New Priest-Martyr Nikolai Kotelnikov of Derbent, Dagestan

New Martyr Father Nikolai Kotelnikov of Derbent. A Muslim extremist slit his throat in church. He and his church guard were both murdered. Holy Martyr Fr Nikolai, pray to God for us!

PRIEST KILLED IN TERRORIST ATTACKS ON CHURCHES IN SOUTHERN RUSSIA

Derbent, Republic of Dagestan, Russia, June 24, 2024, OrthoChristian.com

A priest who has been serving the Church since Soviet times received a martyric end in a terrorist attack against churches in Russia’s southern Dagestan Republic yesterday. 

Militants attacked two churches, a synagogue, and a traffic police post in the Dagestani cities of Derbent and Makhachkala, reports RIA-Novosti. 

Early on Sunday, a group of armed men opened fire on a church and synagogue in Derbent, while others attacked another church in Makhachkala. According to preliminary data, one priest, Archpriest Nikolai Kotelnikov, 66, a church guard, and six police officers were killed. Another 12 officers were injured. 

According to the Dagestan branch of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, six militants were killed. 

Fr. Nikolai served as a priest for 40 years, beginning in Soviet times. They slit Fr. Nikolai’s throat at Holy Protection Church in Derbent, then set it on fire. 

Fr. Nikolai is survived by his wife, three children, and grandchildren. 

The terrorists also killed the guard at the Holy Dormition Cathedral in Makhachkala. The guard, named Mikhail, sacrificed his own life, attempting to stop the terrorists. Though he died, he gave the worshipers enough time to barricade themselves safely inside. 

A terrorist attack also took place in Dagestan on Forgiveness Sunday in 2018, in which five women were killed.

Islamic State targets Patriarch Kyrill, Vladimir Putin, in new 'BREAK THE CROSS' campaign

"The new poster against the Russian spiritual and political leaders shows the pair in crosshairs, with the words 'BREAK THE CROSS' in English and 'soon, very soon' in both Arabic and Russian." 

JIHADISTS THREATEN PATRIARCH KIRILL AND PRESIDENT PUTIN IN NEW PROPAGANDA POSTERS

OrthoChristian.com, Feb 26, 2018:

New propaganda posters from the jihadi organization ISIS are taking aim at His Holiness Patriarch Kirill and President Vladimir Putin of Russia in particular, as well as America and London, reports orthodoxia.info with reference to the SITE Intelligence Group.

The new poster against the Russian spiritual and political leaders shows the pair in crosshairs, with the words “BREAK THE CROSS” in English and “soon, very soon” in both Arabic and Russian.

The poster has been released on the eve of the March 18th Russian presidential election, and just after ISIS claimed responsibility for the shooting deaths of five Orthodox women just outside their church in Dagestan last Sunday. The Islamic State has also recently threatened to launch attacks against Russia due to the Kremlin’s support for Assad’s forces in Syria, as it has suffered massive blows in Syrian and Iraqi battlefields recently.

Orthodox Lent begins with New Martyrs killed by Muslim after Forgiveness Vespers in Dagestan

"What was previously reported as an unidentified “gunman” was a jihad murderer, Halilov Khalil Umarovich, who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and then, screaming “Allahu akbar,” went to the church and opened fire." [1]

Imagine exchanging the divine gift of forgiveness with your brothers and sisters in the holy Church, signifying the beginning of Great Lent, and then being swiftly attacked, stabbed and shot at by a Muslim screaming "Allahu akbar." Imagine in that instant realizing you were going to die, and surrendering yourself into the hands of our merciful Lord Jesus Christ, and in that fleeting moment, forgiving even your enemies who are killing you.

This is the instantaneous realization these five women had this past Sunday.

This is happening all around the globe. Every day.

The martyrdom of these five Orthodox Christian women, is a sign of our age, a sign of life today under the sword of Islam, and a sign of the end of the age. As the choir of Christian martyrs under Islam continues to grow, we must be ever more vigilant, watchful, and faithful. We must earnestly and continuously repent and be ready at all times to be found in Christ and in His Holy Church. The enemy is at the very doors.

As the Great Prokeimenon for Great Lent exclaims:

Turn not away Thy Face from Thy child for I am afflicted,
Hear me, speedily draw near unto my soul,
and deliver it...

Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me...

This post collects several reports on this horrific jihad attack in the Russian Republic of Dagestan.

