"Donate for demolishing the church", or What awaits the demolishing nation
A temple is a special place where God is present. But in our country, it has been decided to demolish the temple and fundraising for the demolition was announced.
On April 9, it became known that the National Museum of Ukrainian History opened a fundraiser to demolish the Tithe (Desiatynna) Church in Kyiv, located on the museum grounds. The decision on demolition was made on February 15, 2023, by the Economic Court of Kyiv.
According to the court, the placement of the church on the museum's land contradicts its intended use. The then Minister of Culture, Oleksandr Tkachenko, whom we have already forgotten, called the Tithe Monastery a "kiosk" that does not fit into the "ensemble of the historical archaeological complex ‘Desiatynna Church’”.
For more than a year, Ukrainian authorities did not implement this completely insane court decision, and on 9 April 2024, the National Museum of Ukrainian History announced a fundraiser for the demolition of the Tithe Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
In their sacrilege, the museum representatives went further than Tkachenko, calling the UOC church "garbage". "It will be very symbolic to clean up the garbage by Easter!" they wrote in an announcement of the fundraiser.
In less than 24 hours, "concerned" citizens of Ukraine raised the necessary funds for the demolition of the UOC temple, which was joyfully reported by the representatives of the National Museum: "Friends, you are incredible, you have collected the necessary amount in less than 24 hours! We are very grateful for your involvement and stop the fundraising!".
This situation appears not just sacrilegious but terrifying for a believer because people are raising money not to build, but to destroy the house of God. What awaits these people in the end? To answer this question, let's turn to biblical and civil history.
The Bible and God's temple
The significance of the temple of God in the Bible is truly immense. When the Lord commends Moses to building a temple, He says the following, "And they shall build me a sanctuary, and I will dwell in the midst of them" (Exodus 25:8). That is, in this text of the Holy Scripture we see that the temple is presented as the dwelling place of God. Chapter 40 of the same book of Exodus says how "the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle" (Exodus 40:34-35).
The Israelites clearly understood that the material well-being and prosperity of the entire nation directly depends on their relationship to God. The Bible says: "Worship the Lord your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you" (Ex. 23: 25). And the place in which this service was to be performed was the temple.
King Solomon, who built a stone temple to God in place of Moses' tabernacle, realised that not only did the harvest or health of the people depend on their prayers, but also their freedom was directly dependent on God's favour. And in this case the temple has a special place. Here are Solomon's own words, "When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and they return to You and confess Your name, praying and pleading with You in this temple, 34then may You hear from heaven and forgive the sin of Your people Israel. May You restore them to the land You gave to their fathers..."
The same goes for rain (lack of it), famine, pestilence, scorching wind, locusts, worms, enemies, and sickness – "then may whatever prayer or petition Your people Israel make — each knowing his own afflictions and spreading out his hands toward this temple— be heard by You from heaven, Your dwelling place. And may You forgive and act, and repay each man according to all his ways," says Solomon.
Read the whole Chapter 8 of the Third Book of Kings and you will understand that the temple is a very special place where the Lord is present, and it should be treated accordingly. Therefore, the destruction of the temple is a direct challenge to God, and this challenge does not bode well for the people.
What does history say about the destruction of God's temples?
The Bible says that "there is no authority except that which God has established" (Rom. 13: 1). This means, says St John Chrysostom, that the source of all authority is God. It is in His power to give this authority, and He can also take it away. Therefore, everyone who has power should use it for the benefit of his neighbour and in accordance with the commandments of God, and not vice versa.
The ancient theologian and biblical scholar Origen warned those in power that "the judgement of God will be righteous against those who use the received power for their wicked deeds and not in accordance with divine laws". Naturally, in the context of our conversation, the destruction of the temple can lead to the most deplorable consequences. To what exactly, history tells us.
For example, the temple built by Solomon stood for a little over 300 years and was destroyed during the conquest campaign of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia in 586 B.C. Most of the inhabitants of Jerusalem were killed, the rest were taken captive and driven into slavery in Babylonia (Babylonian captivity). The Ark of the Covenant was lost in the process. What eventually happened to the Babylonian Empire?
After Nebuchadnezzar's death, the mighty empire experienced a severe political crisis for many years. Its rulers changed on its throne with kaleidoscopic speed, there were constant palace coups, until in 539 Babylon was not captured by the Persians, completely destroying its statehood. The destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem thus turned into a national tragedy for the Babylonians.
In the year 70 AD, Roman Emperor Vespasian's army destroyed the Second Temple and completely annihilated Jerusalem, killing its inhabitants. However, shortly thereafter, the Roman Empire began to experience a series of severe crises that several times brought it to the brink of extinction.
Essentially, from the reign of Emperor Commodus (98 AD), the decline of the most powerful empire in human history began. Yes, it continued to exist for almost another 200 years, during which it fought against Christianity until it disappeared altogether, paving the way for an empire founded by Christians...
Mongols, Bolsheviks, and the Tithe Church
The 70-year Soviet rule in our country takes a special place in the struggle of the authorities against God. In the early 1930s, the Bolsheviks decided to fight against "imperial vestiges". The Orthodox Church was declared the main enemy of the Communist Party. Priests, bishops, and laypeople were either executed or sent to the GULAG. Churches and monasteries were destroyed.
For example, in Kyiv alone, during the "Kyiv Bolshevik reconstruction", 145 churches and architectural monuments were destroyed. Among them was the Tithe Monastery with its church.
Located in the heart of Kyiv, this monastery was one of the key historical and religious sites in Ukraine. Its history dates back to the 10th century, a period when Kyiv was the capital of the ancient Rus, a powerful state that had a significant influence on the development of Eastern Europe.
The original Tithe Church was built by Saint Prince Vladimir and became the first stone temple in Kyiv, essentially serving as the center of Christianity in this young state. Its name comes from the "tithe" (a tenth), which the grand prince allocated from his income to support the church's needs.
The Tithe Church, built by the Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince, was destroyed during the Mongol invasion in the 13th century but was restored in the 19th century. In the Soviet era, it was used as a warehouse and museum of atheism, resulting in the loss of many of its relics and historical monuments. And in 1928, the temple was completely destroyed.
In 1991, after Ukraine gained independence, the Tithe Monastery was returned to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. A small temple was built on its site, where the Vladimir-Tithe icon of the Mother of God is now kept. This is the temple that the modern Ukrainian authorities want to demolish. If they do, they will enter history along with the Mongols and Bolsheviks who already destroyed the Tithe Church. But the most terrible thing is not this, but what will happen to the country and its people, whose authorities fight against God, destroying temples?
If one carefully reads everything written above, only a blind and foolish person will not understand that the destruction of the temple of God is a challenge to the Creator, a challenge to His authority, which always has the direst consequences. A nation cannot be happy if it rejoices in the destruction of a temple.
The temple is a sanctuary where believers gather for prayer, worship, and communion with God. The demolition of a temple is the destruction of what makes a person human. It is clear that by destroying a temple, authorities will not achieve any positive results for themselves, especially in political terms. This is because no believer will support the enemies of the Church. One cannot expect support from those whose feelings and values you are destroying.
But besides all this, we must remember that there is a war going on. Given everything that is happening, we understand that we can only preserve our country with the help of God. No other way.
But will God help those who destroy His temples?
