Epigraph: There should be no compulsion in religion. Surely, right has become distinct from wrong; so whosoever refuses to be led by those who transgress, and believes in Allah, has surely grasped a strong handle which knows no breaking. And Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. (Al Quran 2:257)
Patriarch Kirill of Russia and President Putin
Dated: Nov, 2013
Russia Today: The head of the Russian Orthodox Church has rejected allegations of a possible official union between his institution and the state, adding that only an independent Church can preach successfully.
“The Church is protecting its own freedom because it is sure that only its independence gives her an opportunity to be a fully-fledged spiritual authority. Any form of merger between the state and the Church is dangerous for God’s cause. A sermon sounds loud and convincing only when it is delivered by a free church,” Patriarch Kirill said in an interview with the Smolenskiye Novosti newspaper.
The patriarch reminded that the internal regulations of the Russian Orthodox Church strictly forbid the clergy from assuming any powers among secular authorities. The state, in turn, has no direct leverage to influence the church’s policies, he added.
Russia’s top cleric noted that the repressions against the Church that took place in Soviet Russia in the first half of the 20th century were largely a result of “the enslavement of the church by the state,” possibly hinting at the exclusive part the Russian Orthodox Church played during in the Russian Empire.
On the other hand, he said that the country was still experiencing the consequences of adopting atheism as its official ideology in Soviet times.
Additional Reading
True Khilafat compatible with Democracy: Al Islam eGazette
Our Collection about Separation of Mosque-Church and State
Categories: Europe and Australia, Russia, Separation of Church and State