Women killed at Dagestan Church to be buried on Church grounds as having received Martyric deaths,

OrthoChristian.com, 2/20/2018:

Kizlyar, Dagestan, Russia, February 20, 2018

The five women, Vera, Lyudmila, Nadezhda, Irina, and Vera, who were shot and killed outside of the Cathedral of St. George in the city of Kizlyar, in the Russian Dagestan Republic on Sunday will be buried on the territory of the church, the acting head of Dagestan Vladimir Vasiliev said at a meeting with Kizlyar city administration yesterday, reports Interfax-Religion.

“It is very important that the funeral ceremony will be held tomorrow [today] on the grounds of the church,” Vasiliev stated.

Today has been declared a day of mourning in Kizlyar.

According to the republic head, the decision to bury them on church grounds was made by Archbishop Varlaam of Makhachkala and Grozny.

“He said that they received martyric deaths on the territory of the church, and there is permission for them to be buried on the territory of the church,” Vasiliev stated. 

More than Mercenaries: Russians Martyred by Muslims for refusing to deny Christ and embrace Islam

The Quran's commands in action: Islam's fourteen centuries of using the sword to try to force Christians to commit apostasy and deny Jesus Christ continues with the execution of two Russian soldiers.

The Quran explicitly commands Muslims to fight against and terrorize the unbelievers till they embrace Islam or “feel themselves subdued” as is seen in these verses:

Fight against those who believe not in Allah, nor in the Last Day, nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger and those who acknowledge not the religion of truth [i.e. Islam] among the people of the Book [Jews and Christians], until they pay the jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued. (Sura 9:29) 

So, when you meet those who disbelieve, smite at their necks till when you have killed and wounded many of them, then bind a bond firmly on them... Thus you are ordered by Allah to continue in carrying out jihad against the disbelievers till they embrace Islam. (Sura 47:4)

This of course brings to mind the powerful witness of New Martyr Evgeny Rodionov of Chechnya, who, after being captured by Muslims, refused to remove his baptismal cross and deny Christ. He was faithful to the end, and is now widely venerated as a martyr and saint by Orthodox Christians all around the globe. I saw icons of him at a recent visit to a ROCOR parish in Atlanta.

As of now, we know very little about Roman Zabolotny and Grigory Surkanov, except that they refused to deny Jesus Christ, and chose to die as Orthodox Christians. In many lives of the Holy Neo-Martyrs under the Turkish Muslim yoke, we saw sometimes deeply flawed people who came to life in Christ when confronted with the choice of death or denying Him to live as a Muslim. Many were offered riches, comfort and women in addition to being threatened with death, and still confessed Jesus Christ. The reality of one's immanent death helps sharply reveal some depths of the mystery of the soul. 

May Roman's and Grigory's sins be consigned to oblivion, may their memory be eternal, and may they receive the crown of martyrdom for witnessing to their faith with their very lives. May we be inspired by these ordinary, yet valiant and extraordinary believers, who were faithful unto death. 

Still from ISIS video, showing Roman Vasilievich Zabolotny and Grigory Mikhailovich Surkanov

Russian mercenaries captured by ISIS ‘are executed after refusing to reject Christianity and become Muslim' 

by Will Stewart, MailOnline, October 6, 2017 

(thanks to Jihad Watch and Blazing Cat Fur):

Two Russian mercenaries reportedly captured by ISIS jihadists are feared to have been executed because they refused to read out a statement saying they rejected their Christian faith and had become Muslim.

Orthodox Prelate: ‘Europe will turn Muslim’ in 30 Years, Christians will live in secret

Unless the Lord returns first...

It's the demographics, with high Muslim birthrate and immigration rate, versus the much lower birthrate (well below replacement levels) of native Europeans. Russia has been reversing its negative demographic rate from the Soviet era, but still faces an uphill battle.


Orthodox Prelate: ‘Europe Will Turn Muslim’ in 30 Years, Christians Will Live in Secret by Michael W. Chapman, CNS News, May 18, 2017:

Archpriest Dmitri Smirnov,
chairman, Patriarchal Commission on Family Matters

Archpriest Dmitri Smirnov, chairman of the Patriarchal Commission on Family Matters, and the Protection of Motherhood and Childhood in the Russian Orthodox Church, said he believes Christian civilization is nearly dead and that in 30 years Europe will be dominated by Muslims, and Russia will suffer the same fate in about 50 years.

Speaking on Russia’s Soyuz TV on May 5 — translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) — Archpriest Smirnov said, “There is very little time left until the death of the entire Christian civilization. Several decades, perhaps 30 years, well, maybe in Russia it will last 50, no longer.”

“And then,” Christians “will be like peas scattered across European countries,” he said.

