Russia and Ukraine in conflict; Vladimir Putin is seen as the defender of the Russian Orthodox Church
Bust of Vladimir Putin (DIE WELT) and Julius Caesar (Wikipedia)
The situation between Russia and Ukraine is now even tenser as naval matters are now involved:
November 26, 2018
Russian warships seized three Ukrainian naval vessels on Sunday in a narrow waterway that provides access from the Black Sea to the much smaller Sea of Azov near Crimea, ramping up already bitter tensions between the two countries.
On Sunday, Russia dispatched warplanes to patrol the area after the Ukrainian navy tried to send the ships through the Kerch Strait, a waterway with strategic significance for both countries that passes under a newly built Russian bridge.
In May, President Vladimir Putin personally opened the bridge over the Kerch Strait, connecting the Crimea peninsula — which Moscow seized in 2014 — to Russia’s mainland.
The 12-mile-long span has been touted by Russia as a claim to Crimea. Ukraine, along with nearly every other country in the world, refuses to recognize that claim.
Russian vessels rammed one of the Ukrainian boats and opened fire on the other two before seizing all three, along with their crews. Ukrainian officials have said six of its sailors were injured; Russia has said three. The boats were towed to a nearby port. https://www.npr.org/2018/11/26/670746252/ukraine-considers-martial-law-after-russia-seizes-its-ships-near-crimea
Tensions remain between Ukraine and Russia.
Recently there has also been a schism between the Orthodox of Constantinople and the Russian Orthodox Church (watch Orthodox Schisms: What Will Happen?).
Political actions led this to happen:
The Church of Russia announced this week that it was breaking ties with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, which has primacy in Orthodoxy and which has decided to give autonomy to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. This decision stems directly from Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and its support for separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine, although Ukrainians had long been unhappy about their church remaining subordinate to Russia’s, as it had been since 1686. This year, their president, Parliament and religious leaders petitioned the leader of the Constantinople Patriarchate, Bartholomew, to grant their church independence — or autocephaly, as it is known in the church. …
The Church of Greece could also be shaken, as a number of Greek clergymen may support Moscow against Bartholomew. Russian claims to leadership of the Orthodox Christians have appealed to many since Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 and the patriarchs became subordinate to Muslim sultans. Furthermore, the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s dialogue with other faiths, including the Roman Catholic Church, is deeply unpopular with hard-line Orthodox priests and monks.
Many monks in northern Greece’s self-governing monastic community of Mount Athos — regarded as the jewel in the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s crown — have pro-Russian tendencies. President Vladimir Putin has emphasized his nation’s interest in Athos, and has visited it twice. One of Athos’s 20 monasteries, Agios Panteleimon, is home to some 60 Ukrainian and Russian monks, with a Russian abbot. …
Constantinople was established by the Emperor Constantine in 330 and, as the “New Rome,” it came just after Rome in seniority. The schism in 1054 left Constantinople the primary church in the East. It is these rights of primacy that the Ecumenical Patriarchate is determined to defend, despite its very reduced circumstances following the city’s fall to the Ottomans and the withering of its own flock in Turkey.
Russia wants to project its leadership of the Orthodox world as the “Third Rome,” a role it took upon itself after breaking away from Constantinople in 1448, when its leadership disagreed with efforts to unite East and West Christendom. After 1453, many Orthodox, including the Greeks, looked to Russia for salvation from the Turks. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/19/opinion/konstandaras-orthodox-church-russia-ukraine.html
Vladimir Putin has been involved in matters supporting the Russian Orthodox Church.
Notice something reported a few years ago:
November 2, 2015
Putin’s desire to reassert Russia’s influence in the Middle East appears to be bearing fruit already. The embarrassing contradictions to USA claims will strike a blow to the U.S. propaganda machine, who have tried desperately to downplay Russia’s ever-increasing important role in defeating ISIS in the Middle East. The vacuum being left behind by Washington is being filled by Moscow. The negotiations in the Austrian capital failed to find an agreement on the fate of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, Egyptian Streets reported. Russian Federation may well achieve its core military objectives in Syria – while the United States can not. …
Putin is not planning on sending Russian ground forces into action. Persecution is widespread; the low-end estimate is that one Christian is killed for religious motives every hour of every day. The Russian intervention has put the Syrian army on the offensive for the first time in months, after a series of defeats, particularly in Idlib and Palmyra. Bills Insider http://billsinsider.com/2015/11/02/4589-james-clapper-putin-winging-this-in-syria/
November 1, 2015
Back in February 2012, Vladimir Putin vowed to the Russian Orthodox Church that the protection of persecuted Christians around the world would be a cornerstone of his foreign policy. After he announced plans last month for anti-ISIS strikes, a spokesman for the Church declared it a “holy fight”.
