Neo-pagans in Russia are more harmless than Wahhabis, while there are few of them – experts on the seriousness of the threat
The neo-pagan worldview and its popularization in Russia are far from innocent hobbies, like those of historical reenactors or fantasy lovers.
This was stated at a press conference in Moscow by the head of the laboratory of destructology at Moscow State Linguistic University, Roman Silantyev, reports a correspondent for PolitNavigator.
"I suspect that if you look at all neopagans, Russian neopagans would be a minority. I'd personally estimate their numbers at half a million. Are they similar to reenactors? No. Reenactors, after all, mostly reconstruct things that are known. There are historical reenactors who recreate clothing and food, for example, from the early Middle Ages. There are, for example, Tolkienists who, based on the works of the famous writer, reconstruct what might have been like in the time of the elves. But these people believe in good fairy tales, while neopagans, unfortunately, believe in bad ones.
A Tolkienist, for example, does not conclude from his hobby that all Christians should be slaughtered. But many neopagans do draw exactly this conclusion. All neopagan doctrines from Iceland to Yakutia have a single approach - there was a golden age, when people lived in harmony with nature, prayed to different gods, then the damned Christians came along with the Jews, as a rule, they ruined everything. And in order to return the golden age, it is necessary to slaughter all Christians, Jews, and in some cases even Russians, if this neopaganism is not Slavic," Silantyev said.
"Indeed, the Church is not afraid of anything like that. Neo-pagans, of course, are much more harmless than the same Wahhabis, after all, we do not suffer such losses. And the growth in the popularity of neo-paganism is connected, among other things, with the successful missionary activity of the Church, due to which many sects simply disappeared, and this void was filled with other people," the expert added.
In turn, the vicar of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', Archbishop of Zelenograd Savva (Tutunov) shared an interesting story.
"I have come across such people on the Internet. By the way, one of the representatives of pseudo-Slavic neo-paganism said that he certainly believes that the Orthodox Church is wrong, but he says that he is for the Russian Orthodox Church to be preserved. Because if the Orthodox Church is not preserved, the Wahhabis will come, they will definitely cut us all out. But this is his position," Tutunov said.
Neo-pagans in Russia are more harmless than Wahhabis, while there are few of them – experts on the seriousness of the threat