The Russian Orthodox Church TV channel broadcasts war propaganda

• Paul Alexander

  foreign publisher

Priest and TV presenter wear bulletproof vests and army helmets in the war-torn village of Volnovacha in Donbas. I’m for the program War and the Bible went to occupied territory in Ukraine with a television crew to talk about “God’s intentions” with this war.

“Is God able to test faith and call war?” asks the presenter with a bible in hand. As explosions sound in the background, the priest replies: “If God’s creatures show him no love, no longer have faith and neglect him, he will take measures and wipe out entire nations from the face of the earth.”

They also talk about the role of leaders in times of war. “Every nation, every country, every city has an angel of protection, sent by God.”

Putin’s name is not mentioned. But the images say enough: we see the Russian president walking through the long corridors and huge halls of the Kremlin. It’s not the first time he’s been portrayed as the nation’s guardian angel.

Trailer of the program War and the Bible:

Religious TV channel SPAS – or redemption – earns the month’s highest-profile propaganda trophy with this episode, writes independent Russian media SOTA in a Telegram message.

SPAS is the main channel of the Russian Orthodox Church. The channel is part of the national channel package and can count on a loyal audience of Russian Orthodox viewers. But with the documentary series War and the Bible the channel is suddenly the center of attention.

“In recent years, SPAS has taken form and content from state propaganda channels and mixed them with a thick religious sauce,” journalist and theologian Anna says by phone from Moscow. For security reasons, she doesn’t want to be called by last name.

“In this way, SPAS undoubtedly seeks to reach a wider audience outside the Orthodox circle. In loud talk shows, but also in more contemplative programs and documentaries, they have aligned themselves with their message more and more strong on the transmitter.

Anna has written an analysis of the propaganda on various Russian Orthodox channels for the SOTA website. Where other religious channels try to convey a reassuring and comforting message, SPAS is resolutely militaristic.

The novelty is the angry tone of the channel. For example, the priest and the television host speak of “God’s command to the Jewish people in the Old Testament to cleanse the earth of ungodly nations.” This is followed by the episode’s most notable quote. “An interesting way to test faith,” says the TV presenter. “Go into battle and destroy the people.”

On social media, this statement is widely seen as an attempt to justify the genocide against the Ukrainian people. For example, journalist Sergey Tsjapnin, an expert on the Russian Orthodox Church, wrote on his Facebook page: “Hiding behind the Bible and justifying genocide is nothing more than cynicism.”

“I don’t know if they are acting on behalf of the Moscow Patriarchate or if they think they are trying to attract an audience,” Anna says. “In any case, it shows that this kind of language is common in Russia today.”

Because this is what Anna finds so disturbing: No one in Russia is surprised anymore when a religious channel shamelessly preaches war. “Of course there are priests who do not adhere to this message and distance themselves from the rhetoric of war. But a large and also highly educated part of the population thinks: it’s war, you have to support your country”.

The SPAS telegram channel also shows images of Russian soldiers with icons. We see close-up how moisture flows from the icon onto the hands of a soldier. “The juice of myrrh, a marvel of God”, so they say. The images are intended to underline “the divine mission of the Russian army”.

Again the message is clear: Russia is waging a ‘holy war’. The enemy is the West, which denies religion and traditional values ​​and recognizes all kinds of gender variation, it is said over and over again.

“He looks pious and noble in terms of the priest and the emcee,” writes one expert on Facebook. “They pretend to bear witness to spirituality and high moral values. But in reality they only serve power. It is nothing more than a public denial of Christ.”