>>513395544
He called it a genocide and condemned Russian soldiers for committing war crimes even though they called themselves devout Orthodox Christians. He also prayed for the refugees created by the invasion and prayed for an end to the war and violence there - all of which I was surprised by because the Russian Orthodox Church in America has a reputation for spreading pro-Putin and pro-war propaganda. At the end of the service, everyone lined up to get the bread dipped in wine and to kiss the Bible and a crucifix with Jesus on it held by the head priest. As that was happening, a Russian-American woman handed me some bread to eat because she saw I wasn't lining up to eat the bread dipped in wine. She also invited me to have some food and coffee down in the basement, and so did the head priest. I was surprised to see a handful of black Americans both attending the service and even participating in it. There was also an Asian woman and a Hispanic guy. But I wasn't too surprised because America is very diverse now. And I also know that there's a lot of Asians in Russia. They also did tons of crosses with their hands and bowed a lot. Some guys even went full Muslim and prostrated themselves in front of the alter at the beginning and end of the service. Overall it was the best religious experience I've had so far. I was even getting emotional for the first 20 minutes or so of the service because everything was so beautiful from the incense, to the art, to the singing and chanting, to the ornate and traditional clothing and bibles. It also felt nice to get closer to my dad's Slavic heritage. And so that experience is causing me to view this in a different light. These women are so trashy and disrespectful. I'm glad they got punished.