Islamic State celebrates St. Petersburg attack: 'A metro to hell for the worshipers of the Cross'

ISIS states, “We ask Allah to bless the operation by the lions of the Caliphate, we ask Allah to kill the Crusaders…a metro to hell for the worshipers of the Cross.”

Robert Spencer at Jihad Watch notes:

"Once again we see that the Islamic State casts its conflict with the nations of the world solely in Islamic terms. It has never done anything else. Yet in examining its motivations and ideology, Western analysts routinely dismiss Islam as a factor."

What will come of this? Let's not forget that unlike craven Western leaders (with the exception of US President Donald Trump, who will no doubt be similarly tested by a major Islamic terrorist attack on US soil), Russian President Vladimir Putin has no qualms about taking swift and decisive action against Islam. Recall that only a few years ago, Putin had Russian security arrest 300 Muslims in a preemptive crackdown on jihadis ahead of the 2014 Olympics, and has routinely rounded up dozens of Muslims at a time in anti-jihad raids over the years.

Related:

• 8 people detained in connection with St. Petersburg Metro bombing – official
• More updates from RT.com

ISIS Celebrates St. Petersburg Metro Blast That Killed 10

by Shira Rubin and Gilad Shiloach, Vox, April 3, 2017:

ISIS supporters are celebrating two explosions on St. Petersburg subways that have killed at least 10 people and injured at least 20, according to Russian media reports.

“We ask Allah to bless the operation by the lions of the Caliphate, we ask Allah to kill the Crusaders,” said an ISIS supporter from the terror group’s al-Minbar online forum. 

Others celebrated by saying that the Monday bombs made for “a metro to hell for the worshipers of the Cross” and claimed that the attacks — which are still under investigation by Russian authorities — were revenge for Russia’s backing of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who is fighting against ISIS and other rebel groups in a six-year-long civil war. Russian airstrikes and shelling in Syria have killed hundreds of people and reduced entire areas to rubble….

The Clash of Civilizations demands U.S. alliance with Russia

"Just as radical Islam’s terrorist atrocities span nations and boundaries, so, too, must our alliances against radical Islam. This is a mushrooming clash of civilizations that must be won before other, lesser battles can be engaged." — Tom Tancredo

This is an obvious policy recommendation, which has been advocated by Rod Dreher and others.

The Clash of Civilizations demands U.S. alliance with Russia
by Tom Tancredo, Breitbart News, December 24, 2016:

One of Donald Trump’s first acts after being sworn in as President of the United States should be to invite Russian President Vladimir Putin to meet with him to discuss a broad, coordinated campaign against ISIS.

Radical Islam has declared war on both, so an alliance to defeat that threat not only makes good sense, it is supported by historical precedent.

Only fools deny that the United States is at war with radical Islam. The Cold War with the Soviet Union ended some 25 years ago with the collapse of that monstrous, evil empire. And yet, some people refuse to recognize the urgency of fighting the real war and the necessity of forming alliances with all of Islam’s declared enemies.

It is amazing how many people have forgotten how we defeated Hitler in World War II. We did not do it alone.

Turkey assigns permanent imam to Hagia Sophia to lead daily prayers...

...Turns clock back to 1453 in second conquest of Constantinople. This is effectively a re-conversion of Hagia Sophia back into a functioning mosque after over 80 years.

"Observers are warning about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s increasingly neo-Ottoman stance..." 

This new move by emboldened Islamic supremacist Erdogan will certainly have an impact on Turkey's relations with Russia, as Russia recently urged Turkey to return Hagia Sophia to the Orthodox Church.

Might this be an unfolding of Elder Paisios' prophecy of a war between Russia and Turkey?

Hagia Sophia gets permanent imam as tensions rise in Aegean
Ekathimerini, October 22, 2016:

Dark clouds over Hagia Sophia...

A few months after a controversial decision by Turkish authorities to allow readings from the Quran to be broadcast from Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, reports on Friday said Turkey had decided to appoint a permanent imam for the venue.

According to the Anadolu state news agency, the country’s religious affairs directorate and the mufti of the Fatih district have agreed to assign a permanent imam who will lead five daily prayers, instead of the current two.

TERRORIST ACT AVERTED AT HOLY TRINITY-ST. SERGIUS LAVRA, RUSSIA

Judging from the nationalities of the owners of the cafés implicated, it is safe to assume there is some Muslim terrorist activity targeting one of the most important Orthodox Christian monasteries in Russia.

TERRORIST ACT AVERTED AT TRINITY-ST. SERGIUS LAVRA – SOURCE IN FSB
Pravoslavie, June 15, 2016:

As learned from a source in the Federal Security Service [FSB], a terrorist act was averted in the largest men’s monastery of the Russian Orthodox Church with several centuries of history—the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra.

