Russia’s nuclear bombs blessed by Putin’s top church leader & says doomsday weapons are a ‘shield for the motherland’

RUSSIA’S top bishop has blessed nuclear bombs and says Putin’s deadly arsenal is evidence of God’s “grace and mercy”. In a recent speech the Russian Orthodox Church leader, Patriarch Kirill, said doomsday weapons are a necessary “shield for the motherland”. Patriarch Kirill says the Kremlin’s vast arsenal of nuclear weapons is a sign of God’s ‘grace and mercy’ Credit: AFP Kirill is a staunch supporter of the Russian leader Credit: Reuters He has previously called the invasion of Ukraine a “holy war” against evil. Kirill, an alleged former KGB spy, said Russians who die in Ukraine will have their sins forgiven by God at the service held near Moscow. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! He ended his ceremony at the Seraphim-Diveyevo convent with a prayer for Putin. A fierce ally of the Russian president, Kirill has in the past described the Putin’s long rule as a “miracle from God”. Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile launchers parade through Red Square Credit: AFP The top religious leader has called the war with Ukraine a ‘holy war’ Credit: AP Since the war with Ukraine began, Russian Orthodox priests have blessed an array of weapons, including intercontinental ballistic missiles, as well as nuclear submarines, fighter jets and tanks. Priests who have prayed for peace in Ukraine have been punished by the church, as in 2023, it ruled that pacifism was a heresy. The religious leader appeared at the service in a convent near Sarov – the town which the Soviet Union developed their first atomic bomb. Sarov is the home to Russian nuclear research facilities and entry to the town is strictly controlled. Most read in The Sun Despite the Soviet Union being strictly atheist, he claimed God helped them build the atomic bomb in 1949 – thanks to the prayers of a Russian mystic named St Seraphim who died 100 years earlier. He said: “The creation of this formidable weapon in our country, and in this specific place, was no coincidence; all of this came to pass, in no small measure, through the prayers of our venerable and God-fearing Father Seraphim of Sarov.” “The humble elder, through his holiness, through his prayer, contributed to the continued existence of our people and our country.” Despite preaching a message of peace, St Seraphim has been adopted by the Russian Orthodox Church as the spiritual father of Russia’s nuclear programme. Known as the “miracle-maker of Sarov,” where he is thought to have spent 25 years as a hermit, he is also said by believers to have prayed for a thousand days and nights on a boulder. He was officially declared a saint in 1903. Kirill went on to say that the nuclear weapons had prevented Russia’s enemies from “destroying” the Soviet Union and “enslaving” its people during the Cold War. Russia has the most nuclear weapons of any country, with 5,420 warheads, according to the Washington-based Arms Control Association organisation. The United States has 5,042, it estimates. The New Start treaty, the last remaining arms control agreement between America and Russia expired in February, meaning that, for the first time since 1972, there is no formal restriction on either country deploying nuclear weapons. In April, the head of Russia’s Atomic Energy Corporation said Putin “personally oversees” nuclear weapon development, with the regime warning apocalypse is a “real possibility”. Comment now