A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY
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| Volume 6 Number 32 - Tuesday, August 10th, 2004 |
A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY |
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The Orthodox Christian News Service |
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Orthodox church adopts new tactics against sects
STRANGERS AMONG OUR OWN (Russkii kurier, 2 August 2004) - The end of July was not wasted for the Saratov Orthodox diocese; it brought out its flock to a protest demonstration against the construction of an administrative and worship building for Mormons in the center of Saratov. Without doubt, this was a substantially new stage in the activity of RPTs. Up to now, at least in the provinces, priests never went out into the squares with crudely secular slogans. This event was similar to the capital: in Moscow they demonstrated against the construction of an excessively tall temple of Krishnaites, while in Saratov it was against a house of worship of Mormons located in the immediate vicinity of three significant points--the provincial government, an Orthodox church, and a Muslim mosque. We note, however, that the building for the "totalitarian sect," as those who gave speeches called this religious organization, was bought on completely legal bases, which the city administration confirmed. And indeed it exists itself within the framework of the federal law "On freedom of conscience and religious associations" adopted in 1997. However, it is not this fact that we were reminded of. An attack was made on the dubious reputation of Mormons, who "slander Christ and the Theotokos." Or more specifically on the fact that this religion came from America which, you see, did not dare to do battle with Russia but wants to destroy it ideologically, in association with the CIA, and it engages in nothing less than espionage. You cannot find a better place than Saratov for this purpose, since it is right next to an enterprise of the military-industrial complex. True, they have been practically inactive many years now and their secrets, one should guess, are somewhat outdated. But besides this the Mormons have a lot of ungodly qualities and distinctives, from polygamy (incidentally, there aren't any among them) to refusing to consume tea and coffee, which, generally speaking, is a deeply personal matter.
I
wish to be understood correctly: I think that the
"Latter-day saints" do not need my defense. But
along with this I would like to note that one
really should not raise such a noise when one has
no concrete facts about harmful activity by
foreigners. In the final analysis, there is the
court, if they are violating the law, and there is
a special department for catching spies. But in
recent times we are following the law less and
less, and more and more acting "on understanding."
It turned out that the building was purchased ten
years ago, but only now somebody demands
forbidding its restoration. It seems, the
authorities have responded. The chief architect of
the city found violations in the plans and other
normative acts, and an important government
bureaucrat threatened the spies: start running, it
will get worse. In all likelihood, one should
expect the exposure of some agent who arrived from
the state of Utah or was trained, like Baba Yaga,
in the collective. (tr. by PDS, posted 2 August
2004) |
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