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Russian punk group Pussy Riot is stopped by Cossack militia as it tries to perform under a sign for the Sochi Olympics (2014). In May 2018, several hundred Don Cossacks met for their annual games in the ruins of the Annensky fortress at Starocherkasskaya, in southern Russia. Men wearing traditional clothes and demonstrated their horsemanship and sabre skills. Flags bearing the figure of Christ floated in the breeze. Valery Rezanov pointed to a thick wooden cross around his neck and said: ‘We’re Christian soldiers, protectors of the [Russian] Orthodox faith.’ Though Cossacks were once recruited from all backgrounds, the current revival is establishing a strong link with the Orthodox faith. According to local chief (ataman) Mikhail Bespalov, the key Cossack values are ‘Respect the faith, Defend the Motherland, Love your family.’ Showing me an icon he had brought along, he said: ‘We serve the Church and our president. That’s how it’s always been.’ His friend Ilya Cherchinov agreed. He wore a huge cross over a t-shirt printed with an Orthodox prayer. Kirill, patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, sees the Cossacks as ‘very important members of the Orthodox community.’ Their faith is important (you have to be Orthodox to be a Cossack). Cherchinov and most of his friends see patriotism and Orthodoxy as inseparable: ‘Cossacks have a duty to fight the enemies of the Church and of Russia.’ Rezanov says: ‘We have always been patriots. We go and fight wherever we are needed, to defend Russia’s interests. We are fighting a holy war.’ #UnitedOrthodoxy #Orthodox #Orthodoxy #Cossacks #Russia
