“Our Orthodox Church has always shared the fate of the people”. The Most Holy Patriarch Sergius during the Great Patriotic War

The article describes the important role of the locum tenens of the Patriarchal Throne, Metropolitan Sergius of Moscow and Kolomna (Stragorodsky), in the fact that the Russian Orthodox Church has taken a distinctly patriotic position since the first days of the Great Patriotic War. On Sunday morning, immediately after the liturgy, Metropolitan Sergius, having learned of the attack by Nazi Germany, wrote an "Message to the Pastors and Flock of the Orthodox Church of Christ", in which he clearly stated his patriotic position, called for the defence of the Motherland, and recalled the heroic examples of Russian saints and Orthodox soldiers. This speech preceded the speech of the Deputy Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs V. M. Molotov on 22 June and the speech of the Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars I. V. Stalin on 3 July. The article describes other actions of Metropolitan (and later Patriarch) Sergius that contributed to the victory over the enemy. During the war years, the Metropolitan read 23 patriotic messages, one of which was a message to the clergy and believers in the temporarily occupied territory, dated 13 December 1942. Thanks to the patriotic attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church, the attitude of the Soviet authorities towards it changed significantly. The article describes the history of the issue, the meeting of Stalin in the Kremlin on 5 September 1943 with Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky) of Moscow and Kolomna, Metropolitan Alexy (Simansky) of Leningrad and Novgorod, and Metropolitan Nikolai (Yarushevich) of Kiev and Galicia, and the important results of this meeting - the legalisation of the Church and the restoration of the Patriarchate. As a result, the opening of previously closed churches, the return of reformers to the bosom of the canonical Church, the restoration of dioceses, etc. began. In general, the change in the confessional policy of the Soviet state, the selfless service of Patriarch Sergius and Patriarch Alexy, bishops and clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church during the war years played an important role in rallying and mobilising the Soviet people to defend the country against the enemy.