How Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin stirred up Russia: biography, 14 scandalous statements

Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin is a fairly prominent figure in the social and political life of the Russian Federation. Known for his controversial statements and assessments, he created a reputation for himself as a conflicted person with a difficult character. His judgments often cause a storm of criticism, and his calls and demands surprise both believers and people far from religion.

Vsevolod's childhood

Despite the fact that the future priest’s family was far from Orthodoxy, he already realized from his teenage years that he wanted to enter a theological seminary.

Origin and birth

Born in Moscow on March 31, 1968, into a family of famous Soviet intellectuals close to the world of science.

Family

Father, Anatoly Fedorovich Chaplin, is an agnostic professor, Doctor of Technical Sciences, a scientist in the field of antenna theory and technology. Adoptive maternal grandfather, Vsevolod Veniaminovich Kostin - grandson of K.E. Tsiolkovsky, Russian inventor, scientist in the field of aerodynamics and rocket dynamics.

Vsevolod Chaplin, in his words, was brought up in a “non-religious family.” As a teenager, he came to faith on his own.

Not married, no children.

Schooling

According to Chaplin, at school he practically did not study the exact sciences. Neither mathematics nor physics aroused interest. The teenager understood that he would not need these disciplines in life, but the teacher would still give him a satisfactory mark. Already as a schoolboy, he intended to enter a theological seminary.

National question

Some people today even claim that Chaplin actually practices Judaism. On the Internet, this belief is spread by some radical groups who also claim that Vsevolod Anatolyevich Chaplin is a Jew. However, you should not trust this “sensational” news. There is no direct evidence or confirmation that Vsevolod Chaplin is a Jew. His family belonged to the Soviet intelligentsia and was close to the scientific world, which may create preconditions for questioning its national identity, since the percentage of Jews in the Soviet and Russian intelligentsia is traditionally high. But still, the direct statement of this fact as real can be considered speculation. Vsevolod Chaplin himself does not discuss his nationality. True, he categorically denied belonging to the Jews, although he speaks of this people with warmth and love.

Teenage years and early life

Studying at the seminary and friendship with Archbishop Kirill played a big role in Chaplin’s development as a priest. The biography of the clergyman is characterized by rapid advancement up the career ladder. This made him a prominent figure in the Russian Orthodox Church.

Studying at the Theological Seminary

In 1985, after graduating from school, he began working in the expedition department of the Publishing Department of the Moscow Patriarchate. In 1990, he graduated from the Moscow Theological Seminary, which he entered on the recommendation of the chairman of the department, Metropolitan Pitirim (Nechaev). Already during his studies, he was ordained by Archbishop Kirill to the rank of deacon (1991), and then to the rank of priest (1992).

In 1994 he graduated from the Moscow Theological Academy. He is a candidate of theology. The topic of his dissertation: “The problem of the relationship between natural and divinely revealed New Testament ethics in modern foreign heterodox and non-Christian thought.”

Career advancement

Thanks to the abilities of Father Vsevolod, which did not go unnoticed by the church authorities, his career growth was quite rapid.

Vsevolod Chaplin, building his career, held many positions, including leadership positions:

1. 1990-2009 - service in the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate: rose from an ordinary employee to deputy chairman under the leadership of Smolensk Archbishop Kirill.
2. 1996-1997 - member of the Council for Cooperation with Religious Associations under the President of the Russian Federation.
3. 1997-2001 - head of the newly formed secretariat of the Department of External Church Relations for relations between the Church and society.

Beginning of a church career

Vsevolod Anatolyevich Chaplin began his career in the church in 1985 with one of the positions in the publishing department of the Moscow Patriarchate. At that time, he had rather liberal views, advocated some reforms and supported the ideas of a moderate renewal of church life. For example, he signed an appeal for a review of liturgical practices, including the issue of the language of worship. In the late 80s, he organized exhibitions of avant-garde painting, and later even wrote a preface to one of the albums of Christian rock music.

Mature age

Over the years, the priest played an increasingly important role in the life of society. Teaching and hosting programs on television and radio made the priest recognizable and well-known in wide circles.

Acceptance of archpriestly rank

He was elevated to the rank of archpriest in 1999.

Friendship with the future Patriarch Kirill helped in his career advancement.

