Translated material
Your cross
The story of Hieromonk John (Karmoyarova), trying to preach Christian truths, not politics, and for this arrested in Russia
He was excluded from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (PCU) for supporting the Russian -speaking population, criticism of nationalism and the use of a ribbon in his blog. In Russia, on the contrary, it was excluded from the Russian Orthodox Church (the Russian Orthodox Church) for criticizing the main temple of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. The rebellious priest was accepted by the Russian Orthodox Church abroad (ROCZ) under its wing. But he was still not allowed to preach to him: in June, they accused of publicly distributing knowingly false information about the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (Article 207.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and sent under arrest.
On Monday, August 8, Hieromonk John (in the world, John Valerievich Kurmoyarov), on the seventh attempt, brought the final charge.
“This means that the investigation in the case is completed and will soon be submitted to the court,” explained Father's lawyer John Leonid Krikun. - I can’t say anything else, since together with the charges of my client they took a non -disclosure subscription from me. Excuse me, but now I will be wary of even calling an article by which my client is accused. Not to mention what exactly he is accused of.
Earlier, the press service of the courts of St. Petersburg reported that Kramoyarov is suspected of committing a crime under part 2 of article 207.3 (public distribution of obviously false information about the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, up to 10 years in prison).
The Baza telegram channel reported that Hieromonk was arrested for the preaching “Who would be in hell and who in paradise”, which was published on the Khumyarov YouTube channel “Virtual Orthodox Parish”.
But that video was published on May 1, 2022. But the last sermon, dated May 29, was called "Putin and repressions in Russia: who is actually a traitor to his homeland?" And it was after him that Karmoyarov was called "pro -Western politician" and "enemy of the Russian people." Although the Hieromonk himself, in the appeal of the City Court of St. Petersburg (on the consideration of an arrest appeal), claimed that "... according to the canons of the Church, priests are forbidden to engage in politics and my sermons are only related to religion ... I make politics against my will ..." .
Kurmoyarov was born in 1968 in the Perm Territory. Then his parents moved to the Vinnitsa region of the Ukrainian SSR, where he went to school. In 1992, the future priest graduated from Volgograd University (Faculty of Architecture) and returned to Ukraine. In 1999, Karmoyarov accepted Orthodoxy, graduated from the Chernivtsi Orthodox Theological Institute, and has the degree of a doctor of theology. In 2011, he took a tonsure. He preached in the Tulchinsky district of the Vinnitsa region. He organized a monastery there.
In 2017, the Security Service of Ukraine tried to bring Hieromonk to administrative responsibility for publishing on the social network of Lent with a St. George ribbon (fines for this symbols were introduced in Ukraine due to the fact that it is popular among the DPR and LPR militias). The case was closed at the end of the statute of limitations, but the Tulchinsky diocese excluded Karmoyarov from the list of clergymen. Then Father John moved to Russia and headed the department of theology in the Novosibirsk seminary.
“People consider us (priests) a kind of aliens,” Kammoyarov said in an interview with the “such things” channel. - But we are ordinary people who are not alien to modern, with our hobbies and addictions. Having shown this to people, we become closer to them, and trust in Orthodoxy is returning.
On June 15, 2020, on his Facebook page, Karmoyarov criticized the main temple of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation in Kubinka, calling it a pagan chapel.
“ You can take communion into court and condemnation, and turn the sacraments into a magic rite, you can also turn the liturgy into a pagan mystery, you can also turn the temple into a pagan temple, and faith into“ white magic of the Orthodox rite ”, where the main ones will become, imperial statehood, water, candle, rituals, etc. I will say more, a huge number of priests in our church are banal priests of a pagan cult, because they forgot about what is written in the Gospel. I can confirm this with specific examples. That is why now we have a profanity of the Christian faith. This temple is the brightest evidence of such a profanity accomplished before our eyes , ”the priest wrote.
Under the post, Hieromonk posted a photo of a part of a stained glass, decorating the temple - that part of it, which depicts the Order of the Patriotic War. Recall that this order is executed in the form of two five -pointed stars. And the five -pointed star in Christianity has always symbolized either paganism or devil worship.
The post was widespread and caused a violent reaction of the Ministry of Defense and church hierarchs. They demanded an explanation from Kurmoyarov, and he gave them:
“I really consider the presence of symbols of the Soviet era among the murals of the Orthodox Church of the Orthodox Church. It is the presence of such symbols as any other non -Christian or anti -Christian symbols served in a positive way that turns our temple into a pagan temple, in which a certain syncretic religion will confess. Of course, our fathers and grandfathers committed a great feat, but among them were Muslims, atheists, and agnostics, and Buddhists, but, for the most part, communists. Can this conclude that now atheistic, Islamic or Buddhist symbols can be placed in the Orthodox Church? If this goes on, then, I am afraid, this will lead to the birth of a new pseudo-Orthodox imperial-Militarist cult as an ancient Roman syncretic cults, where the main condition was not faithful to Christ and His Church, but loyalty to the emperor and the state. ”
Father John attached a publication to this explanatory, in which the deputy minister of defense Timur Ivanov tells that Hitler’s cap is stored in the temple. This explanatory also caused a lot of responses. The press service of the Ministry of Defense was even forced to explain that Ivanov, giving an interview to the Zvezda television channel, did not call these things relics, but only exhibits. And they are stored, they say, not in the temple itself, but in the museum at the temple.
