Priests of the Russian Orthodox Church who refuse to read the prayer for the victory of Russian troops are being tried for violating the 25th Apostolic Rule. This church rule concerns fornicators, thieves, and oath breakers.
Konstantin Kokora, a priest of the Russian Orthodox Church, theologian, and educator from Moscow who was forced to leave the country because of his views, spoke about this in an interview with the publication Telegraf.
After the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the priest adopted an anti-war position. He spoke about it in sermons, at lectures held by the parish, and in personal conversations with parishioners. When Patriarch Kirill introduced the mandatory prayer “On Holy Rus” with a petition for the victory of the Russian armed forces, Father Konstantin refused to read it in full and continued serving according to his conscience.
He faced aggression and feared that denunciations could be made not only to church authorities but also to secular authorities.
When Kokora was summoned to a church court, he said they never explained exactly what he had done wrong and simply banned him from ministry. According to him, priests with anti-war views are deliberately not defrocked in order to prevent them from joining the Constantinople Patriarchate.
“According to the canons, violation of this rule should lead to defrocking, not a temporary suspension, as happened with Uminsky and Koval. But I think the patriarch understands that defrocked priests may turn to the Constantinople Patriarchate, where they would be reinstated because such decrees are considered unlawful and politically motivated there. So it is easier to put things on pause. You remain listed as clergy, but you cannot work. At the same time, you have neither formal grounds nor the opportunity to transfer to another jurisdiction,” the priest explained.
In October 2024, Father Konstantin was suspended from priestly ministry for three years by decree of the patriarch. After that, he was effectively removed from any activity within the structures of the Russian Orthodox Church. In the winter of 2025, Kokora joined a working group that prepared the “Anti-War Confession of Faith,” a collective appeal by Orthodox clergy and laypeople published in Novaya Gazeta Europe. When a friend of Kokora was arrested by the FSB, the family moved out of their apartment in fear of a search. With the help of inTransit, Konstantin, together with his wife and three children, received a French humanitarian visa and left for France one month ago.
As LF reported, the Kremlin is attempting to justify the prolonged war against Ukraine by using longstanding false narratives claiming that “the Ukrainian government suppresses religious freedoms.” This was stated in a report by analysts from the Institute for the Study of War, or ISW.
Earlier, we wrote that Russian Federation leader Vladimir Putin praised the efforts of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow aimed at supporting participants in the “special military operation.”
According to information from LF, in November 2025 Patriarch Kirill Gundiaev stated that military heroism is “inseparable” from spiritual heroism and that participation in war may be regarded as a form of Christian service. This attempt to justify war through spiritual rhetoric provoked an immediate and sharp reaction within church circles.
According to Regina Elsner, researcher of Eastern Christianity and ecumenism at the University of Münster and Doctor of Theology, the Russian Orthodox Church has become one of the key institutions of mobilization and propaganda.
Earlier, we wrote that Pope Leo XIV and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I condemned attempts to use religion to justify violence.
