The Riddleblog

Putin's Worldview, the Slavic Soul, and a Secular Apocalypse

We, in the West, cherish our liberal intellectual heritage: our free markets, our individual freedom and liberties, our republican form of limited government, and our practice of electing national leaders to office for short terms in office, with clearly defined responsibilities and limits. From his recent comments, it is clear that Vladimir Putin sees things much differently. Those things we tend to cherish are anathema to him. He is in every sense an dictatorial autocrat, but also a self-professed Russian Orthodox Christian with an incomprehensible worldview to most in the West (identified in recent Russian academic thought as Eurasian Nationalist Bolshevism). Putin loathes what he sees as western decay and decadence. America is responsible for many of the evils in the West which he deplores.

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is only the most recent in a series of military endeavors which are the logical outcome (perhaps the necessity) of his view of Russia and his hoped-for recovery of lost empire. He seems obsessed with his personal role in determining just what that Russian future might be. “How will history remember him?” We will think of him as a tyrannical war-criminal who will go down in memory as a despised butcher of non-combatants. But he thinks of himself as the savior of the Slavic people, a man who is recovering the Slavic soul—a heroic effort for which those living in the future Russia will venerate him for generations to come.

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Current EventsKim RiddlebargerApril 12, 2022Putin's worldview, Putin and the Slavic SoulComment

How to Help Christians in Ukraine

My friend and colleague (Dr. Scott Clark at The Heidelblog) beat me to it, but Rev. Wes Bredenhof (from the Free Reformed Church in Launceston, Tasmania) has a blog post providing links to two organizations which are providing relief to Christians (and others) in Ukraine: Resources to help the Ukrainian Church.

Also, a number of Reformed and Evangelical Seminaries in Eastern Europe, Ukraine, and the Russian Federation have issued the following joint statement, Please pray for these dear brothers and their families and for the advance of the gospel!

The Christian Church has been instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Created by the Word of God and directed by the Holy Spirit, the Church confesses one Lord and Savior Jesus, His gospel and law. Therefore, as part of the Church and under the Lordship of Christ, we are called to speak the truth and expose deceit (Eph 4:15; 4:25).
In the light of Russia’s full-scale attack on Ukraine, we consider it necessary to strongly condemn the open and unjustified aggression aimed at destroying the statehood and independence of Ukraine and based on blatant lies from the lips of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, and the country’s top leadership.
We reject Putin’s mythical narrative, which has nothing to do with historical reality, about the alleged artificial creation of the Ukrainian state.
We condemn Putin’s cynical lies about Ukraine’s alleged genocide of the people in the east of the country, lies that Putin uses to satisfy his own geopolitical ambitions, which are clearly contrary to God’s revelation (Deut. 27:17; Prov. 22:28).
We confess the real and unlimited power of God over all countries and continents (Ps 24:1), as well as over all kings and rulers (Prov 21:1), therefore, nothing in all creation can interfere with the fulfillment of the good and perfect will of God. We, together with the first Christians, affirm “Jesus is Lord,” and not Caesar.
We express solidarity with the people of Ukraine. We share the pain of those who have already lost their loved ones. We pray that all of the aggressor’s plans would be thwarted and put to shame. We call on all people of good will around the world to resist the lies and hatred of the aggressor. We call on everyone to petition for a cessation of hostilities and to exert every possible influence on the Russian Federation in order to stop the unmotivated aggression toward Ukraine. We ask you to pray for peace for the people of Ukraine and for courage and wisdom for Christian churches so that they continue to serve those in need.
We pray for our authorities and put our hope in the King of kings and the Lord of lords, who is, and remains, our refuge and our fortress, even in time of war (Ps 46).
Evangelical Reformed Seminary of Ukraine
Baltic Reformed Theological Seminary (Riga, Latvia)
Evening Reformed Seminary (Almaty, Kazakhstan)
Kyiv Theological Seminary
Odessa Theological Seminary
Poltava Theological Seminary
Reformed Theological Seminary of Donetsk (temporarily located in Kyiv)
Reformed Theological Seminary Heidelberg, (Germany)
Seminary in Western Russia (we withhold the name of the seminary)
Seminary in Western Siberia, Russia (we withhold the name of the seminary)
Taurian Christian Institute (Kherson)

Current EventsKim RiddlebargerFebruary 28, 2022Aid for Ukrainian ChristiansComment