"My language cannot pronounce the name of their group"

Archpriest Alexei Uminsky, rector of the Holy Trinity Church in Hokhlah, told Publicpost about the repentance of Pussy Riot, the relations of the Patriarch with the state and what is the borestones not the face of the church.

Author - Gazeta.ru correspondent

- Father Alexei, how did the last scandals around the church affect ordinary parishioners? On this Easter, when a criminal case was instituted against Pussy Riot, many of my friends seriously thought about - is it worth going to the service?
- As for my arrival, there were, of course, more people. In total, about 700 people came to the service, about 150 more than a year ago. And, according to general statistics, so in almost all Moscow temples.

- A lot of intelligentsia, the so -called creative class, comes to your church.
- This is generally characteristic of Moscow. When I was a very young man, in Moscow there were 45 active temples. And there was almost no middle, working class there either - the intelligentsia, people of culture, science, art and grandmother. Our proletariat remains unrestrained. And even grandmothers in Moscow temples are rarely met. Especially in the central ones, where the parishes are not at the place of residence. Because there are already very few residential buildings in the center, and there are many historical temples. And the temples of sleeping areas are small, which used to be rustic or cemetery, or small wooden chapels. People simply do not fit there.

- That is, people did not believe less, were not disappointed?
- The situation you are talking about, a serious opposition to the church and society, is artificially imposed, and churches and society. On the one hand, attention is focused on, of course, the disgusting act of these girls - hopes, Mary and Catherine. Sorry, but my language cannot pronounce the name of their group, because it is obscene. On the other hand, on that aggressive component of the Church, which is conditionally represented by Orthodox gangstones. It seems that the face of a liberal opposition, a society that is fighting for honest elections and so on, is a punk group, and the face of the church is a borely.

- And how to dissuade people in this?
- You need to carefully look at each other, go beyond this confrontation, understand that there is no truth from one side or the other. The Church should determine the act of girls himself as offensive, but also to say that people who, in conclusion for six months, are without any understanding. The criminal prosecution puts these girls in such a position that they have nowhere to go further, they do not even have a alkali for repentance. Of these, someone makes prisoners of conscience, actions in their defense do not give them the opportunity to get off the pedestal.

“Would you like to talk to them?”
- Certainly. I would like to say a few words. Maybe they would understand something.

- Nevertheless, in the eyes of many, it was thanks to the church that the girls were behind bars.
- Did the church initiated this arrest and urged to plant or punish? Not a single word on the part of the Patriarch was said in support of the arrest, there was no official position on this subject.

- Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin spoke several times ...
- Father Vsevolod Chaplin expressed his position, like many other priests expressed their personal positions. And they were very different - from the proposal to feed pancakes and talk, give the broom in their hands and make the temple territory to quite tough. But this was not an official position of the church, it was the position of different church people. The opinion is very different. How the court will develop is not our case. I remind you that at first, two weeks before the action in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, this punk group performed in the Elokhov Cathedral. They were then simply kicked out, without any statements and police. Only after this was done one more time and the president intervened, then the prime minister, the situation went in this way. This gave a signal.

- And the signal was not only political. After these events, the level of mutual aggression increased sharply.
- Yes, this has already been reflected in ordinary parishioners. There are families with whom I communicate in which the wife is a believer, but the husband is not. Previously, these husbands calmly related to the fact that their wives go to church, communing children, and give them to Sunday school. But these people suddenly became infected with such aggression! First, in relation to the church, then - and to their own wives, a chain reaction went. Then there were terrifying cases of attacks on the church. People burst with knives, axes, chopped icons, chased for priests. These icons were then exhibited on a prayer service in defense of faith. I saw them, it is impossible to look at the face of Christ, chopped off with an ax without a shudder. And it is clear that these crazy, insane people were infected with the atmosphere.

- But from the Orthodox, also aggression. My colleague was almost beaten when she, being on a prayer with an editorial task, did not cross in time.
- No doubt. Aggression on the one hand is no better than aggression on the other. This is an unnatural state of disrespect for each other, a dangerous and dead end.