According to sources, on June 14 in several cafes in the Pushkin region of Podmoskovye were found homemade explosive devices and schemes and photos of the Lavra.

“Makeshift explosive devices were found in three cafes” says the source. “One of them is located in the western part of the city of Pushkino. It belongs to an Azerbaijani and some Dagestanis. According to our information, weapons were already found in this café a couple of years ago.”

Next to the homemade bomb was material confirming that terrorists had prepared a bomb for the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra.

Investigative activity is currently underway, with no information on the detainees as of yet.


Translated by Jesse Dominick

mk.ru

Is Russia targeting Turkey over Hagia Sophia?

Timing will be crucial as Erdogan’s re-Islamizing Turkey continues to press for a second defeat of Christendom by the symbolic move of turning Hagia Sophia into a mosque. Will pressure from Russia to return the great Cathedral to the Orthodox Church prevent or merely delay what many view as inevitable? Or is there something larger at stake?

Every year on May 29, Turkey celebrates Islam’s defeat of Constantinople and the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire in 1453, and the conversion of the great church, Hagia Sophia, into a mosque soon after. Every year Muslims gather outside Hagia Sophia demanding it be turned back into a mosque, after eighty years of being a secular museum with both Christian Byzantine and Islamic features.

But this year is different, as Turkish authorities are allowing the reading of the Koran in Hagia Sophia:

Turkish national broadcaster TRT Diyanet will broadcast the sahur or Islamic predawn meal along with daily readings from the Koran during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan which began [last] Monday.

Helen Machankova: Neomartyr († March 15, 2013)

This is a more complete account of the life of Saint and New-Martyr Helen the Accountant, whom I posted about last year. 

Let us be inspired in our darkening times of global jihad, Muslim genocide against Christians, and anti-Christian persecution in America and Western Europe by Helen's stirring example as a confessor and martyr for Christ. Helen's story reminds us of the lives of many Neo-Martyrs under the Ottoman Muslim yoke, and of martyrs throughout the ages, that we may be called upon to fearlessly confess Jesus Christ and our Holy Orthodox Faith in a personal, individual setting, sometimes with little notice. Helen was preparing for Orthodox baptism, and was found worthy of the crown of martyrdom.

We too must be prepared at all times. The perfect lesson with which to begin Great Lent! 

Helen Machankova: A Neomartyr († March 15, 2013)

By Hieromonk Theologos, Monachos.net, March 17, 2015:

New-Martyr Helen (Machankova) the Accountant (†March 15, 2013)

Last July a small group together with the Bishop, having heard the story about Helen, chanted a memorial service for her soul, near the sea, under the pine trees of a ruined ancient Christian church with beautiful mosaics, which we had just swept and were in amazement over.

The entire coast of Asia Minor testifies to the eternal life of our faith and language. There Helen's friend Anna recounted to us her last days. Later the priest added his testimony. Let this brief narration be a Memorial that we dedicate these days to Helen.

Why Has the Church Abandoned the Christians of the Middle East?

Western Christians have been slow to respond to Muslim Persecution of Christians, and reluctant to name Islam as the cause. This article asks why.

See also: 

• Islam's Hatred of Holy Icons — and what that means for Persecuted Eastern Christians
• Resurgent Russia: The Hope of Persecuted Christians
• Only Russia Defends Eastern Christians against Genocidal Islamic Jihad

Why Has the Church Abandoned the Christians of the Middle East?
by Judith Bergman, Gatestone Institute via AINA, December 12, 2015:

The 21 Coptic Christians Martyrs before being beheaded by followers of Muhammad.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, was interviewed recently about the Paris attacks and asked about his reaction. "Like everyone else -- first shock and horror and then a profound sadness..." he replied. "Saturday morning, I was out and as I was walking I was praying and saying: 'God, why -- why is this happening?'"

Welby is the principal head of the Anglican Church and the symbolic head of the Anglican Communion, which stands at around 85 million members worldwide and is the third largest communion in the world -- after the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. This is a man with an extremely high public profile, and millions of Christians looking to him for spiritual guidance.

But why is a man who is the symbolic head of 85 million Christians worldwide expressing shock at yet another terrorist attack perpetrated by the Islamic State? Had the Archbishop of Canterbury paid more than just fleeting attention to his fellow Christians in Iraq and Syria, he would know that the Islamic State has been slaughtering Christians in the Middle East since 2006. Between 2004 and 2006, before the Islamic State evolved out of Al Qaeda in Iraq, it hardly showed less zeal to root out Christianity even then.

