Journalist assesses media mocking feelings of Orthodox Ukrainians

Екатерина Жарких. Фото: скриншот видео «Перший Козацький»

progressive or "European" in this, journalist Ekaterina Zharkikh said on the air of the “1Kozak” channel, commenting on the reaction of the Ukrainian media to the Oksana Marchenko film "The Pilgrim".

The journalist noted that after the release of the film, where the host talks about the Orthodox faith and the Holy Dormition Kyiv Caves Lavra, “patriotic bloggers” and certain media did not miss the opportunity to “mock the unloved ‘Moscow Church’ with its ‘obscurantism’”. In her opinion, this turned out to be ridiculous, vulgar and insulting, "because they, in fact, tried to laugh at the Orthodox faith and traditions".

“Probably the most replicated shot from the film, which they decided to ridicule, due to their ignorance, is when Marchenko venerated the holy relics,” Zharkikh recalled. “This action is normal for Christianity in principle and for the Orthodox even more so. The relics of the saints are an object of worship for hundreds of millions of Christians around the world. Also, with the same feelings, they venerate icons and crosses. Thus, an earthly man spiritually comes into contact with the deceased saints, who give him strength and heavenly intercession. Laughing at this is only a sign of callousness and stupidity."

She emphasized that there is nothing progressive or European about insulting the feelings of believers by "primitive mockery of the thousand-year-old traditions of their ancestors", as well as mocking the customs and traditions of other cultures, "because a cultured person either knows and respects these customs or politely refrains from commenting".

“But here it is not foreigners who are engaged in mockery, but our fellow citizens. Residents of Orthodox Ukraine. And here the thought is born: if for these people the innermost tradition of the Orthodox Ukrainian people is some barbarity that you can laugh at – so maybe they are strangers here? What are they then, who do they feel like here, on the holy Pechersk hills of Kyiv, in the city of the Orthodox Prince Vladimir? I don't know, but they behave like strangers. And these alien media makers had the opportunity to become at least a little closer, to learn all these nuances of the traditions of the people among whom they live. But they did not: an order is an order ...," stated Ekaterina Zharkikh.

As reported, the Ukrainian TV presenter and journalist Oksana Marchenko presented the first film of the “Pilgrim” series – about the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

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