День Седьмой. Alexey Uminskiy
YouTube
Father Alexey Uminsky on faith, emigration, and reconciliation after war
20:13
Father Alexey Uminsky speaks with Sergey Nikolaevich for ZIMA Magazine in London about preserving faith during war and catastrophe. He says there are no techniques for faith; the Book of Job shows God answers with presence, not explanations. True faith requires a personal encounter with God, not just ritual, and crisis can become the moment that encounter begins.
He describes his unchosen move to France, where Father Vladimir Yegel gave him a parish at the Church of the Sign of the Mother of God and housing, and a multinational congregation that includes Russian-French families, other Orthodox nationalities, French converts, and recent relocants. The initial shock has passed; he maintains contact with parishioners through a YouTube channel.
The endless war is his only real worry; he and his parish pray constantly for peace, including a special petition by Father Vladimir for the end of bloodshed in Ukraine, the Middle East, and everywhere. His father died last year and he could not attend the funeral; parishioners surrounded his father with care and arranged the funeral while he watched online.
He notes that one can be freed from guilt but not from pain. Migration places terrible stress on families, and children suffer acutely. Reconciliation between Russians and Ukrainians may or may not happen; it requires repentance, as the unreconciled Armenian Genocide shows.
The church's only role in war is to work for peace, which he sees Pope Francis modeling by rejecting all war justifications and intervening for ceasefires.
Key moments
- There are no techniques for faith and no manuals; the Book of Job screams the question of suffering to heaven and gives no answer, only God's presence.
- Preserving faith requires a personal encounter with God, not just ritual or moral rules, because crisis reveals when faith hasn't actually happened yet.
- He did not choose France; Father Vladimir Yegel offered him the parish at the Church of the Sign, gave him housing at the church, and organized his life.
- The parish includes Russian-French families, other Orthodox nationalities, French converts, and recent "relocants," with services in a mix of languages.
- The endless war is his only real worry; the parish prays constantly for peace, and Father Vladimir composed a special petition for the end of bloodshed in Ukraine, the Middle East, and everywhere.
- His father died last year and he could not come to bury him; parishioners surrounded his father with care to the end and arranged the funeral, while he watched via the internet.
- A person can free themselves from guilt by understanding it was impossible, but cannot free themselves from the pain.
- Reconciliation between nations is possible only with repentance; without it, hatred remains entrenched, as with the Armenian Genocide, and the church's sole role in war is to work for peace, which Pope Francis exemplifies.