Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church said that the atomic bomb was developed in Russia through the prayers of Saint Seraphim of Sarov and described it as “the grace and mercy of God.”
He made the remarks on the feast of the finding of the relics of Saint Seraphim of Sarov during a liturgy at the Holy Trinity Seraphim-Diveyevo Convent, according to the official website of the Russian Orthodox Church.
In his sermon, the patriarch said that the scientists who worked in Sarov created the Russian atomic bomb, “which stopped the enemy’s plans to destroy and enslave the Fatherland.”
“Thus, through the labour of the scientists, engineers, and workers who worked here, the grace and mercy of God were bestowed upon our country. It is perfectly clear that it was no coincidence that scientific research and engineering work were conducted in this very place, preserving our people and our country from terrible destruction that could have left neither our country nor our people in existence,” he said.
According to him, “the creation of a formidable weapon in our country in this very place was no coincidence” and took place through the prayers of Saint Seraphim of Sarov.
“Through his prayers, may the Lord preserve the Russian land, our country, our Orthodox president, the authorities, and the armed forces, protecting our Motherland from every enemy and adversary,” Kirill Gundyayev concluded.
According to LF, in November 2025 Patriarch Kirill Gundyayev said that military sacrifice was “inseparable” from spiritual sacrifice and that participation in war could be regarded as a form of Christian service. This attempt to justify war through spiritual rhetoric prompted an immediate and forceful reaction within church circles.
According to Regina Elsner, a doctor of theology and researcher in Eastern Christianity and ecumenism at the University of Münster, the Russian Orthodox Church has become one of the key institutions of mobilisation and propaganda.
We previously reported that Pope Leo XIV and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I had condemned attempts to use religion to justify violence.
