Christianizing History

Published on April 29, 2005

The UPI reports on the statuary surrounding the Belgorod, Russia site of the 1943 Battle of Kursk, where 600,000 German and Soviet soldiers died in a 50-day battle that left the Nazi tank army destroyed, and finds that, though the Russians were fighting for the great, Evil Empire of atheist Communism, they may yet be […]

The UPI reports on the statuary surrounding the Belgorod, Russia site of the 1943 Battle of Kursk, where 600,000 German and Soviet soldiers died in a 50-day battle that left the Nazi tank army destroyed, and finds that, though the Russians were fighting for the great, Evil Empire of atheist Communism, they may yet be posthumously turned into Christian soldiers. As UPI’s Martin Sieff breathlessly writes, the narrative of the battle has changed in the past 13 years since the collapse of the Soviet Union, leading to a blunt revisionist history that recasts the soldiers as martyrs for Christ. An elaborate new cathedral has been built on the battlefield, and a new memorial to the fallen happily recalls the days of the tsars, with a carving of St. George. Even the land itself seems to be getting more Godly (well, it reminds Sieff of the American Midwest). What does it all mean? According to Sieff, a “striking Orthodox Christian revival,” that’s responsible not just for bringing God back to Russia, but also for an economic boom, increased internet access, and for taking Belgorod’s volleyball team all the way to the national championships. That’s quite a savior indeed, to go back in time and become the purpose of the Red Army, and make it back in time for the V-ball playoffs.

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