Patriarch Kirill says Russia’s nuclear weapons created ‘by divine providence’ to keep country ‘free and independent’
Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, said Wednesday that Russia’s nuclear weapons, which were developed in the town of Sarov, have allowed the country to remain free and independent. He made the remarks while awarding the Order of Sergius of Radonezh to physicist Radiy Ilkayev, an honorary scientific director of Russia’s Federal Nuclear Center.
Mr. Ilkayev, I would confidently say, is a great Russian scientist. He leads the nuclear center, the very one that was created by [physicist and Soviet nuclear bomb project director Igor] Kurchatov. If it hadn’t been for the work of Kurchatov, Mr. Ilkayev, and their colleagues, it’s difficult to say whether our country would exist today. They created the weapon under the protection of Saint Seraphim of Sarov because, by ineffable divine providence, this weapon was created in the monastery of Saint Seraphim. Thanks to this power, Russia has remained independent and free, and, of course, we must all cherish this remarkable feat of our scientists, who practically saved the country, in our hearts and memories.