Military Church - Angels hover above the artillery, religious images are decorated with Kalashnikov assault rifles, and the Virgin Mary strikes a pose reminiscent of a World War II Soviet poster. The images inside the Great Cathedral of the Russian Armed Forces combine militarism, patriotism and Orthodox Christianity with impressive and highly controversial effects.
The cathedral, an hour's drive from Moscow, has a metallic khaki exterior topped with golden domes and crosses that stand 95 meters high. Inside, there are mosaics from most churches in the world, many works depict battles in Russian history, and especially World War II.
Military Church
During Vladimir Putin's two decades at the head of Russia, the Soviet victory in the Great Patriotic War, as the Second World War is also called, gradually became the main building block of the new Russian national identity. Victory in war now has its own religious shrine, and when future historians look back on the Putin era, they may decide that this cathedral is the defining building.
St. James Chapel, Howe Military Academy, Worship Service 1960s
The ceiling displays Soviet war medals in stained glass, and mosaics depict various key battles. Symbolic numbers are encoded in the dimensions - the diameter of the main dome, for example, is 19.45 meters. Trophy guns and tanks captured from the Wehrmacht were melted down and used to make the cathedral's metal floor.
"Think of that when you enter the cathedral." As you go through the floors, you symbolically strike a blow at the fascist enemy,” a tour guide told a group of elderly women wearing headscarves as they entered the building earlier this month.
The cathedral was the brainchild of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and was originally opened in May for the 75th anniversary of the victory over the Nazis. Finally, due to the coronavirus epidemic, the ceremonial opening was postponed to June. Shoigu, Putin and Patriarch Kirill of Moscow attended the opening on June 22, the anniversary of the Nazi attack on the Soviet Union in 1941.
"Only a God-loving people can build such a great cathedral," said Bishop Stephan Klin, who heads the military department of the Russian Orthodox Church and regularly holds services at the cathedral, where he is the plenipotentiary patriarch.
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The 59-year-old bishop, who was an officer in the Soviet and Russian anti-missile forces before becoming a priest, defended the use of Soviet symbols, saying the cathedral "represents every era of our state, Holy Russia." it would be wrong to leave out World War II, given how many Soviet soldiers were religious.
However, the images proved controversial. "Many priests who were young in the 1970s and 1980s and personally encountered the repressive Soviet machine directed against the Church are in a state of shock and cannot overcome it," said religious scholar Szerhij Chapnin. Moscow. "This is actually not an Orthodox cathedral, but the cathedral of our new post-Soviet civil religion," he added.
A few minor changes have been made since the outcry earlier this year, including the removal of a mosaic of Putin and Soygut depicting the Kremlin's 2014 seizure of Crimea.
"It was the wish of our president, who was so humble that he thought it was inappropriate to have him depicted in the mosaic," Stephan said. The mosaic depicting the events in Crimea is no longer Putin, but the infamous "green men" - Russian special forces without insignia leading the annexation of the peninsula, whose presence in Crimea was initially denied by the Kremlin.
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In a large mosaic dedicated to the post-World War II Soviet and Russian armies, two angels look down on a group of soldiers with modern weapons, and there is a list of memorable conflicts ending with the 2008 "forcing peace." Return of Crimea' in 2014 and the 'fight against international terrorism' in Syria. There is room for future conflicts.
The panel lists Russia's two wars in Chechnya, as well as the Soviet military interventions aimed at suppressing the Hungarian revolution of 1956 and the Prague Spring of 1968, as well as the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Asked if the church really wants to assume these interventions are sacred, Stephan said it's wrong to focus on specific conflicts.
"We are not talking about the geopolitical background of a particular moment, but about the fact that our armed forces received holy help from above, from God and the heavenly saints. That's what the cathedral is about."
In September, a Russian military band marches in front of the cathedral during the Military Music Festival. Photo: Mykhailo Svetlov/Getty Images
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The cathedral is located in Patriot Park, the "military Disneyland" that Putin opened five years ago. Three years ago, Shoigu was among 5,000 spectators watching a reenactment of the 1945 storming of the Reichstag in the park, complete with tanks, airplanes and a giant model of the Berlin parliament.
With the opening of the cathedral, there were even more opportunities for family recreation. About 20,000 visitors visited the cathedral each day last weekend, and even on Tuesday afternoon this week, hundreds of people were inside the cathedral, many on tours.
In September, dancers and musicians perform in the air at a military music festival. Photo: Mykhailo Svetlov/Getty Images
Around the perimeter of the cathedral, in the shape of a mile-long horseshoe, there is a wonderful interactive museum "1418 steps to victory" - a step for each day of the Soviet war - which opened at the same time as the cathedral. In most of the rooms, in the style of computer games, there are replays from wartime on huge screens, and in some rooms there are also temperature and "smell" elements. Children can make a model Nazi soldier, and the gift shop sells puzzles, gift mugs and toy rocket launchers.
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But while Russia has many war museums, the cathedral is something entirely new, making clear the quasi-religious underpinnings of how the war is remembered in Russia.
Dmytro, a 28-year-old altar boy who works at the cathedral, claimed that the military and religious images on his mosaics are not a stark combination, but actually fit together perfectly: “In the war, our soldiers tortured themselves so much. to be free and independent. Only Russians can sacrifice themselves to save humanity as Jesus did." Lena Surzhko Harned does not work for, consult with, own shares in, receive funding for, or disclose any relevant information to any company or organization that would benefit from this article. information with a company or organization that would benefit from this article.their affiliation beyond their scientific name.
ROC Patriarch Kirill (center) and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu (right) at the consecration of the Cathedral of the Russian Armed Forces near Moscow on June 14, 2020. ROC press service Oleg Varov via AP
May 9, 2022 will be the 77th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany. Traditionally, Victory Day is a day to honor veterans, and a large-scale parade is held in Moscow to demonstrate the country's military prowess.
Cannon. Black Old Cannon On Hill. Military Gun. Protecting The City. Church. Winter Stock Photo
During the presidency of Vladimir Putin, May 9 became one of the most recognized holidays in Russia. Press Secretary Dmitro Peskov called it "the holiest holiday of our country". It was and remains the holiest holiday for all Russians," writes the Defense Blog.
Many scholars have examined how World War II became a cornerstone of Russian nationalism under Putin. This is also reflected in the Russian rhetoric regarding the war in Ukraine. Russian leaders portrayed the invasion as a fight against "neo-Nazis" and a holy war.
The confluence of World War II, religion, and Russian nationalism is embodied in one unusual building: the Main Church of the Russian Armed Forces on the outskirts of Moscow. The massive khaki cathedral in the military theme park was consecrated in June 2020 and celebrates Russia's power. The grand opening was supposed to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany, but was postponed due to the epidemic.
Designed by Russia's defense minister after the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, the cathedral embodies the powerful ideology that Putin advocates with the support of the Russian Orthodox Church.
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As a scholar of nationalism, I see this militant religious nationalism as a key element of Putin's motivation to attack Ukraine, my homeland. This largely explains Moscow's attitude towards the collective "West" and the post-Cold War world order.
The bell tower of the church of the armed forces is 75 meters high, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. Its dome is 19.45 meters (64 feet) in diameter, marking the year of victory: 1945. The smaller dome is 14.18 meters (47 feet), which corresponds to 1,418 days of war. Trophy weapons are melted into the floor so that
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