MOSCOW: Russian priests should refrain from the practice of blessing nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction that can inflict indiscriminate loss of life, according to new guidelines being discussed by the Russian Orthodox Church.
During two decades in power, President Vladimir Putin has aligned himself with the Orthodox Church, which has also developed closer ties with the ministry of defence.
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Russian priests have long appeared in images sprinkling holy water on submarines, ballistic missiles, Soyuz space rockets and other pieces of hardware as part of rituals to bless them.
But some of that is set to stop if the church approves a document drawn up by an Orthodox Church commission.
A priest conducts a service on the Karantinnaya Bay coast during celebrations of the Orthodox Christian feast of Epiphany, with Russian naval ships seen in the background, in the Black Sea port of Sevastopol, Crimea, Jan 19, 2019. (Photo: Reuters/Pavel Rebrov)
"The blessing of military weapons is not reflected in the tradition of the Orthodox Church and does not correspond to the content of the Rite," the document, on the Moscow patriarchate's website, says.
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Blessing or sanctifying weapons that can kill an "indefinite number of people" must be exRead More – Source
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