Tales on the Post-Soviet Margins

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There isn’t a “brotherly people” in the Ukraine… definitely not. We can say that there is and isn’t a Ukraine, in the sense of state-political terms, it’s all rather murky. The Old Russian word “oukraina” originally applied to different borderlands of Rus and other ancient Russian principalities. This word first appeared in chronicles in 1187. Its present state-political overtones only appeared in the 20th century, in a completely artificial way. In fact, the territory that today we call the “Ukraine” brings together three… at least… very different areas: Novorossiya, Malorossiya, and Galicia (Zapadenshchiny). Different peoples live in these areas:

1. Fascists-Banderovtsy, Uniate heretics and pathological Russophobes 

Descendants of traitors and apostates, it’s been a treacherous race since the time of Daniil of Galicia, who betrayed Orthodoxy in the 13th century in the vain hope of Vatican protection. The papists bestowed upon him the title of “Daniil King of the Russians” (“Daniel Ruthenorum Rex”) for his apostasy. They are unequivocal “anti-Russians” (although their blood-lines are mostly Russian), deliberately fostered by Europe for many centuries as a weapon to combat the Russian people and state. However, within Europe, they were always second-class citizens and never had equal political rights with the leading nationalities of the states in which they lived (e.g., Austria-Hungary). Therefore, they have a massive inferiority complex, a fierce hatred of Russia and Russians, and low intellectual and cultural levels, which leads to an inability to adapt to the modern high-tech world. In short, they’re dolts. At most, they’re no more than 10-20 percent of the population in the modern “Ukraine”. At first, their settlements were mainly in far western areas, but after the collapse of the USSR, many of them flocked to Kiev. They almost entirely seized the so-called “creative professions” {with the aid of American money and diaspora Galician activists… they lacked the means, both financial and intellectual, to do otherwise: editor} and ousted all who disagreed with them from the “Ukrainian intelligentsia”. Today, they hold key positions in the political life of the country.

2. Little Russians

These are members of the Little Russian branch of the Russian people; they live mostly in the central part of today’s “Ukraine” and make up 40-45 percent of its current population. In the 20th century, the communists taught them to consider themselves as part of a non-existent “Ukrainian” nationality, albeit with the caveat that they were a “brotherly people”. The communists instilled the same ideology of the “brotherly peoples” in the minds of Russians living in Russia. This ideology still exists today. As a result, the obvious fact that there’s no such thing as “Ukrainians”, but only the Little Russian branch of the one Russian people, has pretty much disappeared, and only the present civil war in the “Ukraine” once again brought this issue forward to politicians and the media. By religion, most of them are Orthodox, but influenced by the anti-Russian orgy of recent decades, many spun off into the schismatical “Kiev Patriarchate” and dream of creating a “Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church” independent from Moscow.

3. Great Russians

Russians per se, who see themselves as Great Russians; mainly, they’re Orthodox under the Moscow Patriarchate. This is what they always believed and this is what they believe now.  Mostly, they’re in the southeast “Ukraine”, in Novorossiya (we’re excepting the Crimea, as that’s no longer relevant). They’re 40-45 percent of the “Ukrainian” population. Today, they’re the main opponents of the Neo-Nazi Banderovtsy junta occupying Kiev.

What follows from this? Here’s what:

Stop lying about a “brotherly people!” Such people simply don’t exist! Many are our enemies… we Russians agree with the Galicians on nothing, and we never shall. With such foes, you can only talk the language of force. You must speak with cannon and machine-guns… they’re able to understand that… anything else is useless and pointless. That’s especially true today, as the entire West backs them. The prospect of Malorossiya and Novorossiya reuniting with Russia terrifies the West… for that would mean the revival of the Russian Empire in its historical geopolitical form. The Galician anti-Russian pogrom in the “Ukraine” after the collapse of the USSR terribly ravaged Little Russia. However, in spite of everything, there remain pockets of true Orthodox Faith, and this would be the main foundation for any future recovery and revival of Russian Malorossiya. Russia should show leniency and patience, and the Russian Church and the Russian society should do as much as they can as quickly as possible to liberate the minds of Little Russians from the disastrous “Ukrainian” myth, as it’s an external fable, a foreign infection imported by our foreign enemies. Finally, Novorossiya… it’s simple and clear. It’s part of Russia, inhabited by Russian people, and there isn’t any ambiguity or misunderstanding on that. The top military and political leadership in the Kremlin must address the practical matter of reunification according to the current geopolitical, economic, and military-strategic situation. Therefore, what some erroneously call the “Ukraine” is mostly a Russian land inhabited by Russian people. Thus, its proper place is within Russia, the historical state of the Russian people. Certainly, that’s where we want to be!