1. 2001-2009 - Deputy Head of the DECR, Metropolitan Kirill (oversaw publications, communications service, secretariats for public and inter-Christian relations, dealt with issues of relations between the Moscow Patriarchate and the Vatican).
2. 2004 - member of the expert council of the State Duma Committee on Affairs of Associations and Religious Organizations.
3. 2008 - Deputy head at the World Russian People's Council, head of the newly formed Synodal Department for Relations between the Church and Society.

Work on radio and television

Father Vsevolod, due to the positions he held, soon became a media personality.

V. Chaplin was the host of several programs:

• “Earth and People” (co-host - Andrey Bystritsky, TV channel “Mir”);
• “Eternity and Time” (TV channel “Spas”);
• “Commentary of the week” (Soyuz TV channel);
• “Time of Trust” (radio “Russian News Service”, “Komsomolskaya Pravda”);
• “About the main thing” (radio “Radonezh”, “Voice of Russia”).

The video shows one of the episodes of the “Comment of the Week” program, in which Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin talks about car tragedies and sanctioned products.

University teaching

As an assistant professor, the clergyman teaches at the Orthodox St. Tikhon University. In addition, he is a member of the Union of Writers of Russia and the Academy of Russian Literature.

Chaplin's position and statements

His contradictory assessments of social phenomena sometimes cause ambiguous reactions in society, often leading to scandals.

Here are the most resonant of them:

1. In 2003, he came out in defense of believers who destroyed an exhibition in the museum. Sakharov “Beware of religion”: Chaplin said that the Russian legal system “must respect this view” (believers were offended by the image of Jesus Christ in the background of a Coca-Cola advertisement with the words “This is my blood”, a road sign-icon indicating “other dangers” and other elements of the exhibition).
2. In 2006, he called for the singer Madonna’s concert in Moscow to be ignored because of Christian symbols (a crucifix, a statue of the Mother of God) used in blasphemous scenes “to illustrate one’s own passions.”
3. In 2007, the cleric criticized a resolution passed by the Parliamentary Assembly on the dangers of teaching creationism in schools. In addition, he suggested telling schoolchildren about other theories of human origins. Darwin's theory of evolution, according to Chaplin, did not receive sufficient evidence to be considered true.
4. In 2010, he said that women provoke men to rape with their defiant appearance, and proposed creating a “nationwide dress code.” A storm of criticism fell upon Chaplin, and his proposal was called unconstitutional. Internet users began collecting signatures for a petition to the patriarch, in which they insisted that a person’s appearance is his personal matter. However, the priest’s idea was supported by Ramzan Kadyrov and the All-Russian Muftiate.
5. In 2010, he called for replacing the school discipline “Fundamentals of Religious Cultures and Secular Ethics” with the subject “Fundamentals of Orthodox Culture.” This proposal was also met negatively.
6. In the same 2010, he turned to Viktor Zubkov with a request to provide Ukrainian enterprises with the opportunity to purchase gas directly from Russian companies or supply it at lower prices, which would allow them to produce competitive products.
7. In 2011, he called D. Medvedev’s nomination of V. Putin as a presidential candidate an example of kindness and morality in politics. These words caused disapproval among the opposition-minded part of the population.
8. In 2012, he said that “if someone gives the patriarch a vestment, an icon, a car, a watch, this is a manifestation of love for the patriarch, which is completely natural.”
9. In 2012, after an incident with the punk rock band Pussy Riot, he called on society to give a correct legal assessment of the boorish behavior of feminists.
10. In 2015, Chaplin spoke about Russia’s actions in Syria: “... today our country is, perhaps, one of the most active forces in the world that resist this threat. No matter how terrorism is justified, it cannot be justified. Therefore, the fight against terrorism is a moral fight, a sacred fight, if you like.” In response, Bishop Ilyas Tuma of Syria pointed out: “There can be no holy war in Christianity! Regardless of whether anyone agrees with it or not."
11. At the end of 2015, photographs of Chaplin dining at McDonald's during the Advent period also caused a stir on the Internet. He later noted that this restaurant chain has meatless products, and his lunch does not represent a sin.
12. In 2021, he demanded that the film “Matilda” by Alexei Uchitel be banned and called the film “a spit on our history.”
13. Chaplin also called for speaking openly about the sins of officials: “We must stop this theft. It’s very simple: if you find out that an official or some local business is stealing, say so directly. People who believe and claim that they somehow made money actually just cut into pieces of the national pie at one time.”
14. In 2021, he opposed raising the retirement age and proposed filling the pension fund with the income of oligarchs.

