Russia Considers Anti-gay Laws

Putin and the Ghost of Alexander I

    The Anglican Archbishop of York (the English church’s second-in-command, third if you count the Queen), made recent headlines attending investiture of Uganda’s newest anti-gay bishop (one wonders when such things became a priority?).  In the United States, American Evangelicals and Roman Catholics tire of being compared to the Klan and to Uganda, while Uganda continues to publicly thank them for their essential financial support.  Now Putin has come out against the gays as well, but he might just be playing an old Russian game.

    The Russian DUMA is considering legislation to counter the so-called gay agenda (sound familiar?)… that would impose fines of $16,000 for organizing public pro-gay events or disseminating information on the LGBTQ identity and lifestyle to children.

    Putin is an intelligent and a capable politician.  I am often comforted that he is in control, but the game he has been playing of late is merely a rerun that Russia has seen before.  Spymaster turned democrat, turned nationalist, Putin’s latest persona is hauntingly reminiscent of Alexander I, Tsar of Russia, Modernist Reformer, mentee-turned-foe of Napoleon, and finally, God’s ordained defender of Christendom and tradition, turned repressor of civil rights. 

    The 19^th Century Russian Empire struggled with change to adapt to Modern social, economic and faith trends infiltrating from the West (especially republican France).  Alexander’s reign encompassed periods of intense nationalism, religious conservatism and the repression of freedom and civil rights.  Perhaps Putin is being tempted to emulate Alexander I in attempting to co-opt the Russian church and “tradition” in a struggle to overcome and supplant the indigenous spirituality, economy and culture of a great and modernizing people. 

    Alexander I stylized himself the restorer of the Christian church and champion of Christian values (including the divine right of kings) against the forces of liberalism and republicanism as represented by progressive France.  He led a conservative coalition of oft bemused emperors seeking to suppress freedom and civil rights in all of Europe – the so-called Holy Alliance (1815-1848).  Wikipedia sums up the coalition’s intent “… to instill the divine right of kings and Christian values in European political life … promis[ing] to act on the basis of ‘justice, love and peace’ … in order to ‘perpetuate the [traditional] mundane institutions and adjust their imperfection.’”

    The London Guardian indicates much the same language and tone in current opposition against Russia’s gays, “[the anti-gay legislation] has been hailed by public figures and Russia’s dominant Orthodox church.  It is widely seen as part of an official drive to promote traditional Russian values as opposed to western liberalism, which the Kremlin and church see as corrupting youth and by extension contributing to a wave of protest against Putin’s rule.”

    Like Alexander I, the Archbishop of York and politicians in Uganda, Putin can choose to scapegoat the gays or he can choose to stand for liberty and be seen as defender of all Russians – including the LGBTQ community.  After all, Tchaikovsky was gay, as were Gogol, Dashkova, Zarubin, Nijinsky, Horowitz, Leontiev, Musorgsky, Sudeikin, Kuzmin, Eisenstein, Diaghilev, Petrov-Vodkin and Nereev, not to mention numerous tsars, princes and priests.  Talk about defending Russian tradition and values, let alone culture.

    Or, he could ally himself with supporters of the bill, one of whom, according to the Guardian, stated that “… gay people should be prohibited from donating blood, sperm and organs for transplants, and that their hearts should be burned or buried after death.” ???

Gay Russian artist Dmitry Dmitriev

also turns to Russia’s past for inspiration.

Courtesy the artist.

    Diatribe and backwards superstition aside, as a homosexual, I should hope that my heart be burnt or buried, along with the rest of my body in a respectful, traditional Christian ceremony – especially considering the alternatives.

    Thankfully, Putin does often reflect the best of Russia.  Unlike Alexander I, Putin earned his power and is to be respected for that.  The question is whether he will likewise draw from the best of Russia culturally, spiritually and intellectually to find a way to increase freedom, recognition of civil rights and protection of Russia’s LGBTQ community against superstition, or if he will tire and too closely follow in the missteps of those who have gone before.

    As for the Archbishop of York and Western evangelicals who support persecution in places like Uganda, all we can fall back on is the lesson of Haman’s Curse, being that those who persecute and abuse others often find themselves enduring the same punishments they had envisioned for others (Haman was hung from a gallows prepared for the Jewish hero, Mordecai). 

    In reality, it is often difficult to figure out just why people are being deprived of their rights or even their lives in repressive regimes – are they Christian?  Gay?  Or just pro-Western? 

    Even if Putin is merely cynically following Alexander I in attempting to use religion and tradition to buttress his position, it is a dangerous game with innocent victims.  Freedom is freedom.  Freedoms and rights that can be denied one group today are often denied to others tomorrow.  Perhaps it would be better if we worked together on this one – Putin, the gay community, and the Orthodox Church, to increase and preserve liberty for all.

    As for the Archbishop of York and Uganda’s politicians, may their hearts be burnt or buried upon their deaths, as according to their custom, but might those hearts be found to have been opened and informed by the Holy Spirit and the lessons of history.  Amen.

Guardian quotes from 25 Jan, 2013.

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