The Practical Parson

 

 Last week the world saw the presidents of the United States and Ukraine clash in the Oval Office of the White House over a proposed deal to continue providing material and financial support for Ukraine in the wake of their ongoing war.  While President Zelensky of Ukraine had promised he would sign the agreement at that meeting, after having promised to do so twice before and reneging on his word; he got the opportunity to leave the scene without signing the agreement, once again.  This clash gave him a boost on the European front, with allies clamoring to give them additional funding for war; despite his protestations about pursuing peace.  While I am not one who will consider it good form to openly antagonize or berate allies; it is true that both sides equally traded jabs during the Oval Office meeting, with President Zelensky hoping that the media's presence would force President Trump into agreeing to additional concessions and assistance that were not agreed u...

 President Volodymyr Zelensky has recently signed into law a complete ban on the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine.   While that may seem and sound like a commendable action from the outside, banning a church that has a patriarch in Russia while there is an ongoing war with Russia; the reality of what the law invites is actually quite sinister, and I would dare say, diabolical.  Let's start with the foundational issue: banning Russian Orthodox anything in Ukraine.  While it might sound like they're just cutting off the Patriarch of Moscow, what is truly happening is the Ukrainian government is seizing church properties: monasteries, cathedrals, convents, churches, shelters for the poor and homeless- all being seized by the state.  However it doesn't end at seizing church property, oh no.  The government has now enabled themselves to seize the personal and private property of private citizens who are Russian Orthodox as well.  This level of land-g...