Some thoughts on Vladimir who hopes to be III

[Martin Marprelate]

So far in Russian history, there have been two Tsar Vladimirs. Mr. Putin, I believe sees himself as the third one.
Many here have called him a Communist. He is not. A better take is he is a Russian Nationalist who believes in autocratic rule from the Moscow Kremlin. He does not want to reassemble the USSR. He wants to reassemble the Russian Empire. Yes, he has abandoned the militant atheism of the CPUSSR. But he has replaced that with an adherence to the Russian Orthodox Church, Turning Russia into a sacralist state on the lines of RCC dominated Spain or Italy.

The idea of a State Church is quite ancient, but it is definitely anti-Christian. It leads to Bishops and Archbishops baptizing, as it were, the policies of the state. At the start of WW1, the religious hierarchies in both Britain and Germany were busy declaring that it was a just war and that God was on their side. Shades of Bob Dylan!

So God is on the side of Russia against Ukraine, and if any Russian Christian dares to disagree, he makes himself an enemy of God in the eyes of his Church.

And yes, I know I live in a land with a State Church. There was a time (1688) when English dissenters were so relieved to see an end to overt persecution that they were content to live in the shadow of the Church of England, but now, the sooner it goes the better.

 

[OnlyaSinner]

I would never make a blanket statement about a group's faith. Of course most of those here do make that statement about Democrats. What I would say is if anyone make anything (money, power, politics, etc.) an overriding objective rather than following Jesus I don't consider them to be authentic Christians. If you don't accept or even hate other Christians because they don't accept Trump as an effective, moral leader and choice for president you fall into this category. If being a Trump supporter inhibits or prevents your sharing the gospel with people who don't accept him you also fall into this category (christians in name only).

Thanks for the thoughtful response, and I won't take personally the use of "you" as it's obviously the "editorial you". I agree that putting anything ahead of Christ is idol worship.
In 2016 I wrote in Ewan McMullin as his positions aligned closely with mine and he was dependently and consistently pro-life. His LDS membership is troubling, but the old saying "In the land of the blind, a one-eyed man is king" seemed appropriate. In 2020 I voted for Trump because I thought a weak Biden would quickly be co-opted (or trampled) by the radical left. That's still a possibility, of course.
Our small IFB church includes folks who think Trump is good for America and folks who think otherwise, but who all agree that the Gospel comes first.