A new Holy Russia? Is the following video mere propaganda?

DIscussion and News concerning Orthodox Churches in communion with those who have fallen into the heresies of Ecumenism, Renovationism, Sergianism, and Modernism, or those Traditional Orthodox Churches who are now involved with Name-Worshiping, or vagante jurisdictions. All Forum Rules apply. No polemics. No heated discussions. No name-calling.


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Maria
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A new Holy Russia? Is the following video mere propaganda?

Post by Maria »

This is a lovely video, which promotes large families, the Russian Orthodox Church, and God's love. I hope it is not just part of a propaganda war.

Yet, Putin is an ecumenist, so I have conflicting thoughts. Certainly the West is decadent, thus I want to flee from it, but Putin's openness to ecumenism is also troubling.

Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me a sinner.

Justice
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Re: A new Holy Russia? Is the following video mere propaganda?

Post by Justice »

Knowing Putin it's most likely a propaganda film. The video promotes the Sergianist church which capitulated the faith to the Soviets.

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Maria
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Re: A new Holy Russia? Is the following video mere propaganda?

Post by Maria »

Yes, the plea for Russian patriotism, like in the times of the Soviet Union, plus the strong plug for building up Russian families and Russian youth through Sergianism, leads me to believe that this video is pure propaganda.

It is very well done and appeals to the emotions.

Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me a sinner.

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Re: A new Holy Russia? Is the following video mere propaganda?

Post by Barbara »

I finally was able to watch the half hour film.
I had forgotten most of what you both had written. From the 1st, I felt it was a roundabout MP-Putin creation : here I mean that personnel belonging to such organizations quietly contacted the journalists and proposed that they do a fair film about the MP today as influential in the life of the RF.

I felt absolutely sure of this theory when the Cossack Priest beamed his thanks to Putin for the Church's freedom. But that had the ring of the mentality of a deeply oppressed people to be SO grateful for a little loosening up of the Communist state's clampdown on Orthodoxy. By the way, Putin didn't do that : Yeltsin started the process and Putin encouraged it after years of hesitation -- and even probably indifference. After all, he didn't come to office in 2000 preaching about God or making references to Orthodoxy. He still doesn't do that to this day, witness the remarks the Russian leader recently made to which former Rocor Bp Evtikhy [Kurochkin] famously objected.
[ see : http://euphrosynoscafe.com/forum/viewto ... 12&t=12382 ]
Putin seems to me to be sitting on the fence : unable to condemn the Bolshevik Revolution in clearcut terms. He waffles back and forth, mouthing vague statements, as that speech showed. The RF leader does candle duty in Churches while the cameras roll and makes signs of the Cross before Icons - but always looking slightly awkward with the net result of appearing unconvincing as a deep believer in God.

So, isn't it likely that as the head of state, Putin is striving to set an example for his Orthodox subjects ? We have to remember an important fact : that a devout Orthodox person will by definition be obedient to authority. He or she is trained from baptism to obey a Priest and particularly, a spiritual father or Elder, should there be any such authentic ones. Doesn't this mentality assist the state to have a better grip on the citizenry ? I would argue that Putin is above all, practical. He wants what will keep the nation in line and malleable to the dictates of the government.

What the film did do, however, was to present religious Orthodox Russians, clergy and laity, as warm, approachable, even jovial people. That was a coup by itself. So much indoctrination in recent years has made uninformed Westerners believe that Russians are cold and sinister people with one aim only : to get THEM. The movie wiped that impression away without saying anything but letting the viewer see how firm, strong-minded and dignified Orthodox Russians in fact can be in defending their faith and ideals.

I got tired of the children part and slightly fast forwarded through the later scenes. I would have preferred to have more focus against homosexuals. But there was a good statement by one of the figures who unabashedly asserted that America is run by a clique of homosexuals - or something similar to this idea. This is REFRESHING ! No one hears that point of view in this country, for they are not permitted to. It makes a Westerner think in a new way. Few alternative news sites are brave enough to give out even a hint of the abnormality of this commandeering of an entire society - and societies, including Western Europe and other compliant countries. Only one or two dare mention such a concept !

Another reason one can see how this was a Putin-friendly documentary was that it was never clearly specified how drastic the drop in the Russian birth rate has become. Surely RF leadership suffers from deep fear that their large Muslim minority will be soon overtaking the ethnic Russians - IF policies are not widely implemented to accelerate the ethnic Russian birth rate.
THIS is why the glossy award is bestowed upon to families with 7 or more children. Not just benevolent promotion of family values, as the film gives the misleading impression.

Never having been to Rostov-on-Don, I was interested to see more scenes of the city. Little was shown, which was disappointing. Even the exterior of the Church in the 1st scene was left out : only the interior.
On this subject, the narrator says toward the end that whether the audience is religious or not, the atmosphere of the Russian Church services is powerful. That was nice. But WHY were there not shown much of any service ? I only remember the choir with the 4 daughters of the Priest with 18 children. In that scene, one could hear a snippet of their quiet singing - but what about plenty more in the way of dazzling glimpses of Liturgies with the sound audible ? Or beautiful candle-lit Vigil services ? To me, cuts of real services would have motivated some Westerners to look into Orthodoxy, never having been exposed to the Russian Church and thus become awestruck at the reverence for God and His Archangels and Saints. It's true that the lineup of Priests - among them a number of his sons - was shown at their father's nameday, but without much or any sound except the narrator's voice.

This facet by itself demonstrates that the film was made to strike up sympathy amongst conservative Westerners for the Putin regime's policies of protecting the family rather than to convert any ripe souls to Orthodoxy.

I did like the founder of Tsargrad TV's forthright statement that he wants the days of the Russian Empire back. This overarching theme provides a needed context for the current efforts to encourage traditional values.
The only thing the man left out - or possibly was cut out of the footage - was support for return of the monarchy. Perhaps that was considered too incendiary for a Western audience raised from birth on the concept that 'democracy' is the only acceptable form of government and monarchy equals despotism. For Americans, kings are all carbon copies of George III of England, case closed. They don't want to hear about any monarchs having more than figurehead status.

This point only brings out the need for not just bearing, raising and adopting of children, but the more profound dimension of instilling in them a true time-honored world view.

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