Putin's Altar Boy: The Russian Orthodox Church and Russia's Wars of Aggression - Hardcover
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Since its beginning in 2014, the Russo-Ukrainian War has become the most destructive war in Europe since World War II, with effects extending far beyond the continent's borders. While the conflict is geopolitical, Russia's aims extend beyond territory alone as it wages a hybrid war against Western countries that seeks to allure the Global South to a common front, led by Russia and China, against the "sinful and fallen" West. The Russian Orthodox Church is both partner and servant in this struggle.
Putin's Altar Boy examines Russia's war of aggression and its ideological background in broader historical and global perspectives. Deeply held religious and historical myths influence the ideology and identity of Putin's Russia. In particular, author Juha Meriläinen traces the resurgence of the Russian Orthodox Church from a persecuted institution under Soviet Communism to a power that justifies and supports Russia's illegal war. Meriläinen's analysis consider the classic question of the relationship between church and state from the perspectives of power, ideology, morality, and money.
Originally published in Finnish, Putin's Altar Boy was awarded the highly esteemed Lauri Jäntti prize in 2024 for the best Finnish-language nonfiction book published in the previous year. This Fortress edition has been updated to reflect recent events in the conflict.
Juha Meriläinen is a theological advisor on international and ecumenical affairs for the Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, Lutheran minister, and associate professor of church history at the University of Helsinki. His areas of academic expertise include the history of the ecumenical movement, religion and politics during the Cold War, religious nationalism, and immigration history.
Hovorun, Cyril: -Cyril Hovorun is an associate dean for political ecclesiology at Sankt Ignatius Theological Academy in Sweden and senior lecturer at the Stockholm School of Theology. He is the author of Meta-Ecclesiology: Chronicles on Church Awareness (2015) and Will, Action and Freedom: Christological Controversies in the Seventh Century (2008). He has chaired the Ukrainian Orthodox Church's Department of External Relations. He also helped modernize the system of theological education in the Russian Orthodox Church when he was the first deputy chairman of the Educational Committee of the Moscow Patriarchate.
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