Religious Appeasement in the Russian Armed Forces
- Joss Millward
- Mar 8, 2023
- 3 min read
Updated: Mar 18, 2024
Also published in the University Politics Society Journal of Political Affairs Volume 2
A new pinnacle of the intertwined relationship between two of the most prominent aspects of Russian identity has been reached as Russia seeks to maintain popular support for its international endeavours. On September 25th, Patriarch Krill of the Russian Orthodox church declared "sacrifice in the course of carrying out your military duty washes away all sins.", this statement comes at a pivotal point in the prolonged invasion of Ukraine by Russia that began earlier in 2022.
To gauge the significance of this declaration its worth diving into the relationship and history that the Russian armed forces and the Russian Orthodox church share. The share of the Russian population Identifying as Orthodox has risen significantly in the last few decades with around 31% in 1991 to around 72% in 2008, with this naturally came an increase in Orthodox practise of those in the Russian military, rising from 14% in 1990 to around 68% in 2006. Following the fall of the Soviet Union, the trends in religious practise appear to have not gone unnoticed by the state, for which there is ample evidence of their desire to work with and possible capitalise off of this zeitgeist.
“The Lord protect our country from enemies, both external and internal. That the Lord unite our people with the strength of faith and love for the Fatherland” ~ Patriarch Kirill
Besides the history of Russian state-religious connections displayed in the likes of the Tsarist empire and beyond, Putin maintains his own faith in the Orthodox church and has spent the prior two decades restoring damage inflicted on the integrity of the Orthodox church under communism. Given the historic symbiotic relationship of religious identity and Russian national identity, it is clear that the Russian state would be gravely mistaken to not maintain good relations with the Russian Orthodox church. Beyond even analysis of whether pressure was applied on Patriarch Kirill to make this announcement it is significant on its own that the views of the Church on the war in Ukraine, mirror and compliment those views of the state, and will certainly be massively impactful on moral of those fighting and also Russian public sentiment towards the conflict which is crucial to maintain as positive given the mounting external international pressures on all sides.
The further binding of the state, military and faith comes to a pinnacle in the recent construction of the Main Cathedral of the Russian Armed Forces in this opulent display of the supposed role Russian soldiers play in maintaining the Orthodox faith is a signal to Russians a reassurance of this bond for years to come.
A fascinating development in recent years that may come to cause issue with the military-Orthodox ties is the growth of Islam in Russia as a nation and within its armed forces, with 9% of the Russian military identifying as Muslim in 2019. This trend indicates a necessity for Russia to accommodate such difference in Ideology. Arguably the accommodations have not yet materialised given the lack of Imam chaplains, sitting at 2 as of today compared to the 147 Orthodox chaplains in the Russian army. Furthermore there is a complete lack of Halal food provision in the military and many take issue with the swearing of the military oath obstructing their own religious duties.
Looking to the future then Russia crucially must take into account and balance its accommodations for the rising tide of both Islam and Orthodoxy in its military institutions. The two Chechen wars of the 90’s and 00’s reaffirm the necessity of the Russian government maintaining unifying ties with its Muslim population. Beyond the supporting words of the patriarchs they need support of the Imams as Russia becomes increasingly lonely in the world stage.
Sources:
Comments