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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Soldier-Saint |
| 2004-10-19 |
| As Lyubov Rodionova flicks through her pictures, all showing the same young man in uniform, it becomes obvious these are not just family snaps. In one picture, his rifle is over his shoulder, in another it is in his hand, in a third he looks straight ahead with just a glimpse of a soldier's blue and white T-shirt -- but all have the same golden halo around his head. This is her son Yevgeny. The 19-year-old was murdered in Chechnya in 1996, but his legend lives on, and many Russians are pressing the Russian Orthodox Church to canonize him as a saint, martyred in a holy war against Islam. "Not only did Yevgeny not betray his faith, he also refused to betray his army. He refused to sell out his friends," said Rodionova, who lives alone in this town outside Moscow. He was kidnapped and held in a cellar for months. Rodionova said his captors had told her they gave him the choice of adopting Islam and joining them, or death. He refused to relinquish his Christian faith and was beheaded and buried in an unmarked grave. Yevgeny is one of thousands of soldiers killed in Chechnya, but his bravery and religious faith under pressure has inspired many Russians tired of the war. At least 26 churches from Siberia to the Ukrainian border now have an icon of the handsome, dark-haired young man, who was a conscript in the border guards before his death. Several marchers held his icon aloft in a rally against terror near Red Square on Sept. 7, shortly after the Beslan school tragedy. "Yevgeny is famous. He is a bright example. Maybe it is because of his youth, and he reminds people of David and Goliath," said Orthodox priest Father Dmitry, the head of the Moscow Patriarchate's department for the armed forces. I've got to say that the Russians suprise me every day I learn more about them. |
| Posted by:Old Fogey |
| #8 Russia, of course, with its huge land area, remains a very metropolitan nation, with the vast majority of its (urban, professional, definitely NON-AGRARIAN)populace concentrated in urban cities? :) |
| Posted by: Asedwich 2004-10-20 12:03:12 AM |
| #7 There are no more "peasants" in Russia--certainly not in Moscow or the other big cities. Though there are many extraordinarily beautiful churches in Russia that are now being restored (in many cases with the support of rather dubious money), the fact remains that the vast majority of those who attend services are aging or aged babushki (grannies). |
| Posted by: lex 2004-10-19 8:54:59 PM |
| #6 Huh. The story takes me back to the old Anglo-Saxon chronicles of saint's deaths. Very, very, similar. 1. Fight for the faith. 2. Get captured in a hopeless cause. 3. Bleed lots, get flayed, skewered, shot. 4. Refuse to renounce the faith until death. 5. (Perform miracles?) While alive, or posthumously. That the tradition is still alive in something near its original form in the Greek Orthodox rite makes me wonder if the peasant folk of Russia are completely secular. |
| Posted by: Asedwich 2004-10-19 8:36:16 PM |
| #5 Russians are thoroughly secular. The communists did their work well (and were aided in this by the corruption of the Orthodox Church). The flip side of this materialist viewpoint is that Russians have no illusions about the possiblity of appeasing the jihadists. They will support without hesitation an unrelenting effort to crush the jihadists wherever they can be found, and this bodes well for our post-Beslan relationship with Russia. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-10-19 3:50:55 PM |
| #4 In spite of not being Catholic, much less RO, this young man is a martyr for the Gospel. He stands in Paradise now learning the mysteries of God from the great souls of past ages . . . Peter, Paul, & the prophets of old. I would be proud to name this man among my brothers in arms. |
| Posted by: Jame Retief 2004-10-19 1:41:58 PM |
| #3 RN - Think it's not already too late? Tsar Putty seems to have plans to finish it off, re: appointing regional Gov's, no? |
| Posted by: .com 2004-10-19 1:41:47 PM |
| #2 I've never been surprised by the Russian people themselves, only that the Soviets were so successful in subjugating them for as long as they did. Then again, gulags, mass murder and being cannon fodder do tend to make one cautious. Let’s hope they can hold on to democracy for their own sake. |
| Posted by: RN 2004-10-19 1:39:05 PM |
| #1 I don't believe in Canonization or Sainthood, but it is evident that this young man is very much deserving of his countrymen's admiration. Appreciation for those who stand in harm's way for you is a key marker for a civilization intent on surviving. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2004-10-19 1:30:20 PM |