The Archbishop had eleven years to get used to the idea of people being made homeless, exiled, tortured, raped, enslaved, beheaded and murdered for not being Muslims. How much more time did he need?

The Archbishop of Canterbury had more wisdom to offer in the interview. "The perversion of faith is one of the most desperate aspects of our world today," he said, explaining that Islamic State terrorists have distorted their faith to the extent that they believe they are glorifying their God. But it is unclear how he is as qualified an expert in Islam as Islamic State "Caliph " Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, who possesses a PhD in Islamic Studies from the University of Baghdad.

Christians, Yazidis and persecuted Muslims in the Middle East can probably point to aspects of the world more desperate than "the perversion of faith," but then again, the Archbishop does not seem too preoccupied with the situation on the ground.

Fortunately, others are. In a piece for The Atlantic, "What ISIS Really Wants," Graeme Wood spent time researching the Islamic State and its ideology in depth. He spoke to members of the Islamic State and Islamic State recruiters; his conclusions were the following:

Russian New Martyr's Prophecies offer Warnings, Consolations, for our Darkening Times

The saints always call us to repentance, call us to a deeper, more authentic life in Christ, without guile. They may rebuke us for our sins, our laziness, our erratic and inconsistent following of the Lord, but at the same time, they offer great consolations and comfort for those who do struggle, who do labor in repentance, who do persevere to the end.

The persecutions facing us today are subtle (for the most part), cultural pressures, but with increased legalized marginalization of traditional Christian life and morality. Now Christians are being prosecuted for saying no to sin, and for not saying yes to the demands of the lost, who want the entire world to affirm their sins and lifestyle. This will likely metastasize into open persecution in the months and years ahead.

Our brothers and sisters in the Middle East, Africa, Central and South Asia, and around the world are suffering horrific open persecution from Muslims energized by their excitement over Islam's global resurgence. A new, "great cloud of witnesses" for Christ, New Martyrs of the 21st Century under the Sword of Islam, is being raised up. You can learn about some of them through the links on the left-hand column of this blog.

Truly, we live in a new age of martyrdom, in which we must be prepared to be faithful to Jesus Christ and confess Him to the end. The martyrs who lived through earlier persecutions can help us, by their examples, by their words, and by their intercessions.

Holy Hieromartyr Seraphim (Chichagov) of Petrograd warned of the trials to come upon the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian people as early as 1910, and before he was killed by the Soviets in 1937, sought to encourage his scattered flock with these words:

“The Orthodox Church is undergoing serious trials. Whoever remains faithful will be saved. Because of the persecutions many are leaving the Church, others are even betraying it. There have been other periods of persecution in history, but they all ended in the triumph of Christianity. That is how it will be with these persecutions. They will end, and Orthodoxy will triumph once again. Now many are suffering for the faith, but they are the gold that is purified in the furnace of persecution. There will be more new martyrs suffering for the Christian Faith than there ever has been throughout the history of Christianity.”

Bishop Tikhon Shevkunov has presented us here with a powerful icon of a prophetic witness for Christ, and urges us to seek the intercessions of Hieromartyr Seraphim and all the new martyrs:

"We need to pray [to the holy new martyrs, and] especially to Holy Hieromartyr Seraphim (Chichagov) that he would enlighten our minds; that we would see life as it really is before God and not before people; that we would understand the signs of the times, and be able to make sense of the complicated, contradictory world in which we live, in which God has judged that we must live."

A Prophetic New Martyr: St. Seraphim (Chichagov)

by Bishop Tikhon (Shevkunov) of Egorievsk, Pravoslavie, December 11, 2015

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Today we commemorate a nearly unknown yet great saint, Holy Hieromartyr Seraphim (Chichagov) of Petrograd. This was a man born in the second half of the nineteenth century, to an aristocratic family. He received a brilliant education, graduated from the Page Corps, became a well-known scholar, received a humanitarian as well as a natural sciences education, and was part of the upper echelons of society. He had a brilliant military career, having fought in several wars, but he left all this and became a priest. He did more than anyone else for the canonization of St. Seraphim of Sarov. (1)  This was his particular service.

Holy Hieromartyr Seraphim was not only a priest (later a bishop)—he was a true prophet. 

If we turn to the new martyrs with prayers for help—prayers to those who live in the kingdom of heaven for those who live here on earth—they can provide that help, because they once lived as we do, here on earth. Thus, Holy Hieromartyr Seraphim possessed a remarkable gift—the ability to recognize the signs of the times.

