Christ the Saviour and Pussy Riot

We're taking a quick jaunt to the nation's capital to admire an edifice with a rather roulettian history: the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Back in 1812, when Napoleon Bonaparte and his Grande Armee retreated in chaotic disgrace from undefeated Moscow, Tsar Alexander I ordained that a cathedral be built "to signify Our gratitude to Divine Providence for saving Russia from the doom that overshadowed Her."  Well, things proceeded in typical Russian fashion, the final cornerstone wasn’t laid until 1839 (Alexander had kicked the bucket almost fifteen years previously) and the church wasn’t consecrated until 26 May 1883, the day that Alexander III was crowned Tsar (Nicholas I and Alexander II had also died in the meantime).  Perched on the Moscow River within a distant stone's throw of the Kremlin, this massive building topped by gold onion domes was the tallest Orthodox church in the world.

This state of affairs continued for fifty years during which revolution swept away the autocracy, and religion soon went out of vogue. It was clearly unfitting for an orthodox church to dominate the skyline of the Soviet capital, and newspapers, towing the party line, grumbled that "the Cathedral is grotesque and totally inartistic" and "a poisonous mushroom on Moscow's face."   Plus the church domes contained over twenty tons of gold – what a waste!  Thus, in December 1933, the cathedral was demolished, the gold confiscated, and the marble put to use in nearby metro stations.

Now plans were implemented to build the largest skyscraper in the world, the Palace of the Soviets -- a massive art deco building that was to be crowned by an immense statue of Lenin with his hand raised in victory. Alas, work on this astounding palace had to be abandoned when the German army invaded in 1941, and for years, all that remained on the site of the once glorious cathedral was a flooded hole. In 1958, Nikita Khrushchev decided to make the best of a bad situation and transformed those flooded foundations into the world’s largest open air swimming pool.



Well, the wheel spun around again, Communism collapsed, the Russian Orthodox Church is back in style, and in the 1990s, the decision was made to rebuild the church from scratch.  The new building was consecrated in all of its renewed glory in 2000, has a capacity of 10,000 people, and is again the tallest Orthodox cathedral in the world.


Meanwhile, the girls who recently plunged the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour into the worldwide news are now en route to labour camps where they will serve the rest of their two year sentence for "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred". For back in February, this Cathedral was the site of the 41-second unsanctioned performance by the punk band Pussy Riot in which they sang an "obsscenity-laced prayer" asking the Mother of God to free them from Putin, while jumping, shouting and kicking their legs. 

Two years -- most of which will be spent in the harsh conditions of remote labour camps -- for a little rowdiness? The sentence is often referred to as "draconian" in the western media and has pop stars and presidents speaking out against its excessiveness -- clearly, it must be because of Putin! But why aren't most Russians appalled?  

General Director Anastasia says, "they should have gotten more time! If they had carried out such antics in a mosque, they would be dead by now."

And Sascha Musician says, "just calling something art doesn't give you the right to do whatever you want wherever you please. If they had done this on Haymarket Square there would be no problem. But you can't act like this in a church -- or in a museum or in a theatre."

My most charming English student, Golden Guy Pavel (young, tall, attractive, diligent, and wealthy -- he'll soon be heading to Latvia for pilot lessons so he can fly a Cessna) is riled when I mention the scandal.
He says, "I cannot stand these girls. I not so much believe in the God --"
"God," I say, "just God."
"Yes, I not so much believe in the God -- well, I say prayer when I am in trouble, but I not so much believe. But a church! How can they do such things in a church! There are believing people there, it is a holy place. I hate those girls. They are, umm, what is the word -- prostitutes! You know about their orgy in a museum, no? And they say it's art!"

For Russians, even young, more or less non-believers like Golden Guy, there still is a sense of sacred space that has all but gone lost in the West, and Russian Orthodox churches exude an atmosphere of religiosity that is not so readily felt in their austere protestant counterparts. Women cover their heads with shawls before entering. The candles are lit, the icons glow, the smell of incense fills the air, people stand in line for hours to pray before a miracle-working icon, the ancient liturgy is sung a capello in a haunting minor key: it is a holy space. And the Pussy Riot protest is seen like someone spitting on a most treasured possession.

So part of the miscommunication seems to be taking place as follows.

The West hears: "These girls PROTESTED AGAINST PUTIN (in a church)."
Whereas Russians hear: "These girls protested (against Putin) IN A CHURCH!!!" 
...and are quick to agree that if this provocative punk prayer had taken place in a public square there would be no issue, even had Putin remained the target.  

Still, there are some dissenting opinions. Berlin Harald, Hamburg Petra and I come across this collage at an opening in the remnants of a once vibrant art center founded back in the 90s. Putin looks down from above at three Pussy Rioters in their bright clothing and balaclava-covered faces -- topped by halos!