- Why doesn't the church suppress this?
- We have something to think about how to show deep knowledge about the church, that the church is love. Now we were not able to make people believe in it. But any mass events will always attract people who really want to show themselves.

- Can a person churched to beat his opponents, as is done, for example, by gigbounds, when they come to gay parades?
- There are situations when a person must protect himself with fists when they attack him. But what you are talking about, contradicts not only the Christian faith, but also any other. Here a person is looking for an occasion to justify his aggression. But when he appeals to the Gospel - this is monstrous. The Gospel tells us that we should not only forgive our enemies and pray for them, but also love them. But when the radical part speaks, and the rest are silent, it seems that the whole church is so evil, hating everyone and wishing revenge. Christ had only one enemy who can be hated - this is Satan, and in this case we have the opportunity to do the right thing, according to the gospel, but we have not grown. They have not grown up to love.

- And we grow up?
- This is the most difficult, most difficult path. If we justify ourselves all the time, our dislike, we will look for specially who you can not love, then we will never grow up. But if we try to overcome this, at least with a prayer for those who are not close to us, at least for these prisoners of girls, then we will be on the way.

- Many believe that the silence of the Church is explained by the fact that it acts in the interests of power. How politicized the church is now?
- This impression may be created. We survived the inauguration, and all the time we saw the patriarch along with the Prime Minister, then with the president, heard praise and gratitude words on behalf of the Patriarch to the highest representatives of the authorities. The policy of the church is quite flexible. Of course, a huge number of people with protest moods did not like it terribly. But when there were the first manifestations first on Bolotnaya, then on Sakharov, the Patriarch publicly publicly said that the authorities should pay attention to the protest movement. He said this in a big interview with one of the federal channels. But for some reason it remained unfolded, and the emphasis was on another.

- That is, the Patriarch actually supported the protesters?
- Yes, he was excited. But including by the fact that the words of leaders acquired a clearly aggressive character. Thank God, sensible people were enough. From our society to make a crowd - it costs nothing. Because people are not used to independence, they are waiting for some leader. Therefore, of course, the Patriarch said that the Orthodox people who go to rallies need to learn to pray. Moreover, this applied to various rallies - both in Poklonnaya and on Bolotnaya. But then it was perceived later, as the fact that the church is against the opposition movement. Then yes, the Patriarch began to support the power. Politically it seemed to him right. I may not like it. I want to hear more stringent denunciation words from the church, more serious words about independence from state structures. And not only to me alone.

- In the regions before the elections there was a scandal when local authorities asked priests to support them, to influence parishioners.
- The facts of pressure are known. But the priest cannot be forced to do things that contradict his conscience. Of course, there are different people, different priests, but so that in this way, from above - no.

- So how to separate the church from the state?
- The state is also people. We all live in a single space. The church cannot go to the opposition and should not do this, except for cases that are stipulated in our concept of social ministry, when the state directly calls people to immoral acts. Then the church may call for civil disobedience. But in cases where the state is legally present on this earth, someone likes it or not, the church will strive to fulfill its function of worship, missionary, unfortunate assistance. But she should know to what extent compromises extend, and be very attentive to herself. As far as he relies on the gospel, on the commandments of love and faith, or trying to easily arrange its life, because the state gives an opportunity-finances some projects, returns property. But the compromise should not be based on loyalty and silence in cases where you cannot be loyal and remain silent. This balance is not easy to observe. The church is studying, and will study. And claims cannot but be audible and they, in many ways, are probably fair. The Patriarch is responsible for everyone, it is easy to spit in his direction. I could not be a patriarch.

- That is, he has no right to sharp steps?
- Neither on harsh steps, nor on a mistake. But as a person, he can also be mistaken. The situation that is now is painful. But this pain is useful to us. We must survive all this and comprehend.

After speaking with the "punk-ground" in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior for girls from the feminist group Pussy Riot, a real hunt began. The Orthodox community requires an “inevitable punishment” for them, civil activists go to single pickets in their defense.