'True Cross' on Moskva? Russian Orthodox Church Confirms Sunken Russian Warship Had Relic From Christ's Cross

Reports that sunken Russian warship Moskva was carrying the fragments of 'True Cross, a Christian relic, have created a furor on social media.

The fact that these reports coincided with the Easter Sunday triggered heightened interest on social media, with users swarming platforms with comments stating that Russians have gone too far using religion and history during this war.

Some people have even stated that Moskva's sinking was a great blow to the prestige of Russian military and these stories are just a way to portray Ukraine as some sort of enemy of the Christian community.

Catholic Church Prohibits the Sale of Relics

A few critics also pointed out that the sale of relics is strictly prohibited in catholic church and in complete paradox to the dictates of the church, the 'True Cross' fragments were bought by some rich Russians. Now this is being given a religious colour, the critics added.

According to the report carried in The Jerusalem Post, the Russian Orthodox Church's Sevastopol District Sergiy Khalyuta had revealed to the Russian state media outlet TASS in 2020 that a piece of True Cross would be carried on the Moskva. Khlyuta had also stated that having the True Cross fragments was of great religious significance as they happen to be a part of the cross that was used to crucify Jesus Christ.

Lambasting Russian leadership a twitter user shared, "In truth, this is not new. This symbiosis of Russia's fascist leadership and the Russian Orthodox Church has been in place for most of Putin's reign (and esp. under Patriarch Kirill). News about battleship "Moskva" carrying a piece of the holy cross is a great example of this."

"Wanna hear some more insane BS about the Moskva? A tiny piece of "Jesus' true cross" (an obvious scam that's been around since the 1200s) was bought by rich Russians a month ago - and it was placed inside the ship shortly before her destruction," expressed another twitter user.

A tweet read, "There's a rumour circulating that the #Moskva was carrying a splinter of the True Cross that the Russians "acquired" from the Catholic Church a few years ago. If that's true, then, it's fair to say, the warship did NOT have God's blessing. #RussianWarCrimes, #StandWithUkraine️."