24 June 2014

Konstantin Dushenov

TsIA Novorossiya

http://novorus.info/news/rusmir/24119-tochka-zreniya-skazki-postsovetskoy-okrainy.html

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Priest Put on Leave, but Congregations’ Wounds Remain

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Editor:

One of the Cabinet sent this to me. They wrote me:

The columnist, John Kass, is a practicing GOAA member. He’s the son of an immigrant Greek grocer. Mentions Orthodoxy occasionally, including a lovely column at Easter this year. He attends another area parish, not Ss Peter and Paul in Glenview (he lives in another suburb). To see a column on a situation like this is nothing less than amazing to me.

I agree… I have more to say, but read this first. It’s a read n’ heed, kids.

BMD

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Church should be a place of peace and understanding, where you go for answers. However, those are hard to come by as a Greek Orthodox priest in Glenview IL faces a felony charge in the theft of more than 100,000 USD from his former parish in Milwaukee WI. Controversy roiled two Greek Orthodox parishes, in Glenview and Milwaukee. Late Friday, the Glenview priest, Fr James Dokos, was put on unpaid administrative leave from Ss Peter and Paul Greek Orthodox Church in Glenview. He won’t be singing the liturgy on Sunday, church officials said.

The whistleblowers who dared complain about the allegedly high-rolling priest have found themselves locked in an ugly battle with Bishop Demetrios of Mokissos, the No. 2 ranking official in the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago that administers several Midwestern states. They accuse him; he accuses them. Bishop Demetrios told me, “Has the Metropolis been harmed? No, but it’s hurtful. These are reflective of the times we live in, and the brokenness of human nature is being played out in the press”.

Therefore, what I’ve found in the faith I was raised in isn’t exactly peace and light. Instead, anger and accusations, ego and greed replaced peace and light. If this goes to trial, there could be painful testimony, perhaps spreading beyond the question of whether one priest pilfered a trust fund. I don’t think this is over. On Friday, James Gottreich of Ss Peter and Paul, who had run-ins with Bishop Demetrios, told me, “I blew a whistle and dared ask questions, and I was removed from the parish council as president. It makes me mad, but now the truth is coming out, thank God”. Gottreich, who has been a parishioner for more than 50 years, is back on the board, but not as president. He helps with the ushers on Sundays. He said, “I don’t feel good about it, but after this time, after all the bad feelings and the pressure from above, the truth is out. It was in the Tribune. Everyone’s talking about it. I feel bad for the church, rotten for our parish, and I feel terrible for all the parishioners who won’t come back”.

Up in Milwaukee, at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, another whistleblower, Emmanuel Mamalakis, also assessed the damage, saying, “It’s been absolutely horrible. This is the worst experience I’ve ever had, no holds barred. All we were trying to do is follow our legal obligation”. Mamalakis also had run-ins with the bishop. He said, “Every time we tried to peacefully resolve it, he was the blockade. Proving a point that he was the boss and we will do what he said, rather than resolve it”. Mamalakis said that Bishop Demetrios ordered the Milwaukee church council to apologise to Dokos for accusing him of theft. After the church council refused, he said, they sought out Milwaukee County prosecutors. The bishop said that all he was trying to do was resolve the matter amicably.

At the centre of this is Dokos, a Milwaukee priest transferred to Ss Peter and Paul Church in Glenview in 2012. According to a criminal complaint in Milwaukee County court, Dokos is accused of raiding a trust fund earmarked for the Milwaukee church. He allegedly spent tens of thousands of dollars on jewellery and trips and ran up 20,000 USD in tabs at “upper end” restaurants. Not exactly the homespun garments and clay cup of the carpenter who was crucified and, as we Christians believe, resurrected on the third day. There’s more in the criminal complaint, but it all speaks to the same thing… avarice.

Late Friday, Bishop Demetrios told me that he’d placed Dokos on indefinite unpaid administrative leave and he wouldn’t serve liturgy at the Glenview church on Sunday. Demetrios said, “Unpaid leave. The letter’s going out to the church. He’ll be on leave until the criminal issues are resolved”. It was what Gottreich said he had had asked for years ago when the priest was installed in Glenview. He said, “There was a lot of pain, and it was unnecessary. All we wanted was for Dokos to be put on leave, but Bishop Demetrios said no. When I asked him, he shook his finger at me, angry, as if I was supposed to be obedient. But he brought this priest to our church, took our other priest away, and Dokos had a cloud over his head”.

Whether Dokos will be found innocent or guilty won’t be resolved anytime soon. Neither will the bitterness left in the fight over him. Bishop Demetrios argues he’s been unfairly criticised in this business, saying, “Of course I’ve been harmed, and greatly hurt. Unfortunately, this got ugly. It’s unfortunate that some want to sensationalise this and want the downfall of the church. If Mr Mamalakis feels we attacked him, that’s his impression”.

There’s nothing surprising about a man being accused of sin. We’re all sinners. The sinner could be the one in the golden robe, proud, righteous, and confident in his place among men, loudly singing and praising heaven. Or, it could be that lowly tax collector in the back row, head down, trembling, quietly begging God’s mercy. I always liked the tax collector. He was humble. He was afraid. He understood. Turn to church and you’re supposed to get answers. However, in this sad affair, all I have are questions.