Russia – a Game Changer for Global Christianity

"Russia derives its spiritual strength after the Cold War from a mighty revival of the Orthodox Christian faith while the West is abandoning its Christian identity. The East and the West have switched roles as Christian superpower and defender of the Christian faith."

by Iben Thranholm, RT, November 10, 2015

Syrian Christians, father and daughter, visiting their house abandoned during the military action in the center of Homs. © RIA Novosti

At no time in history has the persecution of Christians been as intense and widespread as it is at the moment. There is a global war on Christians, which has escalated in scale and intensity since the US invasion of Iraq.

After the deliberate destruction of nation states and government structures all over the Middle East, Islamist groups have seized the opportunity to wage war on and persecute Christians.

American journalist and poet Eliza Griswold has written extensively in the New York Times about how the US invasion has caused hundreds of thousands to flee in Iraq. “Since 2003, we’ve lost priests, bishops and more than 60 churches were bombed,” Bashar Warda, the Chaldean Catholic Archbishop of Erbil said.

...the USA, supposedly ‘God’s Own Country’, created hell on earth for Christians all over the Middle East and then turned a blind eye to beheadings, rape of children and unspeakable atrocities.

With the fall of Saddam Hussein, Christians began to leave Iraq in large numbers, and the population shrank to less than 500,000 today from as many as 1.5 million in 2003.

With the Arab Spring things only went from bad to worse. ISIS’ success in Iraq has inspired similar groups in other continents, most notably Africa, where the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood commit numerous atrocities against Christians, as do Boko Haram in Nigeria and Al-Shabaab in Somalia.

Not only has the USA, supposedly ‘God’s Own Country’, created hell on earth for Christians all over the Middle East and then turned a blind eye to beheadings, rape of children and unspeakable atrocities. America appears to be deaf, dumb and blind to the problem, and that is obviously bad enough. But in addition to this, Western foreign policy has failed miserably. It has failed by underestimating the significance of religious faith in the countries subjected to Western intervention. The West’s most egregious foreign policy error is the assumption that the Western secular model, which demands clear separation between organized religion and politics, may be imposed on the rest of the world, irrespective of cultural or religious background.

Moscow wants Turkey to return Hagia Sophia to Orthodox Church

This is a stunning development, which should be read in conjunction with this post on the prophecies of Elder Paisios regarding Turkey and Russia.

Moscow wants Turkey to return Cathedral of Agia Sophia to Orthodox Church

Religious Information Service of Ukraine via Pravoslavie, November 26, 2015

State Duma deputies have supported the idea of the return of Agia Sophia in Constantinople to the Orthodox Church. This was stated by Chairman of Committee on Property, and the coordinator of the inter-factional parliamentary group on the protection of Christian values, Sergei Gavrilov, TSN reports.

Today, when Russian-Turkish relations are undergoing an “endurance trial,” mutually friendly initiatives and proposals are of special importance, Gavrilov says.

“The Russian side deems it possible to return to the question of Agia Sophia, the ancient shrine of the Christian world, located in Constantinople – an ancient Byzantine cathedral associated with the history of the universal Christian Church. We expect a friendly step from the Turkish side - returning Agia Sophia of Constantinople to the Christian Church,” the deputy said.

Elder Paisios' Prophecies of the Russia-Turkey Conflict

Turkey shoots down a Russian jet fighter, tensions rise, and in Greece, some are turning again to the prophecies of Elder Paisios of Mount Athos, who reportedly wrote,

“There will be war between Russia and Turkey. In the beginning the Turks will believe they are winning, but this will lead to their destruction. The Russians, eventually, will win and take over Constantinople. After that it will be ours. They will be forced to give it to us.”

There is no doubt we are living in dire times. We may even be living in apocalyptic times, foretold in the Scriptures and through prophecies of holy people of God. At the same time, looking for signs and fulfillment of prophecies in certain events should not be our main concern. When the Apostles asked the Risen Lord if He was now to restore the kingdom to Israel, He told them, "It is not for you to know..." 

Rather, these words from Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose) of Platina may be a trustworthy guide for us when "wars and rumors of wars" and other ominous "signs" begin to spread:

The time of the end, though it seems to be near, we do not know. However close, it is still future, and in the present we have only the same age-old fight against the unseen powers, against the world, and against our own passions, upon the outcome of which our eternal fate will be decided. Let us then struggle while it is still day, with the time and the weapons which our All-merciful God has given us!

