On the mobilization of a priest as a sniper

Archpriest Vitaliy Agafonov. Photo: Agafonov’s Facebook page

Yet while officials – together with their “court bishops” from the so-called patriotic confessions – travel the world proclaiming some unprecedented religious freedom in Ukraine, at home that freedom is being cynically ground into the dirt.

Much has already been said about the seizure of churches. But the mobilization of clergy remains in the shadows, as if it were not happening at all. And yet it is a direct, open violation of freedom of religion. A man who has chosen the priesthood cannot take up arms. The very notion of forcing him to kill is an outrage.

The Church’s own canons speak plainly. The 83rd Apostolic Canon says that a clergyman who enters the army must be deposed from the priesthood. The 7th canon of the Fourth Ecumenical Council says that a priest or monk who joins the army is to be anathematized.

So what does it mean in practice? It means that by its actions the state effectively strips a priest of his rank. Where, then, is this “freedom of religion”? This is raw, unmasked violence against it. And it does not end there: draft officials send priests to units where, in principle, it is impossible not to kill.

A court case is now underway against Fr. Vitaliy Agafonov, a cleric of the Nikopol cathedral. After he was seized by the TRC, he was sent to the front. Not as a cook. Not as a driver. But as… a sniper. Just pause and take in the cynicism of that assignment: a priest of the Church of Christ is being driven toward murder.

There is nothing surprising in Fr. Vitaliy’s decision to desert. Under the law, he now faces prison. From the outside, the whole story is staggering in its absurdity. A priest serves in a church, volunteers, delivers humanitarian aid, and cares for boarding homes with disabled children. And then, at some point, he is abducted and ordered to kill. When he refuses to kill, he is locked up. Is this already “freedom of religion” – or is it still not?

And to complete the picture, one final stroke is added.

To avoid mobilization, the authorities offer UOC clergy an “exit” – transfer to the OCU. Then a deferment appears immediately. And if you end up in the army at all, it is only as a “volunteer.” And not as a sniper or assault trooper, but as a chaplain – as any clergyman should be.

What astonishing “humanity” from our authorities. They do not force a priest into deposition and anathema. They simply offer him a choice: either you go and kill, with a high chance of being killed yourself, or you join a structure of men without priestly rank. That is what freedom of religion looks like in Ukraine today.

And anyone who dares to say it does not exist is branded a Kremlin agent.

Read also