A growing swath of the Christian minority in the Middle East, who are among the primary targets of ISIS, can’t help but respond with gratitude. Last year, the Global Post website quoted a Syrian Christian woman as summing up the sentiment: “Thank God for Russia!”
Traditionally, there was an informal division of labor among the great powers in terms of providing cover for the Christian communities of the Middle East. Russia billed itself as the patron of the Orthodox, France for the Catholics, and Great Britain for the Protestants.
Today, it’s increasingly common among the Christians of the Middle East, and their sympathizers around the world, to say that only Russia seems to be taking its responsibility seriously.
Journalist Melik Kaylan summed up the situation aptly in a May essay for Forbes.
“Putin and Assad have maneuvered to become the explicit protectors of Eastern Christianity,” he wrote. “As the U.S. and Europe are too tangled up in ideological confusion and contradictory goals to step into the breach, we furnish Moscow with easy triumphs in this area as in so many others.”
Allowing Putin to package himself as the best friend of Christians under fire has clear strategic consequences that are hardly limited to the Middle East.
There are 2.3 billion Christians in the world today, which is one-third of the entire global population. Two-thirds of those Christians live outside the West, a share that’s expected to reach three-quarters by mid-century. …
But let’s be clear: Vladimir Putin may be many things, but a 21st-century version of Constantine or Charlemagne he’s not. There’s every reason to suspect his pledge to defend Christians is based far more on Russia’s perceived interests, and his own, than a sincere desire to foster the faith. http://www.cruxnow.com/church/2015/11/01/the-risks-of-letting-putin-posture-as-charlemagne-in-syria/
October 31, 2015
Many American Christians and conservatives see Putin defending the traditional family and marriage, taking a stand against homosexuality. It does seem as if he is socially conservative or traditional — but is this based on his Christian faith or is it simply a holdover from the earlier times in Russia and the old Soviet Union? If you are old enough to remember the Cold War days, the Soviet regime was puritanical in the extreme. …
Is Putin the hope of Christianity or of the West? Is Russia the hope for the future? I don’t know; I think some Americans, particularly hungry for leadership or for something or someone to idealize, are focusing on Russia and on Putin. It’s sad, because our own country should be producing good leaders and good examples to inspire us — but where are they when we so sorely need them? http://vanishingamericanii.blogspot.com/2015/10/putin-defender-of-faith.html
Let me state that Vladimir Putin has been the most powerful political leader in the world to take a stand against parts of the homosexual agenda, vulgarity (see Russia’s Vladimir Putin takes a stand against vulgar language), and some other sins that plague Western society.
He also sent the Russian military into Syria.
I will also state that Vladimir Putin is NOT less religious than Charlemagne as far as I can tell from historical accounts. Charlemagne was considered the first ‘Holy Roman Emperor.’
I will also add that he seems to be more sincere about his Russian Orthodox faith than former US President Barack Obama was about his claimed ‘Christian’ faith. Now, I am not Russian Orthodox nor endorsing carnal warfare, but Vladimir Putin has certainly acted as a defender of that faith more than most Western political leaders have for their professed Christ-claimed faiths.
That being said, hopefully Russia and Ukraine can work out their differences peacefully.
Billy Graham’s son Franklin Graham made some comments some time ago related to Vladimir Putin:
July 12, 2017
In 2014, Graham published an opinion piece about the Russian president’s decision to sign a law barring the distribution of “propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations” to children. The law, which was widely perceived to be homophobic, stirred controversy ahead of the 2014 Olympic games in Sochi. But Graham defended it anyway, saying America’s embrace of LGBTQ rights amounts to “secularism” that “is as godless as communism.”
“In my opinion, Putin is right on these issues,” Graham wrote. “Obviously, he may be wrong about many things, but he has taken a stand to protect his nation’s children from the damaging effects of any gay and lesbian agenda.”
He also lauded Putin’s pledge to protect Christians in Syria, noting how it was “one justification for his support of the Assad regime in Syria.”
“It’s obvious that President Obama and his administration are pushing the gay-lesbian agenda in America today and have sold themselves completely to that which is contrary to God’s teaching,” Graham wrote. “In my opinion, Putin is right on these issues. Obviously, he may be wrong about many things, but he has taken a stand to protect his nation’s children from the damaging effects of any gay and lesbian agenda.”
“Isn’t it sad, though, that America’s own morality has fallen so far that on this issue — protecting children from any homosexual agenda or propaganda — Russia’s standard is higher than our own?” he added.
