What is it about?
This study examines how two key figures in the Russian Orthodox Church - Patriarch Kirill and Archpriest Andrei Tkachev - talked about the war in Ukraine in their sermons from February to September 2022. By analyzing their language, we show how they use lexical variations (substitutions and modifications) to present war in ways that align with the Russian government's perspective. Our research reveals that religious leaders of the ROC use their sermons not just to offer spiritual guidance but also to influence how their listeners feel about the war, subtly promoting ideas that match state ideology.
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Why is it important?
Our linguistic analysis demonstrates how religious discourse is used to shape public perception of war, focusing specifically on the sermons of high-ranking Russian Orthodox Church officials during the Ukraine invasion. While many studies examine political or media narratives, this research highlights the often overlooked role of religious rhetoric in reinforcing state ideology.
Perspectives
This study has been an eye-opening exploration of how language, ideology, and religion intersect in times of war. What initially appears as spiritual guidance often reveals deeper ideological patterns that align with the state’s narrative, blurring the line between faith and politics.
Olga Mennecke
University of Hildesheim
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Spiritual guidance or ideological control? Framing of
War
in Russian orthodox sermons during the Ukraine invasion, Critical Discourse Studies, February 2025, Taylor & Francis,
DOI: 10.1080/17405904.2025.2466610.
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