On June 18, 2020, a decree of the Metropolitan of the Novosibirsk and Berdsk Nicodemus was published:
“The present hieromonk John (Kramoyarov), in connection with the inconsistency of the rank of cleric of the Russian Orthodox Church and, until all the circumstances of unworthy behavior, is temporarily prohibited in the priesthood for a period of 2 months from June 18, 2020. During the prohibition in the priesthood, you cannot wear a cassock, the Jerely Cross, teach theology and perform the sacraments and trebe. ”
In response, Karmoyarov publishes a new post:
“It turns out that we, Christians, have only one way out, either agree with these people and turn their temples into pagan temples, or stand to death in their faith. I choose the second and I don’t understand why this should be ashamed and why this position can be regarded as the unworthy behavior of the clergyman? ”
Hieromonk moves to St. Petersburg, officially leaves the Russian Orthodox Church and submits an application for joining the Russian Orthodox Church abroad (ROCZ). In December 2021, according to the statement, a positive decision was made. Simultaneously with the crossing of Kramoyarov, he filed several lawsuits: to the Minister of Defense Sergey Shoigu, the SPALISE CHANDAL and to the Novosibirsk Seminary about the unlawful dismissal.
According to the last lawsuit on January 11, 2022, the court decision was refused.
After February 24, 2022, Kramoyarov sided with Ukraine. In early June 2022, the Office of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for St. Petersburg and the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation for St. Petersburg and the region announced the detention of Kurmoyarov on suspicion of committing a crime under Article 207.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. On June 6, the Kalininsky court of St. Petersburg sent him under arrest.
Simultaneously with the announcement of the arrest on the Internet, information was spreading that Father John was deprived of the priest’s dignity by decree of Patriarch Kirill of April 1, 2022. On the official website of the Patriarchate, we could not find any documents dated day of laughter. However, most of the media continue to disseminate this information. According to lawyer Leonid Krikun, this is done on purpose.
“Most Russians have a respectful attitude towards clergymen,” the lawyer says. - Distributing obviously false information, the media is to ensure that a biased impression is formed in advance about my client. Deliberately they do it or not, another question. But once again I want to focus on the fact that neither excommunication, nor deprivation of the clergyman’s dignity in relation to my client was never undertaken. He still remains a priest of the Orthodox Church, which there are undeniable confirmations.
We managed to give Father John several questions.
- In Ukraine, you are considered a “Colorado”, in Russia - they are arrested for “fakes”. You can explain how, in your opinion, the relations of Russia and Ukraine should have been built until February 24 and how should they be built now?
- I am a Christian and Christian pacifist. Both in Ukraine and in Russia, I oppose violence and war. Therefore, I and here and here pursue the party of war. But I am absolutely sure that relations between Russia and Ukraine should be built on the principles of mutual respect, peace, cultural and economic cooperation. Given the fact that the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine threatens to develop into a nuclear war, which will question the future of all mankind, this conflict should be stopped as quickly as possible.
- If you are opposed to war, does this mean that you automatically support the Ukrainian authorities now? And what to do in this case, because they are the heirs of the Maidan. You still do not accept it?
- I have a difficult attitude towards the Maidan. On the one hand, I respect the choice of the Ukrainian people, aimed at European integration, and in this sense, people's access to the Maidan was completely justified. But on the other hand, I condemn the course of the then Ukrainian elite, which used popular dissatisfaction for its selfish purposes and the beginning of the ATO (anti -terrorist operation).
I can’t say anything about the actions of the current Ukrainian government, since since the spring of 2018 I have been living in Russia. I can only say that no problems in interstate relations should be solved with the help of weapons.
- What do you think about the position of the Russian Orthodox Church, justifying this war? Are you ready to obey her?
- I am not going to obey the Russian Orthodox Church, since in December 2021 I left this church structure and moved to the Russian Orthodox Church abroad. I will say once again:
I am a Christian and therefore, in principle, it is not interesting to me what is happening in the Russian Orthodox Church, where today it is not Christian faith that is preached, but a certain semi-language, ritual, imperial-militaristic cult of the Russian people.
- Would you like to return to Ukraine, provided that the current actions of the authorities without a discount on the war do not correspond to your value attitudes?
- The choice of a particular value installation is the personal file of each person. I would like that in Russia and Ukraine, the authorities would not impose certain value attitudes to people, but care more about the well -being of their countries and that people with different value attitudes feel comfortable in these countries. I hope that in the future, citizens of Ukraine and Russia will be able to freely enter and travel to both countries. Naturally, I would also like to go to Ukraine, to see relatives and friends.
- During the search, you were seized with a sheet with the record “The Last Dictator” - it should have been your new song. Who is she about?
-Actually, the song is called the "Great Dictator", it is against the people of the dictatorship (both the past and the present), and not against specific persons.
Arriving in Russia, I found in horror for myself that many in our country revere Stalin and crave the return of the Stalinist dictatorship. This mood was the reason for writing the track. Being a Christian, I cannot accept the dictatorship, totalitarianism, authoritarianism that allow total violence against a person. In my opinion, the relations of people in society should be built on the principles of love, peace and freedom, which is naturally preached in Christianity: “Get away from evil and do good; Look for the world and strive for it ”(1st Peter 3: 11).
This song has two versions: English -speaking and Russian -speaking. True, I have not yet fully determined the Russian text: will it be a song about the dictatorship in general, or an appeal to our power and specific persons not to follow the path of dictatorial regimes.
Ideally, I hoped to offer my song to different musicians, while I’m ready to give the right to execute for free. I would like the song to be performed in the style of Metallis or Rammstein. In electronic version, it can be techno in the spirit of Depeche Mode. I will be grateful to everyone who will help to fulfill my dream. If one of the musicians responds to this proposal, we only have to discuss the final version of the text.