the Ministry of Internal Affairs regarding the detention of picketers. The parliamentarian was outraged that they were kept together with drunks. In addition, Greshnevikov reminded, no one has canceled freedom of expression in Russia.

Sources

• Orthodox gonfalon bearers at a rally in Moscow announced the "Holy Inquisition" to the singer Madonna // Interfax-religion. 2006. September 4th.
• Appeal to His Holiness His Holiness Patriarch Alexy of Moscow and All Rus' // Public Committee "For the Moral Revival of the Fatherland". 2006. August 12.
• The Russian Orthodox Church urges to denounce the Madonna reasonably and without malice // Interfax-religion. 2006. August 23.
• Police detained Orthodox youth activists who were handing out leaflets calling for a boycott of Madonna's concert in Moscow // There. 25-th of August.
• DOCUMENT: Appeal of Metropolitan Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz to priests, monastics and laity of the Archdiocese of the Mother of God in connection with the upcoming concert of the "Madonna" in Moscow // Portal-Credo.ru. 2006. August 30.
• It is necessary not to protest against the Madonna, but to pray, says the Old Believer priest Alexy Lopatin, and Rabbi Zinovy ​​Kogan shows solidarity with the Orthodox // There. August 9th.
• "Handlers" took up arms against the Madonna // Blagovest-info. 2006. September 5. (Article by P. Aksenov from the BBC website.)
• 45 public organizations of the Middle Urals supported the appeal of the Congress of teachers of the Yekaterinburg diocese on the forthcoming anti-Christian performance of the singer Louise Cicone in Moscow // Orthodox newspaper (Yekaterinburg). 2006. September 7th. (With reference to the "Information Agency of the Yekaterinburg Diocese".)
• Deliver us from blasphemy! // Radonezh 2006. September 7.
• Spare us the second hand! Appeal of the Orthodox community regarding the concert of the "so-called" Madonna " // Interfax-religion. 2006. September 8.
• Orthodox organizations: Madonna's blasphemy will not go unpunished // National News Agency. 2006. September 11th.
• Alyonushkin O. Madonna is forcing believers in Kaluga to abandon "Beeline" // There.
• Sergei Chapnin: Madonna's tour was actually paid for by subscribers of the Beeline network // Blagovest-info. 2006. September 11th. (With reference to the Church Gazette.)
• Representatives of Orthodox youth launched into the sky over Moscow an airship with the inscription "Madonna, go home" // Interfax-religion. 2006. September 12.
• The police detained five believers who were praying near the Luzhniki stadium to admonish the visitors of the Madonna concert // There.
• The Orthodox community tried to picket at the entrance to Luzhniki against Madonna's concert // There. 2006. 13 September.
• Motherland faction demands clarification from the Ministry of Internal Affairs regarding the detention of an Orthodox picket near the Luzhniki stadium // Week.ru. 2006. 13 September.