Watch the video with Archpriest V. Chaplin's speech on pension reform.

Resignation of a priest

By 2015, relations between Archpriest Chaplin and Patriarch Kirill began to deteriorate. Disputes flared up due to the ongoing dialogue with the authorities.

According to Chaplin, the Russian Orthodox Church should not curry favor with the government and the public, but should firmly defend its point of view. Father also called on the corrupt political elite to leave and give way to believing political and economic leaders. As a result, at the end of 2015, the Synodal Public Relations Department was closed, and Chaplin was removed from his leadership position. The resignation of the priest and the closure of the department were explained by the optimization of ineffective departments.

In 2021, he was also expelled from the Inter-Council Presence. One of the reasons for his resignation was Chaplin’s disagreement with Patriarch Kirill’s position on Ukraine.

In February 2021, the book “Faith and Life” was published, in which priest Vsevolod Chaplin described the facts of his own biography and the internal structure of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Chaplin told the Dozh channel his own version of the dismissal: “I believe His Holiness thinks that only his voice should be heard in the Church. I think there is now an attempt to exclude from the Church any independent voices, any people who can speak loudly and independently. But no one will take away my voice and my position.”

Reaction to Chaplin in society

All this gave him a reputation as a difficult, unpleasant person, who is associated with conflicts and confrontation, with the near-extremist wing of the church. In the Patriarchate, he is the mouthpiece of clericalism and a symbol of the imperialist aspirations of the modern Russian Orthodox Church. He is openly disliked not only in secular society, but also in the church itself. A huge mass of both ordinary believers and clergy, including people from the patriarch’s inner circle, never tire of criticizing him and wondering why Vsevolod Chaplin is still at the helm of public relations of the Moscow Patriarchate. Everyone answers this question differently. A significant number of people consider him only a translator of patriarchal programs, which, for obvious reasons, he cannot voice on his own. Others suggest more complex conspiracy theories or find reasons in the sophisticated political technologies adopted by the current church authorities.

Writer

He is the author of several science fiction works, published under the pseudonym Aron Shemeier . In 1998 he wrote the story “The First Fight”. The story “Masho and the Bears” was published in 2014 in the collection “Semi.net”. At the Bastion 2015 convention of science fiction writers, this story received the “Besoboy” award for “achievements in mystical (sacred) fiction” (awarded by decision of the small board of the LFG “Bastion”). Chaplin frankly answered the journalist’s questions about his literary hobby and his choice of pseudonym:

- Why such a pseudonym - Aron Shemeyer?

- As you know, I am a big Judophile. Well, that’s how I came up with it about 20 years ago.

Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin talks with participants in a motor rally along the Garden Ring in support of the Russian Orthodox Church on Academician Sakharov Avenue in Moscow. Photo: RIA Novosti/Ramil Sitdikov

[edit] Links

• https://lenta.ru/lib/14193269/ - article in Lentapedia

Awards

State

• Order of Friendship (January 21, 2009) - for his great contribution to the development of spiritual culture and strengthening friendship between peoples;
• Certificate of Honor from the President of the Russian Federation (July 20, 2011) - for services to the development of spiritual culture and strengthening friendship between peoples.

Church

• Order of the Holy Blessed Prince Daniel of Moscow, III degree (1996);
• Order of St. Innocent, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna (2005);
• Order of the Holy Blessed Prince Daniel of Moscow, II degree (2010);
• Order of St. Sergius of Radonezh, III degree (2013).

Vsevolod Chaplin at a rally in defense of the Russian Orthodox Church on Suvorov Square.
Photo: RIA Novosti/Andrey Stenin Others

• Medal “For Strengthening Peace and Harmony Between Peoples” (Federation of Peace and Harmony, 2007) - for active participation in peacekeeping and charitable activities, strengthening peace and mutual understanding, cooperation between peoples, for strengthening ties and fruitful interaction between regional diocesan and secular public organizations organizations;
• Order of the Russian Imperial House of St. Anne, II degree.