Our times, above all, call for humble and quiet labors, with love and sympathy for other strugglers on the path of the Orthodox spiritual life and a deep resolve that does not become discouraged because the atmosphere is unfavorable. We Christians of the latter times are still called to work persistently on ourselves, to be obedient to spiritual fathers and authorities, to lead an orderly life with at least a minimum of spiritual discipline and with regular reading of the Orthodox spiritual literature... to watch over our own sins and failings and not judge others. If we do this, even in our terrible times, we may have hope—in God's mercy—of the salvation of our souls. 

(Fr. Seraphim Rose, Blessed Paisius Velichovsky, St Herman of Alaska Press, Platina CA, 1976, pp 17, 20.)

Perhaps Elder Paisios would tell us similarly, not to worry about times and signs, but to repent and pray, and to struggle with philotimo.

Related Articles:

• The Antichrist and 666 was not the primary message of Elder Paisios
• Greeks Seek Strength in Predictions of Elder Paisios
• Caution Regarding the "Prophecies" of Elder Paisios
• Mischievous Designs and Problematic Personalities

Some Greeks turn to Elder Paisios' Prophecies on Russia-Turkey Conflict
Greek Reporter via Pravoslavie, November 25, 2015

The tension that was created after the shooting down of a Russian jet fighter by Turkish warplanes has led several Greeks to refer to Elder Paisios‘ prophecies about war between Russia and Turkey.

The ascetic monk Paisios, who became Saint Paisios by the Holy Synod of the Greek Orthodox Church in January, was known for his prophecies and predictions. One of them was that Istanbul, once the capital of the Byzantine Empire Constantinople, will become Greek again.

Specifically, Paisios wrote: 

“Events will start that will culminate with us taking back Constantinople. Constantinople will be given to us. There will be war between Russia and Turkey. In the beginning the Turks will believe they are winning, but this will lead to their destruction. The Russians, eventually, will win and take over Constantinople. After that it will be ours. They will be forced to give it to us.”

The text reads further, “(The Turks) will be destroyed. They will be eradicated because they are a nation that was built without God’s blessing. One third of the Turks will go back to where they came from, the depths of Turkey. One third will be saved because they will become Christians, and the other third will be killed in this war.” This is based on the Saint Kosmas prophecy.

Putin: Turkish Leadership purposefully supports Islamization of Country

Putin has also accused Erdogan of being an "accomplice of terrorists." Hard to deny that.

Once again the Russian leader cuts through the West's politically correct myopia to clearly state simple, verifiable truths. Think back to June 2013, when Putin blasted Obama and Cameron for supporting so-called "moderates" in Syria, who were shown on video eating the organs of their slain enemies. Or his equally strong rejection of Western military intervention in Syria. Or his call to the West to unite in defending persecuted Christians in the Middle East and Africa. And of course his recent UN address, when he castigated the Western leaders responsible for the rise of ISIS and the refugee crisis, shaming them with the question, "Do you realize what you have done?"

For those who might be concerned, based on his remarks below that Islam is "a great world religion," that Putin is becoming soft on the jihad threat, recall that Putin does not hesitate to use force when required to shut down the Islamic threat. A prime example is the rounding up of 300 Muslim jihadists at a prayer meeting in 2013. Can you imagine anything like that happening in America? Certainly not under the current administration.

By shooting down a Russian fighter jet (which some analysts believe was premeditated), Turkey now finds itself in Russia's crosshairs, and its rapid re-Islamization only makes it a more urgent target for Putin.


Putin: Turkish Leadership purposefully supports Islamization of Country
TASS via Pravoslavie, November 25, 2015

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that the current leadership of Turkey purposefully supports the country’s Islamization.

"The problem is not in the tragedy we faced yesterday (the Su-24 incident), the problem is much deeper," the Russian leader told reporters. "We see — and not only we, I assure you that the entire world sees that — that the current leadership of Turkey has been for a number of years pursuing a purposeful policy of support and the Islamization of the country."

ISIS Targets Kremlin, threatens to 'make blood spill like an ocean' in new video

“ISIS is making it very clear that it will attack Russia, specifically Moscow, and a failure to do so will be a big blow to their prestige,” [Ryan] Mauro [national security analyst for the Clarion Project] said. “We should assume they'll succeed because bombing a Russian airliner over Egypt is more difficult than attacking a random target inside Russia because ISIS only needs a small group of supporters among the 15 percent of the Russian population that is Muslim.”

ISIS coming for the Kremlin, new video warns

by Malia Zimmerman, Fox News, November 12, 2015

Screen capture from new Islamic State video, threatening Russia, the U.S. and Europe.

The latest video from ISIS combines the terrorist group's trademark barbarity with an ambitious pledge: a vow that it is coming after the Kremlin.

