Church service features Stalin icon

A church service featuring an icon of Stalin took place in the Belgorod region in the west of Russia. The icon features Joseph Stalin surrounded by Soviet marshals and is titled “Autocratic Holy Mother.” The newspaper Zavtra reports that the service was held by the monk priest Athenogenes. 

The icon was reportedly commissioned by the Izborsk Club, an informal conservative think tank headed by the patriotic writer Alexander Prokhanov.

Surrounded by a large crowd, the icon moved along between churches, chapels, monuments and statues dedicated to the great battle [of Kursk] victory.

The battle of Kursk took place near the Belgorod region in July and August of 1943 between the Soviet army and the Nazi German forces. It ended in a decisive strategic victory for the Soviets.

In 2008, an icon featuring Stalin, titled Blessed Matrona blesses Joseph Stalin, was displayed in a St. Petersburg church. This caused a public uproar, after which the Orthodox Church leadership denounced the priest of the church and dismissed him from duty.

For more on Stalin’s heritage, see Remains of the Man of Steel