Putin's Soldiers Who Die In Ukraine War Are Making 'Sacrifices,' Says Russian Church Leader: 'Washes Away All Sins'

The Russian Orthodox Church head said Vladimir Putin's soldiers who would die in the Ukraine war would be cleansed of all their sins. 

What Happened: Putin's ally, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, who previously criticized Russians for opposing the war, said, "Many are dying on the fields of internecine warfare," in his first Sunday address since the mobilization order.

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"The Church prays that this battle will end as soon as possible, so that as few brothers as possible will kill each other in this fratricidal war," he said, Reuters reported. 

"But at the same time, the Church realizes that if somebody, driven by a sense of duty and the need to fulfill their oath ... goes to do what their duty calls of them, and if a person dies in the performance of this duty, then they have undoubtedly committed an act equivalent to sacrifice. They will have sacrificed themselves for others. And therefore, we believe that this sacrifice washes away all the sins that a person has committed," he added. 

Kirill's vocal support for the Kremlin's war has drawn various flak from the wings of Orthodoxy around the world, a recent one from the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, who is against the war and in his speech at an interfaith peace conference said God does not support the war.

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