“Pray for the President of Russia, [who] defends traditional Christianity,” Graham reportedly said. …
Pat Buchanan — another leader of the Religious Right — published his own piece about Russia potentially replacing the U.S. as a bastion of “Christian values,” asking “Whose side is God on now?” …
Graham still invited a delegation from the ROC to the 2017 event, and it was moved to D.C. at the suggestion of ROC external relations head Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev of Moscow — the same man who helped Graham come up with the idea for the conference in the first place. https://thinkprogress.org/religious-right-russia-3e80e2ea2e4a/
Notice also something else from the past:
Well, it is true, is it not, that President Vladimir Putin stands virtually alone among national leaders of the major powers in publicly proclaiming his Christian identity, and in condemning homosexual “marriage” — while leaders of the so-called Christian West have adopted the politically correct line that these unnatural unions are now sacrosanct? And is it not true that Putin and the Russian government have been spending hundreds of millions of dollars to rebuild hundreds of Russian Orthodox churches destroyed during the militant atheism of the Soviet era? Has he not restored sacred holidays of the Julian Christian calendar? Did he not sign a national law last year outlawing advertisements for abortion? To which we must answer: yes, yes, yes, yes; true, true, true, true.
Additional “facts” can be cited to paint an even more striking image of Putin as pious champion of Christianity: crossing himself and kissing the icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary that he presented to Pope Francis during his 2013 visit to the Vatican; numerous appearances with (and blessings and endorsements from) Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church and other Christian church leaders; signing into law a “ban on the propaganda of homosexuality and pedophilia” directed at children, while President Obama promotes the LBGT agenda at every level and every opportunity; speaking out against the persecution and murder of Christians by Islamic jihadists in Syria and Iraq. …
In his current ruse as Defender of the Faith, Putin is not only channeling Stalin, but also Lenin, that original Bolshevik persecutor of the church. Lenin was the supreme pragmatist, happily willing to use “whatever works,” and constantly at odds with rigid communist “purists” who failed to grasp the necessity of operational flexibility in the pursuit of the final objective. http://www.thenewamerican.com/world-news/europe/item/19162-putin-defender-of-christian-faith-and-morality
While many in the West do not trust him, Vladimir Putin has been seen as the military hope for many non-Muslims in Syria.
Of course, the Bible teaches that the Gospel of the Kingdom of God should be the hope for Christians, but for most people in the world, they place their hope in the military.
As the photos at the beginning of this post show, Russian President Vladimir Putin has been portrayed as a modern Julius Caesar. Julius Caesar conquered lands and it was basically because of him that Rome became an empire. Julius Caesar was also considered the defender of his faith as well.
Vladimir Putin has long wanted to be the ruler of his version of the Russian side of the ‘Holy Roman Empire’ (Putin claimed to be re-establishing ‘Third Holy Roman Empire,’ but that is happening elsewhere). Notice also:
As Putin slowly expands the borders of the Russian Federation and recovers ancient territory of imperial Russia, he believes he is expanding the Third Holy Roman Empire. http://www.westernjournalism.com/onward-christian-russian-soldiers-putin-believes-resurrecting-third-holy-roman-empire/#Cp5aggpzGoQqYEwJ.99While some in the West are looking askance at Russia’s support of Assad’s regime in Syria, seeing only the realpolitik of Russian expansionism, others who are concerned about the eradication of Syria’s ancient Christian community tend to see as legitimate Putin’s concern that the Christian minority in that country will be persecuted if Assad is toppled. The beleaguered Christians in Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East doubtless see the very recent Russian bombing of ISIS headquarters as a gift from God, and Putin as their potential deliverer from martyrdom.
Is there more to Putin’s intervention in Syria than the desire to save Christians?
Of course. Even Putin admits that, characterizing his policies as having a heavy dose of “common sense” plus faith. Nor should anyone discount his immersion in the deadly and murky politics of the Kremlin.
But again, Putin’s historic view is long. For him, Moscow is the second seat of Eastern Orthodoxy, the first having been Byzantium under the rule of Emperor Justinian. He will not have forgotten that the Byzantine Empire, which was profoundly informed by Christianity, at one time straddled two continents, Europe and Asia. He will also will not have forgotten that the Syrian Church, marked for extinction by ISIS, has been led by the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch – Antioch, the apostle Paul’s home base for his missionary journeys and the first place disciples of Christ were called Christians. In other words, Putin’s view, shaped by Eastern Orthodoxy, is Eurasian, not just Russian. Putin sees a geographic component to Christian Orthodoxy that includes the Middle East. …
Putin, likewise, has spoken of the need for religious revival and the valuable role that the Orthodox Church plays. Says Putin: ‘The Russian Orthodox Church plays an enormous formative role in preserving our rich historical and cultural heritage and in reviving eternal moral values. It works tirelessly to bring unity, to strengthen family ties, and to educate the younger generation in the spirit of patriotism.’
Has anyone yet heard Barak Obama speak in similar terms about the Christian church in America? Has anyone noted him speaking about “preserving our rich historical and cultural heritage and reviving eternal moral values?” To ask the questions is to answer them. http://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2015/10/who_will_save_middle_east_christians_obama_or_putin.html#ixzz3qLWJGjYK
Vladimir Putin maintains a close working relationship with the Russian Orthodox Church.
