Witches Fly Low – to Thunderstorm

They say that court of the South African Kingdom of Swaziland made recently the decision which significantly limited rights of local witches and sorcerers - from now on it allowed to fly not higher than 150 meters over earth. Serious steps for fight against evil spirit are recently taken in Russia as well...

The authorities of the Voronezh region acted first with plausible initiative - they forbade to celebrate traditional nurseries and pagan holidays - Day of Neptune and Night of Ivan Kupala. From the program of Day of Youth which took place in a village Morozovka with a firm hand they deleted mermaids, water-sprites and Baba-Yaga. Priests and parishioners of the Russian Orthodox Church complained to local authorities on evil spirit. One of the authors of the complaint, the prior of Sacred Ilya Cathedral and Aleksandr-Nevsky Cathedral of the city of Rossosh Holy Father Roman declared that Day of Neptune and Night of Ivan Kupala "break peace of mind of parishioners". Father Roman was supported also by the speaker of the Moscow patriarchy - archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin who specified that it’s dangerous to imitate clothes of pagan gods and spirits. Direct ban of local administration followed...

From bad to worse. From now on Neptune with his suite, mermaids and other underwater "evil spirits" which steadily accompanied naval holidays earlier will disappear from the program of celebration of Day of Navy. As representative of the Navy reported to "Interfax", the Russian Orthodox Church insisted on it. "It is difficult to disagree with our guests (representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church)... that pagan characters who were absent during the Flood onboard Noah's Ark have no place on the holiday of orthodox sea troops", - was declared by representative of the Navy.

So, if lagging behind African kingdom restricts evil spirit only in flights, we seemingly decided to limit it completely - on the earth, in water and in air.

Well, Christianity started struggles with pagan gods of Greek-Roman and Slavic pantheon not yesterday. It is possible to find among legends story about a feat made by bishop Avercius in the II century: "Having taken stake... went to Temple of Apollo where there was pagan holiday a day before and a lot of victims were sacrifiсed. A lot of precious, perfectly cleaned idols were in that temple... Having approached the temple, Avercius found locked doors; he сrashed them and they immediately swung open before him. Having entered the temple, the sacred bishop at first began to strike main idol Apollo's and then others. He broke all of them and broke them into small parts. Deaf and mute idols, being callous and possessing no force, couldn't protect themselves when the sacred was breaking them. Only knock from their falling was heard. Priests of idols, living near the temple, woke up and, hearing great noise in the temple great didn't understand what it could mean. Having come running to the temple, they saw that idols of their gods lay on the earth in ashes and sacred Avercius was trampling fragments of idols by feet and smashing them with crosier."

Though there is one important distinction between bishop Avercius and, forgive me God, Holy Father Vsevolod Chaplin. Avercius as well as other figures of early Christianity sincerely observed ALL rules and bans put to Christians including poverty vow, he didn’t choose from them, as raisin from a roll, only few, the sweetest. By the way, disorder organized by Avercius in the pagan temple threatened him with very serious troubles, but locals pardoned bishop due to that spiritual authority which he deserved among them. Obviously Avercius conducted strict faster way of life which his belief ordered him to conduct, he didn’t chew ham on Good Friday on public like Mr. Chaplin. (Here you are, by the way, this picturesque episode from biography of Mr. Chaplin, according to Sergey Parkhomenko's story: "once we met with this very Chaplin in cassock, with a big cross hanging on his breast in the buffet. It took place accurately on Good Friday. I found father Vsevolod Chaplin opening widely as an oven his mouth and putting huge ham sandwich into this buffet. It was very ridiculous show. I approached him: "Father Vsevolod, - I told him intending to pin him up, - What are you doing on Good Friday? How it could be? I see that your sandwich is with ham. Something is wrong here. You have a cross hanging on the breast and cassock on your shoulders. What does it mean?" Father Vsevolod Chaplin wasn't confused at all, he raised his eyes on me and told: "You seem to be fundamentalist".)

It is interesting, what would be with Mr. Chaplin, if he could be transferred by some miracle to those far times, to the place of bishop Avercius? First of all, there are no doubts that tight and skimpy cassock of bishop Avercius would be immediately burst on his magnificent body. Then... for some reason a thought that Mr. Chaplin wouldn't smash temples of dominating pagan religion risking his head, but would do absolutely on the contrary - would appear among ardent exposers of "scoffers" and "blasphemers" in the name of the first Christians, he would probably demand, chewing ham, strict punishment for Avercius. By the way, now Mr. Chaplin declared that the law on "insult of feelings of the believers", in his opinion, is too soft and that criminal punishments provided in it need to be strengthened.

Vladimir Ulyanov, by the way, noted that "Christians, having received the provision of the state religion, "forgot" about "naiveties" of initial Christianity with its democratic revolutionary spirit". Pagans forgave bishop Avercius for an insult of their belief just because respected in his face of the carrier of "democratic revolutionary spirit". Well, and priests of traditional pagan religion... though their ceremonies also observed in the old manner, but they obviously weren't respected such respect, as allowed Avercius to crush their temple with impunity.

Vladimir Ulyanov, by the way, noted that "Christians, having received provision of the state religion "forgot" about "naiveties" of initial Christianity with its democratic revolutionary spirit". Pagans forgave bishop Avercius for insult of their belief just because they respected carrier of "democratic revolutionary spirit" in his face. While priests of traditional pagan religion... though their ceremonies were observed in the old manner weren’t obviously respected to such extend which allowed Avercius to crush their temple with impunity.

Mr. Chaplin and others apparently decided to get wants and needs met. On the one hand, to smash pagans as sacred Avercius did and on the other to indulge in various excesses and to sink in luxury as the same pagan governors of his era. To drive smart cars, no one is surprised today by heading in news: "One more drunken monk in a foreign car hit passersby". To live in immense apartments, so magnificent that even nanodust from a ceiling causes material damage on million rubles. By the way, we find the following description of the imperial palace of Neron from Suetonius: "The hall in it was of such height that enormous statue of the emperor with growth in hundred twenty foots was standing there; its area was so big that threefold portico on its sides was of mile length; there was a pond inside which looks like sea... In other rooms everything was covered with gold, decorated with jewels and pearl sinks; in lunch chambers ceilings were piece, with rotary plates to scatter flowers, with holes to disseminate aromas; the main chamber was round and unceasing rotated after firmament day and night; salt and sulfuric waters flew in baths. When such palace was finished and blessed, Neron in its praise said only that now at last he would live properly".

Certainly, Mr. Gundyaev with his precious nanodust is still far from such luxury, though its approach is prompt, isn’t it?

Well, the result of such combination - severity to other and boundless softness to oneself – is well-known. This result was recorded at the beginning of the XX century by poet Alexander Blok in the words: "Why do they perforate ancient cathedral? – Because grown fat priest hiccupping took bribes and sell vodka for hundred years?”

It is possible to quote the phrase from sacred Avercius’s life again - only to arrange it following modern harmony, to apply it mentally to present dominating church. It’s not harmless punk public prayer of Pussy from which no subject in the temple was broken or suffered! "Having entered the temple, the sacred bishop at first began striking the main idol... and then others. He broke all of them and broke them into small parts... Knock from their falling was heard”.

Send by mail

Print