Photo: ivarfjeld.com
Back in the day, when the world was a Church-sponsored violent place, men of the cloth were the most fierce warriors God had ever seen. They mastered sword and cross with the same vigor, and got the different results they were after when using each tool.
Slowly, priests have grown soft, giving up physical violence altogether. Sure, there still are army priests, going into battle with their units but seldom see action as military men.
That doesn't sit right with Russian high officials. Back in 2013, they introduced to the world a unit of airborne priests, who fly to military theaters together with their mobile prayer room, a command, and control trailer for the relation with the Divine, complete with a life-sustaining module.
Five years later, they have announced plans to teach the priests how to drive combat vehicles, and operate military communications equipment. The goal of the training is to allow the priest to become active members of their units.
“It’s good if the priest was a military man and knows what to do from his own experience. But what if he doesn’t?” a representative of a Russian diocese was quoted as saying by TASS, via The Moscow Times. “What if the only hope for saving the wounded lies with the unarmed regimental priest, who doesn’t know how to operate a combat vehicle or initiate communications?”
For now, only 30 army priests, working with Russian Airborne Troops, will be trained in operating BMD-4M tank. The Church says the priest will not be allowed to train with weapons, but only learn how to work the war machines. They even claim that priests are frequently forced to evacuate wounded soldiers from the battlefield in personnel carriers.
Bizarre, to say the least, as Russia is no longer involved in any conflict on this planet, except for the continuous military presence in Syria.
That doesn't sit right with Russian high officials. Back in 2013, they introduced to the world a unit of airborne priests, who fly to military theaters together with their mobile prayer room, a command, and control trailer for the relation with the Divine, complete with a life-sustaining module.
Five years later, they have announced plans to teach the priests how to drive combat vehicles, and operate military communications equipment. The goal of the training is to allow the priest to become active members of their units.
“It’s good if the priest was a military man and knows what to do from his own experience. But what if he doesn’t?” a representative of a Russian diocese was quoted as saying by TASS, via The Moscow Times. “What if the only hope for saving the wounded lies with the unarmed regimental priest, who doesn’t know how to operate a combat vehicle or initiate communications?”
For now, only 30 army priests, working with Russian Airborne Troops, will be trained in operating BMD-4M tank. The Church says the priest will not be allowed to train with weapons, but only learn how to work the war machines. They even claim that priests are frequently forced to evacuate wounded soldiers from the battlefield in personnel carriers.
Bizarre, to say the least, as Russia is no longer involved in any conflict on this planet, except for the continuous military presence in Syria.
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