Best of the Spectator Holy Smoke: how Russia is waging Holy War in Ukraine
Feb 24, 2026
Dr Yuri Stoyanov, SOAS scholar of religion who studies the Russian Orthodox Church, explores how Russian rhetoric has morphed into a crusade-style holy war. He traces the break with Byzantine traditions, the sacralization of annexation and troop mobilization, splits across Orthodox churches, and surprising support from some Islamic and Buddhist leaders.
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Kirill's Rhetoric Mirrors Kremlin Expansionism
- Kirill's declarations reflect both his own nationalist theology and Kremlin interests, forming a synthesis of clerical and political elites.
- Stoyanov ties this to Putin calling Crimea a sacred Russian site and to growing militarist symbolism.
Autocephaly Granted Splits The Orthodox World
- The Moscow–Constantinople rift deepened after Constantinople granted autocephaly to Ukraine, shifting ecclesial loyalties across Orthodoxy.
- Stoyanov notes only some Greek-majority churches accepted Ukraine's autocephaly, while many Slav churches resisted.
Ethnolinguistic Lines Became Geopolitical Faults
- Fault lines follow ethnolinguistic lines: Slavonic, Greek, Romanian/Albanian Orthodox communities, now politicized by the Ukraine war.
- Stoyanov warns Moscow is losing ground in Baltic sees, Mount Athos and parts of Europe.