Christian Times: Russia’s recent air strikes against ISIS in Syria have been praised as a “holy battle” by the Russian Orthodox Church.
Russia launched its second day of air strikes in Syria today, while western leaders struggled to know how to react to Putin’s insistence that President Bashar al-Assad must remain in power.
But the head of the the Orthodox Church’s public affairs department has reacted positively to the news.
“The fight with terrorism is a holy battle and today our country is perhaps the most active force in the world fighting it,” said Vsevolod Chaplin on Interfax news agency.
“Russia took a responsible decision to use military forces to protect the Syrian people from the woes brought on by the tyranny of terrorists,” said an official statement from the Church’s Patriarch Kirill.
The Patriarch, who often speaks out on political issues in support of the Kremlin, went on to say that armed intervention was necessary because “the political process has not led to any noticeable improvement in the lives of innocent people, and they need military protection.”
Categories: Belief, Bible, Church, Europe and Australia, Russia