The Russian Orthodox Church Has Told Russians To “keep Their Mouths Shut” About The Government

Disobedience to authority was linked to a violation of the fifth biblical commandment.

Russians must learn to obey their superiors by honoring their parents, stated Archpriest Andrei Tkachev, rector of the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in Khokhly. He linked disobedience to authority to a violation of the fifth biblical commandment, “Honor your father and your mother.” “Whoever has fulfilled it—whoever has it in their heart, in their blood—will not… open their rotten-toothed mouth against any authority figure,” said the priest.

According to Tkachev, Satan “taught” people to curse their superiors—whether “state” or “church” authorities. “Nothing is sacred to them. They slander the authorities… They’re not afraid. They live like demons. They believe that… the top brass are the biggest fools,” he noted. From the archpriest’s perspective, honoring one’s parents could prevent revolutions and riots in Russia, because in that case people would be afraid to “raise a hand against those whom God has placed above” them.

Earlier, the Russian Orthodox Church identified disobedience to the Church and having one’s own opinion as the greatest dangers to Russians. Priest Alexander Sergeev lamented that, having access to the internet, people prefer to independently research various issues and form their own views, rather than following the guidance of the clergy.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, also regularly speaks out on the topic of citizens’ attitudes toward the government. For example, a few months before the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine, he said that Russians should thank God for President Vladimir Putin and “for everything that Russia is doing today.”

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