As the Russian-Ukrainian war rages thousands of kilometres away, the small Russian Orthodox Church community in Narrabundah is quietly praying for peace. Father Alexander Morozow says he is opposed to the war and wants the same as everybody else – an end to the suffering.

Father Alexander stresses that the views expressed in this article are his own and he is not an official spokesperson for the Russian Orthodox Church in Australia.

“On a typical Sunday church day, we get 25 to 30 people,” Father Alexander says. “We – like the Ukrainian community – are praying for peace.

“Within the Russian community there are people who have close connections with people in the Ukraine. We come from pretty similar backgrounds and this has created a difficulty that we haven’t had to deal with before.

“We’re just doing the best we can in making sure that we all ultimately have the same objective, which is the end of the war.”

Father Alexander says some of his parishioners also attend the Ukraine Orthodox Church because “they’re all part of the Orthodox family”.

“Kyiv [Ukraine] was the first centre for Orthodoxy in  Russia,” he says. “Its origins are in in Kyiv, which makes what’s happening now all the more tragic. Where you have Russian Orthodox soldiers shooting at Ukrainian Orthodox soldiers, it just heightens the tragedy of what’s happening.”

Unfortunately, culture can also be impacted by conflict. The Canberra Pushkin Club – an apolitical group that showcases Russian culture and language – has not hosted any events since May 2021.  

Father Alexander says Russian culture was another unintended consequence of the conflict. He recalls when the French Government conducted nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific in the 1990s, a local French restaurant in Canberra changed its cuisine to “Belgian”.

“Often the culture takes a hit, which has no connection to current events,” he says. “We didn’t stop listening to Beethoven because of the Third Reich in Germany. It’s important to make the distinction between the culture and the heritage, which has a rich history, and current events, which are very tragic.

“War is a social evil; war is something that is beyond politics. What’s happening now is characterised as a political struggle; it’s well beyond that, it is a war.

“The tragedy is that it’ll take generations for the re-establishment for good, interpersonal relations between Russians and Ukrainians. It is a tragedy with enduring consequences.”

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