Perhaps it should be mentioned that Vladimir Putin’s Eurasian Union officially began on January 1, 2015. A few nations are in it, and several others have expressed interest in it.
Vladimir Putin wants his version of the ‘Holy Roman Empire’ and is working on it. And Bible prophecy shows that Russia will lead a massive empire in the time of the end (Jeremiah 50:9,11,41-43; Isaiah 13:1, 17-19). Russia is also developing more powerful weapons (see Will Russia’s ‘Satan 2’ destroy Texas or France?).
The Bible also shows that the USA and its closest allies will fall (cf. Daniel 11:39).
That being said, will Russia be the predominant force that will destroy the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand?
No, Bible prophecy indicates that force will be led by a European power (Daniel 11:39), though Asian forces will likely be involved (especially related to Australia and New Zealand). It is highly likely that the next ‘Caesar’ will be German (see also Germany in Biblical and Catholic Prophecy).
But that does not mean that Russia will not have a place as a military power–it will–and it will help defeat the power in Europe that will arise and one day takeover the world (Jeremiah 50:9,11,41-43; Isaiah 13:1, 17-19; cf. Daniel 11:44).
For a time, Russia will likely have a treaty with Europe (cf. Ezekiel 27:13-14)–but this will not last (cf. Daniel 11:44). Ultimately a Russian-influenced coalition will destroy much of Europe (Jeremiah 50 & 51). However, that will not happen until towards the end of the ‘Day of the Lord.’ An event well over seven years in the future from now (see When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? The ‘Day of the Lord’?).
But Vladimir Putin is trying to prepare Russia for that now. He believes that he is standing for traditional Russian Orthodox values and this, plus his determination, he believes is what he feels his country, and others as well, need.
As far as Russia and Ukraine go, check out the article: Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future.
Some items of possibly related interest may include:
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy and a video sermonette available: Ukraine in Prophecy?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Ezekiel 38: For Russia & Iran in Our Day? Is Ezekiel 38 about to be fulfilled? A related video is available titled Ezekiel 38: For Russia, Ukraine, & Iran Now?
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
Persecutions by Church and State This article documents some that have occurred against those associated with the COGs and some prophesied to occur. Will those with the cross be the persecutors or the persecuted–this article has the shocking answer. There is also a YouTube video sermon you can watch: The Coming Persecution of the Church. Here is information in the Spanish language: Persecuciones de la Iglesia y el Estado.
Some Similarities and Differences Between the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Continuing Church of God Both groups claim to be the original church, but both groups have differing ways to claim it. Both groups have some amazing similarities and some major differences. Do you know what they are?
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to three related sermons: The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
The Bible Condemns Homosexuality “Same-sex marriage” for “gays” and lesbians is becoming more acceptable to many. What does the Bible teach about homosexuality? Can homosexuals change? A related video sermon is titled: What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.
Germany’s Assyrian Roots Throughout History Are the Germanic peoples descended from Asshur of the Bible? Have there been real Christians in Germanic history? What about the “Holy Roman Empire”? There is also a You-Tube video sermon on this titled Germany’s Biblical Origins.
Germany in Biblical and Catholic Prophecy Does Assyria in the Bible equate to an end time power inhabiting the area of the old Roman Empire? What does prophecy say Germany will do and what does it say will happen to most of the German people? Here is a link to a video Is the USA Pushing Germany to Start WWIII?
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be Barack Obama and the State of the Apocalypse.
Will the Anglo-Saxon Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?
WTO/TTIP and the Babylonian Beast Will international trade agreements like WTO/TTIP/CETA lead to the fulfillment of end time prophecies concerning the Babylonian Beast power that the Book of Revelation warns against? What does the Bible teach? A related video would be WTO Trade Deal and the Rise of the European Beast Power.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2019, 2020, or 2021? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede comenzar la Gran Tribulación en 2018 o 2019? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon videos: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives and Can the Great Tribulation begin before 2020? A shorter video is: Can the Great Tribulation begin in 2018?
The Times of the Gentiles Has there been more than one time of the Gentiles? Are we in it now or in the time of Anglo-America? What will the final time of the Gentiles be like? A related sermon is available and is titled: The Times of the Gentiles.
The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27 This prophecy could give up to 3 1/2 years advance notice of the coming Great Tribulation. Will most ignore or misunderstand its fulfillment? Here is a link to a related sermon video Daniel 9:27 and the Start of the Great Tribulation.
World War III: Steps in Progress Are there surprising actions going on now that are leading to WWIII? Might a nuclear attack be expected? Does the Bible promise protection to all or only some Christians? How can you be part of those that will be protected? A related video would be Is World War III About to Begin? Can You Escape?
 |
Tweet |
|