"We will take through battle the lands of yours we wish," a voice says in Russian, as English subtitles float over scenes of slaughter and a map of the world. "Hellfire awaits you. Europe is shaking, Russia is dying."

Vowing that the "Kremlin will be ours" and promising attacks on Europe, the 5-minute video's producers pledge to “make blood spill like an ocean.”

Russia Declares ‘Holy War’ on Islamic State

"What the United States and its Western allies have wrought in the Middle East—culminating with the rise of a bloodthirsty caliphate and the worst atrocities of the 21st century—is as unholy as Russia’s resolve to fight it is holy." — Raymond Ibrahim

Related:

• Resurgent Russia: The Hope of Persecuted Christians
• The West's Blind Spot towards Russia
• Russia fears the eastward spread of 'jihadist cancer'
• Only Russia Defends Eastern Christians

Russia Declares ‘Holy War’ on Islamic State
by Raymond Ibrahim, FrontPage Magazine, October 6, 2015

The Orthodox Christian Church, which is reclaiming its traditional role in post-Soviet Russia, has just described its government’s fight against the Islamic State and other jihadi groups in Syria as a “holy war.”

According to Vsevolod Chaplin, head of the Church’s Public Affairs Department,

The fight with terrorism is a holy battle and today our country is perhaps the most active force in the world fighting it.  The Russian Federation has made a responsible decision on the use of armed forces to defend the People of Syria from the sorrows caused by the arbitrariness of terrorists. Christians are suffering in the region with the kidnapping of clerics and the destruction of churches. Muslims are suffering no less.

This is not a pretext to justify intervention in Syria.  For years, Russia’s Orthodox leaders have been voicing their concern for persecuted Christians.  Back in February 2012, the Russian church described to Vladimir Putin the horrific treatment Christians are experiencing around the world, especially under Islam:

The head of External Church Relations, Metropolitan Illarion, said that every five minutes one Christian was dying for his or her faith in some part of the world, specifying that he was talking about such countries as Iraq, Egypt, Pakistan and India. The cleric asked Putin to make the protection of Christians one of the foreign policy directions in future. 

“This is how it will be, have no doubt,” Putin answered.

Compare and contrast Putin’s terse response with U.S. President Obama, who denies the connection between Islamic teachings and violence; whose policies habitually empower Christian-persecuting Islamists; who prevents Christian representatives from testifying against their tormentors; and who even throws escaped Christian refugees back to the lions, while accepting tens of thousands of Muslim migrants.

“We must protect Russia from that which has destroyed American society.” 

— Russian President Vladimir Putin

Russian Patriarch Kirill once even wrote an impassioned letter to Obama, imploring him to stop empowering the murderers of Christians.  That the patriarch said “I am deeply convinced that the countries which belong to the Christian civilization bear a special responsibility for the fate of Christians in the Middle East” must have only ensured that the letter ended up in the Oval Office’s trash can.  After all, didn’t Obama make clear that America is “no longer a Christian nation“?

Putin strong, disarming, humorous, fascinating in CBS 60 Minutes Interview

Timed to coincide with the Russian President's address at the United Nations General Assembly on Monday, September 28, 2015, this in-depth interview is fascinating to watch, and may prove to be a masterful reset of Mr. Putin's image in America and the West. Kudos to Charlie Rose for some challenging, provocative questions, to which Mr. Putin gave some very thoughtful and revealing answers.

All eyes on Putin

by Charlie Rose, CBS News, September 27, 2015

At a time of icy relations with the U.S., Russian President Vladimir Putin gives a rare -- and surprising -- interview to 60 Minutes

The following is a script from "Putin" which aired on September 27, 2015. Charlie Rose is the correspondent. Andy Court, producer.

There aren't many world leaders who have generated as much interest as Russia's Vladimir Putin. All eyes will be on Putin when he speaks at the U.N. tomorrow and meets with President Obama, at a time when he has placed himself and his country in the middle of the most pressing issues of our times. He helped the U.S. and its Western allies broker the nuclear deal with Iran, and now, with a Russian buildup of aircraft, military equipment and personnel in Syria, he has put himself and his country at the center of that civil war and the fight against ISIS.

Now, when his relations with the United States seem to be at a post-Cold War low, suffering under Western economic sanctions imposed on Russia, Putin may be looking for a way to restore his international influence and gain the respect he seeks for his homeland.

Just before his trip to the U.S., Putin invited us to meet him at his state residence outside Moscow where we found him characteristically confident and combative as he made the case that the focus in Syria should be on fighting ISIS rather than removing Syrian President Assad.