Russian feminist punk band mocks church

[fschmidt]

This is big news in Russia and in the Orthodox Church. I wrote an article on the subject, hope you like it.

http://www.mikraite.org/p***y-Riot-tp5000888.html

[Think Different]

As an Orthodox Christian (convert to it), I appreciate your well-thought-out and concise thinking on this subject. I agree with you on all points, however in the West, Orthodox Christianity is still very much in the minority and there just aren't enough numbers to sustain much of an outcry against the Liberals who wish to destroy the Orthodox Church.

In my opinion Russian Orthodoxy is still the staunchest defender of the Christian faith left. There is a clear reason why many Orthodox crosses in Russia are mounted on top of a crescent moon, for example: they absolutely want to rub it in the Muslims' faces. The Russian have serious balls and are not cowed (yet) by the Western social cancer called Liberalism. Yes, the Catholic and Anglican/Episcopalian churches (for starters) are liberalized although I do have to give credit to the current pope for trying to create alliances with Russian Orthodoxy to jointly re-Christianize Europe from the clutches of Liberalism. While Orthodoxy is currently growing at a very fast rate in the West due to conversions, I'm not sure that it is fast enough to fight back the anti-Christian liberal tide. I once heard a great phrase: "think of the things that you'd be willing to die for. Those are the things you should be living for." If one's faith is seriously dear to them, they will defend it with their life and not just compartmentalize it at the end of the work week, as an afterthought.

If you look at Russian history and how the Bolsheviks (fascist liberals) came to power, one sees many parallels with the spiritual and cultural battle that is playing out in Russia right now. 75 of Communism in Russia basically obliterated the ancient Orthodox faith there and it's still trying to get back up on its feet now, 20 years after the fall of the Soviet Union. I view actions such as p***y Riot's as "dry runs", testing the mettle of the Russian people, the Russian government, and the Orthodox Church. Not unlike how the terrorists do dry runs in the West all the time, testing the system. Let's hope the Russian people can shut this down before we have another century of misery in that great country. In this regard, I personally don't view Putin as a "tyrant" as the Western press portrays him, but rather as a man of character, who sticks to his guns. He's a man's man, in my opinion. Unless you've lived with/around/in Russia or Russians you won't understand what that means to the Russia people. Russian men and women traditionally expect and desire a man to have serious balls and lay down the law, to be a leader. The women will follow and protect them as a result and the men will emulate them, as well. Can you think of ANY political role models like that in the West? Last one I can think of was Reagan (or fascinatingly, Thatcher).

[fschmidt]

In my opinion Russian Orthodoxy is still the staunchest defender of the Christian faith left. There is a clear reason why many Orthodox crosses in Russia are mounted on top of a crescent moon, for example: they absolutely want to rub it in the Muslims' faces. The Russian have serious balls and are not cowed (yet) by the Western social cancer called Liberalism.

Please show me a web page where Orthodox Christians speak out against p***y Riot. I haven't seen one yet. I have only seen MRAs and Muslims speak out against p***y Riot.

While Orthodoxy is currently growing at a very fast rate in the West due to conversions, I'm not sure that it is fast enough to fight back the anti-Christian liberal tide.

Size has nothing to do with it. If anything, a strong desire to grow will compromise a religion. Mennonites and Hasidic Jews stick to their principles and remain small.

I view actions such as p***y Riot's as "dry runs", testing the mettle of the Russian people, the Russian government, and the Orthodox Church.

This is exactly right. And the result? If a man protests against Putin in public without blasphemy, then he risks years in prison:

http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-ant ... 77862.html

But if a woman desecrates a church, then she gets worldwide liberal support and probably won't be punished. So the result of the test is that liberals will focus on destroying Russian Orthodox Christianity and they will meet no resistance.

I will probably leave my Greek Orthodox church and return to Orthodox Judaism. At least Orthodox Jewish men have balls.

[Think Different]

I seriously considered not even wasting my time replying to this since the fact that you feel it necessary to counter my compliment of your article with derisive language. Plus, I know you're only going to spit back bile at me for even daring to reply with some counterpoints.

