The reminder appears necessary in light of comments by Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who claims that Russia is ‘protecting’ Christians.
On Monday, Baptist leaders from the United States and Ukraine wrote a letter to Speaker of the House Mike Johnson about the persecution Baptists have faced in Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February 2022. “As you consider efforts to support Ukraine, we humbly ask that you consider the plight of Christians,” the letter says.
It is signed by Daniel Darling, director of the Land Center for Cultural Engagement at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and the center’s namesake, Richard Land, who has also served on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Both men are affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. The Ukrainian signatories are Yaroslav Pyzh, president of the Ukrainian Baptist Theological Seminary, and Valerii Antoniu, president of the Baptist Union of Ukraine.
“Despite Russian efforts to paint Ukraine as intolerant of Christians, it is the Russian government that has aggressively harmed peaceful law abiding faithful Christians in the occupied areas of Ukraine,” the letter says.
The reminder appears necessary considering comments from Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R., Ga.), also on Monday. Russia is “not attacking Christianity,” she said. “As a matter of fact, they seem to be protecting it.” Speaking on War Room, Steve Bannon’s podcast, Greene went on to ask, “Why would we be giving $60 billion to a country in Ukraine that is destroying the Christian faith, persecuting Christians and killing them?”
Baptists face especially intense persecution in Russian-occupied Ukraine. They are seen as pro-Western and a threat to Russia’s concept of “spiritual security,” which uses the Russian Orthodox Church as a vessel for Russian influence. Russian persecution of Baptists in Ukraine has been ongoing since the first invasion in 2014 and has become more intense since 2022.
In Luhansk, the Baptist Union of Ukraine was designated as a terrorist group, the Baptist Hymnal was banned, and all 44 Baptist churches in the region have been closed. The persecution is, in some cases, worse than what Baptists faced when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union.
Hundreds of churches have been destroyed. “One story involves a youth pastor, Mark Sergeev, who was a worship pastor in Melitopol,” the letter to Johnson says. “When the Russians took control in February of 2022, his church was destroyed and he and his fellow members were interrogated and tortured. As of this moment there is not a single Baptist church left in Melitopol.”
Baptist charities have been on the front lines during the conflict. “The Southern Baptist Convention’s Send Relief ministry has poured millions of dollars into helping Ukrainian refugees in the surrounding countries and continues to assist Baptists in Ukraine,” the letter says.
Baptists know which side in the war supports religious freedom for Christians. It isn’t Russia. The letter to Johnson says, “We believe God has put you in this position ‘for such a time as this,'” a reference to Esther 4:14, where Mordecai encourages Esther to use her influence as queen of Persia to save the Jewish people from persecution. Johnson, himself a Baptist, has been struggling to get a Ukraine-aid bill through the House that would be acceptable to the GOP conference, even though a large bipartisan majority of the House would likely support more aid.
“There’s a belief here, and I think across the globe, that if Putin was successful in Ukraine, he would not stop there,” Johnson told National Review in November. “He would continue to march through other countries, and so clearly that is something that the United States has an interest in stopping.” Esther risked her life. Johnson, at worst, risks his speakership.