Patriarch Kirill called the creation of a domestic nuclear bomb “a blessing from God”
2 August 08:03
The development of the atomic bomb in the USSR was due to divine intervention, said Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, after a liturgy at the Holy Trinity-Seraphim-Divyevo Monastery, according to "Komersant Ukrainian", citing Russian propaganda media.
He noted that the project was developed in the city of Sarov (Arzamas-16), at the very site where St. Seraphim of Sarov used to pray.
“We have created our Russian atomic bomb, which has thwarted the enemy’s plans to destroy and enslave our homeland. Indeed, thanks to the work of the scientists, engineers, and workers who labored here, God’s grace and mercy have descended upon our country,” said the patriarch.
In his view, the creation of the atomic bomb saved the USSR “from terrible destruction, as a result of which neither the country nor the people might have survived.”
“All of this took place, in part, through the prayers of our venerable and God-bearing father, Seraphim of Sarov. In this way, the humble elder, through his holiness… helped ensure that our people and our country continue to exist,” Kirill concluded.
The head of the Russian Orthodox Church had already made similar remarks in 2023, asserting that the nuclear bomb was developed by Russian scientists “by God’s ineffable providence.” And in 2024, he urged Russians not to fear such weapons or the possible end of the world.
The nuclear bomb development center was built in Sarov in 1946 on the site of the Dormition Monastery, which had been closed by the Bolsheviks in 1927. Scientists, including Academician Vitaly Khlopin, George Gamow, and Igor Kurchatov, worked on its creation. The first atomic bomb was successfully tested in August 1949, and in March 1950, the Soviet Union officially announced that it possessed such a weapon, putting an end to the U.S. nuclear monopoly.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), as of January 2026, Russia had 5,420 nuclear warheads, while the United States had 5,042.
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