However, here goes:

1) Google is your friend. There are many within the Russian Orthodox Church who loudly condemn p***y Riot's actions, such as Fr. Vsevolod Chaplin. Quote, "Religious and bureaucratic tongues have become blurred. Vsevolod Chaplin, a spokesman for the church, said that p***y Riot’s unsanctioned performance in the cathedral is “a sin that will be punished in this life and the nextâ€￾. The official text of the indictment from the prosecutor’s office speaks of the trio’s “blasphemous actsâ€￾ that inflicted “weighty suffering on those persons who find their spiritual home in the service of Orthodox idealsâ€￾. Do some searches and you'll be surprised at what you might find.

2) If, as you imply you have an Orthodox Christian background, you will also know that the Orthodox Church has no "figurehead", like the Pope in Rome, who is over the Roman Catholics. The Orthodox, spread across many national jurisdictions and countries don't speak with a unified voice on such things, since there's is no single person to voice that opinion. Priests and laity speak as individuals instead, thereby not garnering much press as a result.

3) You seem much more interested in bashing and hating those that might insult you, rather than forgiving them. Forgiveness of your enemy is also a Christian trait and not one readily found in Orthodox Judaism, which adheres to "an eye for an eye", as even Jesus noted, admonishing them to "love your enemy". Just because we condemn their actions, doesn't mean we have to hate the people. Love the sinner; hate the sin, remember? Yes, they'll go to jail for civil disobedience (hooliganism, as the Russians call it), but the Church can't put them in prison; they can only speak to their spiritual state. And before you go on and say how tightly interwoven the Church and State are, think about how tightly interwoven the Christian right (evangelicals) are in the US government too, just for example, or Judaism in Israel. The church, synagogue, mosque, etc is supposed to be a positive and moral guide/influence on the State. When it controls the state, such as in most Muslim countries (or Utah), then it becomes a theocracy.

Anyhow, you can blast me back, but I won't read it or reply. I've said my piece, so if you find that your Orthodox Judaism supports your hatred of women and your fellow man so well, go join them. They've already done a fine job of taking over villages in Israel as of late, turning them into practically mirrors of radical Muslim states, including beating women, spitting on and attacking Christian priests, screaming obscenities at the non-ultra Orthodox.

[fschmidt]

Wow, I guess this is another significant difference between Christianity and Judaism. In Judaism, asking questions and debating details aren't considered "derisive language". It is common for Jews to debate points and they never take it personally. While I appreciate your complement of my original post, my main concern right now is to figure out the truth of the situation so that I can decide what to do.

The reason that these women must be punished is as a deterrent, not retribution. If they aren't punished, liberals will overwhelm the church. Hatred isn't the issue though I think the emotion is justified in this case.

The Old Testament "an eye for an eye" concept is misunderstood. See:

http://www.karaiteinsights.com/article/ ... n-eye.html

I quoted Vsevolod Chaplin in my original post but even with Google I can't find an actual web page that supports his position.

I guess this thread is still useful to me, it is helping persuade me to choose Orthodox Judaism.

[C.J.]

http://news.yahoo.com/p***y-riot-says-t ... 35449.html

Haha! Take THAT feminist whores! I agree that the band should be locked up and the key thrown away! They should be locked up for life based on the fact that their music is terrible alone! The desecration of the church should be grounds for execution! Russia is completely in the right to protect their people against this garbage. Bitches should be lucky they got off with a short jail sentence! And Madonna defedning them is hilarious! The satanist should be called harsher words, but moralizing slut pretty much describes her political motives.

[Jester]

This is big news in Russia and in the Orthodox Church. I wrote an article on the subject, hope you like it.

http://www.mikraite.org/p***y-Riot-tp5000888.html

Good blog thread you have there.

Your characterization of this as spiritual rape is spot on. I think it was desecration of the Temple under one of the Greek kings - was it Antiochus Epiphanes? - that touched off the revolt of the Maccabees, and a vicious decade-long civil war. I have always thought that the beauty of Hanukkah (which followed Israel's victory) was really about the reconciliation of a rape victim (the People of Israel) whose body (the Temple) had been desecrated... to her husband (God). The miraculous replenishment of the holy oil for the ceremony of re-consecration does not at first blush to be God's biggest miracle (compared to raising the dead, healing the lame, changing lives...). But it quietly showed God's presence, it showed that connection had not been broken. God supplied what was Man could not, the bond was unblemished.

So yeah, desecration of a church is a big thing.

I don't think Russian law protected the Church. I think that the existence of Russian law protected the p***y Riot perps from the Church - from street justice.

Don't feel like the lone ranger on defending the Church. I made some comments on FB myself, in response to New-Ager friend bashing Russia etc. Got some backtalk, shut them up.