Editor:

Did you see the bishop’s attitude? His arrogance was just too much. All too many of the First Families are like that, though. “How dare you complain, you insolent worm! You’re cut off from communion!” That’s happened far too often. It’s time for us to clean up the byre that’s our Church. We’ve fallen and we WON’T get up…

BMD

22 June 2014

John Kass

Chicago (IL) Tribune

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/kass/ct-kass-met-0622-20140622,0,7230701.column

25 June 2014. Four Maps to Help You Understand Why “The Ukraine” is the Most Disgusting Fiction of Our Time

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Our first map shows the election results of 2010. You can see the clear divide in the country. This isn’t only a political divide… some of the other maps will show it as well, but all the areas that went for Yanukovich were predominantly Russian-speaking. Only the dark blue areas speak “Ukrainian” (actually, the heavily-Polonised Lvov dialect). The light blue areas (except the isolated region in the southwest, which speaks Rusin) are Surzhik-speaking. The Galician Uniates hate Surzhik and count its speakers as “Ukrainian-speakers”, even though this dialect is closer to Russian than it is to the semi-Polish Lvov mishmash. The Galicians also hate the Rusins and claim that they’re “Ukrainian” and that there’s no such thing as Rusins. In short, there are four linguistic-cultural areas, there is no united “Ukraine”… that’s a Galician Uniate fairy tale (they call it “Consciousness”… I call it “The Galician Narrative”. Now, let’s look at a language map.

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Mirabile dictu! Russian predominates in Novorossiya! Another Galician Uniate canard bites the dust… there’s more to come, kids. The dark orange area is the “Surzhik heartland” of Malorossiya (Little Russia). Unlike the Lvovshchina, it didn’t suffer from Habsburg misrule… so, it’s far less Polonised and not Uniate at all. Let’s move on…

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We’re staying with language for the time being. NO Euromaidantsy terrorist filth arose in Russian-speaking areas. NONE. Mobs didn’t seize government buildings except in Galician dialect areas. Then, why did such violence erupt in Kiev? Firstly, as the capital of a centralised state, it attracted enough Galician Uniates to disrupt the equilibrium. Secondly, for 18 years(1992-2010), the state favoured Uniates and schismatic “Orthodox” and put legal barriers in front of the real canonical Orthodox, so, there was disproportionately more Uniates and schismatics in Kiev. Besides this, what few pro-Western Surzhik people there were, are found in Kiev… these people were mostly Western-educated, so, they’d been bowled over by the West (much like some of the Bolotnaya Square pukes in Russia). They bussed in most of the Euromaidantsy from Galicia (where did they did get the money for that? If you said the US Embassy, you might be right). Another reason for choosing Kiev is that’s where the Western media was… so, they brought in the mobs in from other parts. Let’s look at our last map…

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NONE of the areas that voted for Yanukovich had Euromaidantsy filth and outrages. NONE. Therefore, the Western-fomented coup had four main props:

1. The Galician Uniates saw their power grab stymied by V F Yanukovich… they especially didn’t like his cracking down on their proselytisation of Orthodox. They HATED his granting of equal rights to the canonical Church. They also didn’t like his supporting the rights of Russian and Surzhik speakers over the Galician hillbilly pidgin-speaking minority.
2. The schismatical Orthodox saw their position threatened by V F Yanukovich’s support of the canonical Church… that is, there was no more government favour for those who worshipped at schismatical temples. Their very existence was at stake.
3. The oligarchs and political class didn’t like V F Yanukovich as he was more honest than they were, and that cramped their style. Yes, V F Yanukovich was corrupt… very much so. However, he was LESS corrupt than Yatsenyuk, Kolomoisky, and Turchinov were (let alone Darlin’ Yuliya the landshark, who’s in a class by herself).
4. To provide “muscle” for the coup, the plotters enlisted the violent Galician Uniate Hard Right (a subset of the Galician Uniates, they’re the worst of a rather sorry crew).

I know that’s not the Western media narrative, but it’s the truth, and it’s why the present civil war is so bitter. It’s a war between rival nationalities, rival religions, rival cultures, and rival political ideologies. It’s as if the Democrats and Republicans had AKs and were going at each other. However, the greatest falsehood is on the side of the Uniates, and they’re the engine behind the junta. They see their last chance to “convert” the Ukraine going up in smoke, so, they’re using all means, including the foulest ones, to get Novorossiya back into their clutches. The locals resist that, and they’re fighting the only war worth fighting, defending hearth, home, and family from aggressor beasts bent on murder and rapine.

You can support the Uniate opium dream or you can back Orthodox sanity. By the way, the Uniates suck up to the oligarchs and crawl on their bellies to the West, the Orthodox set up the People’s Republics and stand tall with Russia… one of these things is NOT like the other! The Orthodox honour the VOV vets, the Red banner, and the Soviet legacy… the Uniates glorify Nazi collaborators, tear down monuments to heroes, and erect statues of terrorists. Those are the choices on offer… there are no others.

BMD