"Why Didn't Graham Recall The Political Prisoner Pastor?"

To pray for power is not to sanctify violence.

Priest of the Belarusian parish of the Constantinople Patriarchate in Vilnius Alexander Kukhta in "Facebook" reflected on the arrival in Minsk of a Protestant pastor from the United States, Franklin Graham, who met with Lukashenko and prayed for him at the "Festival of Hope" held in the capital on May 16-17:

- In 2020, when the Belarusian regime began to break independent structures, it turned out that religious communities are not bad at taking a blow. Because the church is not just a random crowd of grandmothers with candles. It is an environment where people know and support each other - or, as it is fashionable to say nowadays, build horizontal ties. And the church also has its own moral authority - the gospel. A book that goes very badly with truncheons, lies and the cult of power.

Lukashenko realized this threat and tried to roll religious life into the asphalt. And not without success.

Why do you think Lukashenko kisses bishops on camera? Out of love for church protocol? Of course not! It's simpler than that. He's sending a signal: "Yes, I lost the election. "But I'm still blessed by the Church. And that means God himself!"

For the same reason, Orthodox and Catholic hierarchs sit next to officials at the SNC. They are not there for furniture. Their presence legitimizes this whole circus.

Why are priests invited to cultural events? Just to stand? Also no! People need to see an official, a military man and a priest side by side and draw conclusions: "If the church is here, everything is normal. So the power is from God."

And let's be honest, the regime has succeeded quite well in subjugating religion in recent years. Catholics and Orthodox Christians all walk in lockstep and are afraid to make a peep. Bishops are silent. Priests are silent. Parishioners are silent. Fear reigns everywhere. And all because the regime in its time decapitated these systems, poisoned them, and then - the poison itself flowed down.

But the problem with Protestants, as Alexander Kukhta writes, the authorities have a problem:

- They have no single center of power, which could be nailed to the nail, and then - to subdue the entire system. Because Protestants are like jelly: you squeeze it in one place, it comes out in another. Yeah, some pastors got locked up. Some churches were shut down. Some were deported. What's the point? Protestants are not vertical. That's why their poison doesn't flow from the top to the bottom.

And the Belarusian regime is not the first to face this problem. So the solution has been invented long ago. And it has been realized many times. And a couple of days ago - in Belarus as well.

So, if you can't poison the top - because there is no top - then you need to infect the entire environment at once. To gather together thousands of believers. Create an atmosphere of unity, prayer and spiritual uplift. And then carefully inject there the message: "the power is from God, and Lukashenko is a legitimate ruler". That's all! Further the poison will spread without any help.

Because a person who has already become an accomplice once is afraid to admit it. He starts to convince himself and everyone around him that everything is not so bad, and once - well, who doesn't?

Yes, I'm talking about Franklin Graham's visit to Belarus. And about how he spread himself in front of Lukashenko. First - in person. Then - in an interview. And then also at the common prayer.

The Orthodox priest believes that many people have taken the bait:

- Purely humanly speaking, I can understand Protestants. Because it's not easy for them in Belarus. For decades the regime mocked them, kicked them and considered them second-class people. And here - such a gift! Franklin Graham himself was invited, a superstar of the American evangelical world. And they let him gather a huge crowd.

Frankly, I don't understand why Graham praised Lukashenko. He is not a stupid man, and he understood perfectly well that it was not necessary to do it. He could have just kept silent. Or better yet, one could have remembered, for example, about Pastor Oleh Loiko, who is now in prison. And pray for him. And the regime would not have done anything to him. Because they would be afraid to touch a figure of such magnitude. And here...

Okay. Let's assume that they had some kind of agreement. Let's say Lukashenko whispered to Graham that if he publicly wrote for him, political prisoners would be released (I personally doubt that they discussed something like that, but let's say). If that is indeed the case, then there are no questions for Graham. Only respect. The man put his reputation on the line for the sake of others.

But why did other believers fall for it? Protestants, awwww! You don't have to justify every action of your pastor. Even if he is a rock star.

Say nothing if you are in Belarus. But if you are abroad, become the voice of the silent and say directly that such prayer is a mistake.

But no! All the comments are littered with excuses: "all power is from God", "he didn't say how to pray", "everyone understood everything correctly". It's a kindergarten, honestly. And the saddest thing is that you really believe it.

And if you believe it, it means that you are infected. Then Lukashenko has outplayed you. Because when salt loses its power, it becomes poison.

In conclusion, I want to say a simple thing. NEVER play any games with Satan. He is cunning and is sure to find a hook to catch a person.

"Blessed is the husband who does not go to the counsel of the wicked."

P.S.: praying for power does not mean sanctifying violence. Nor does it mean playing along with it. Here is how the same prayer sounds in our parish at every liturgy:

"Let us pray for all those who have been forced to pack their houses and Radzima and for giving them everything they need to live in a foreign land and for the best way of life in their homes - let us all say: "Lord, hear us and remember us",

And we pray for all our brothers and sisters who have been wrongfully deported, and for their most urgent evocation - let us all say: "Lord, hear us and remember us",

We also pray for the help of the people of Ukraine, for the end of the war, for the freedom of our Belarusian people, and for the repentance of all those who are cheering, jumping and lawlessness - let us all say: "Lord, hear us and remember us",

I pray to God for God's sacred country Belarus and all the Belarusian people, for steadfastness in faith, courage in work and loyalty of our people to God we pray to all of us".

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