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A poll published on Tuesday by the state-run pollster VTsIOM revealed that about 75 percent of all Russians believe that the Church should stay out of political affairs. However, a sizable percentage of all respondents (43 percent) see the current Church/state relations as “balanced and harmonious”. The pollster said, “The Church’s political influence grows and its relations with the state are harmonious. However, the majority of Russians recommend that the church take a more active part in spiritual and religious issues instead of interfering with state affairs”. 63 percent of respondents see the church as an influential institution in society’s moral and spiritual life. About 50 percent of Russians feel the Church influences domestic policies, whilst 43 percent say it exerts some influence over the foreign policy as well. Some 20 percent of Russians believe that the Church is too active in the political life.
The VTsIOM report said, “Three-quarters of Russians are convinced that the Church should stay out of politics (75 percent). 44 percent believe that it should influence the spiritual and moral life of society as a whole, whilst one-third (31 percent) think that the church should limit its activities solely to religious matters. Those who consider active participation of religious bodies admissible in all spheres of social life, including politics, constitute a minority of 16 to 17 percent”. Those who believe that the church’s influence should be restricted to religious issues are mostly young people (37 percent of the subtotal) and have a higher education (33 percent of the subtotal). Most people who think that the Church has a political role are middle-aged (20 percent), with no higher education, living in smaller towns and villages (22 percent).
The survey was conducted 9-10 June 2012 with 1,600 respondents from 138 cities and towns taking part. The margin of error was below 3.4 percent.
18 August 2012
RIA-Novosti
Voices from Russia 
Orthodox Church Asks Authorities to Show Mercy on Pussy Riot
Tags: Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, Christian, Christianity, Eastern Orthodox Church, legal affairs, Mary (mother of Jesus), Moscow, Moscow Patriarchate, Orthodox, Orthodoxy, political commentary, politics, Pussy Riot, Religion, Religion and Spirituality, Russia, Russian, Russian Orthodox Church, Separation of church and state, Vladimir Putin
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High MP Officials appealed to the government to “show mercy” on the three members of Pussy Riot sentenced to two years in jail for a “punk prayer” in Moscow’s main cathedral. In a statement released by the MP High Council, “Casting no doubt on the legitimacy of the court’s decision, we appeal to the public authorities to show mercy, within the law, on the convicted in the hope they’ll never repeat such blasphemous actions”. Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Ekaterina Samutsevich were each been sentenced to two years in a medium-security prison for hooliganism motivated by religious hatred. The statement went on to say, “We think the words of pity for the convicted that came from the Church’s children and other people are natural. It’s necessary to divide the sin from sinner and reprimand the first while hoping the latter will improve”.
The Church condemned “the intentional act of blasphemy” as well as the “rude hostility to millions of people and their feelings” they say that Pussy Riot manifested back in February. They also pointed out that blasphemy, which qualifies as “a sin against God”, could only receive absolution after “sincere repentance”. Still, the Church urged those hurt by the punk performance to abstain from revenge or violence.
This is the first official statement from the Church since the trial began. As did President Vladimir Putin, top clerics refrained from remarks that could affect the judge’s decision. Nevertheless, Putin ventured a small comment on 3 August, saying the three girls shouldn’t be judged too harshly. In February, Pussy Riot performed a “punk prayer” in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour Cathedral in Moscow. Dressed in bright, short dresses and balaclavas, they sang a song with controversial lyrics, slamming a perceived merger of state with the Church, and called on the Virgin Mary to banish Putin, who was Prime Minister at that time.
17 August 2012
Russia Today
http://rt.com/news/orthodox-church-mercy-pussy-962/