Patriarch Kirill of Russia said Thursday that the Russian Orthodox Church is ready to do everything possible to participate in the restoration of peaceful life after the end of the war in Ukraine, his statement came just days after he called on Russian priests to go to the front.

“The question of the post-war future of both Ukraine and Russia is acute, [ținând de] return of people to their homes, revival of infrastructure and social sphere. This problem has already been partially solved, but we know that many buildings and entire neighborhoods, villages and cities will have to be rebuilt,” said the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, TASS reports.

“It is already clear today that it will take years for a comprehensive revival of peaceful life. I would like to testify to the willingness of the church to participate as much as possible in the treatment of combat wounds,” he said at the plenary session of the Russian Parliament on Thursday.

Kyrylo added that before the end of “military actions” in Ukraine, it is necessary to call for humane treatment of prisoners of war, stressing that this is a peaceful position of the church.

“To help you [pe prizonierii de război] return to the homeland, help in evacuation from life-threatening places. This is a tactical topic, the main topic is the cessation of all hostilities, reconciliation,” he said to Russian parliamentarians.

Patriarch Kirill asked the priests to go to the front

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church’s comments on Thursday came less than a week after he asked priests to get more involved in the invasion of Ukraine, mobilizing parishioners to collect equipment and food for soldiers, even to go to the front. provide them with “spiritual support”.

“If we say that the church is with its people, then every parish should help those who are on the front lines. We need to mobilize our parishioners so that they can collect equipment and products,” Patriarch Kirill said on Saturday during a meeting with representatives of the clergy at the Epiphany Cathedral in Moscow.

Patriarch Kirill emphasized that those who go to the front need spiritual help first of all.

“This cannot be called a formality. You must know what to tell your reinforcements when the order to attack is given. An order without which there can be no victory, when you have to get up and go to meet your death. This is what our boys do: they rise from the trenches and go to meet death,” he said.

In June of last year, Britain became the first European country to impose sanctions against Patriarch Kirill because of his numerous statements of support for the war in Ukraine.

The European Union, for its part, intended to punish the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, but he was saved by Hungary, which threatened to use the right of veto to exclude him from the new list of sanctions prepared by the European Commission in May. .

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