Putin’s Apostles: The Eccentric Sect Blending Politics and Piety

Alright, let’s chat about this quirky sect that’s popped up in Russia, which has got some folks raising their eyebrows. So, there’s this group called the Chapel of Russia’s Resurrection, and they’ve got some pretty out-there ideas. They’re convinced that Russia’s President Putin is not just a political leader but also the reincarnation of Paul the Apostle. Yep, you heard that right.

Now, this isn’t your run-of-the-mill church group. They’re a breakaway from the Russian Orthodox Church and have set up shop in Bolshaya Yelnia, which is a stone’s throw away from the Volga River and Nizhny Novgorod. Their belief system is a wild cocktail of different faiths and ideas — a bit of Orthodoxy here, a splash of Catholicism there, throw in some occult and Buddhist vibes, and top it off with a heavy dose of political info. It’s like they threw a bunch of religious texts into a blender and went with whatever came out.

Local Orthodox priests, like Father Alexei, are not having any of it. He’s called them out for mixing all these beliefs together. And then there’s this neighbor who thinks the whole thing was cooked up to keep the Feds off the founder’s back. Whether that’s true or just neighborhood gossip, it sure adds some spice to the story.

The sect’s rituals are something else — they pray for Putin’s success in front of traditional icons and his portrait, and their services are more like patriotic sing-alongs. The whole crew dresses up like nuns, which is quite the sight.