itself “with its enemy—ideology” (as Hovorun writes), and examine the implications for church life. Jesse Hake reflects on what Western society has lost in the secular age, then draws on the example of Hagia Sophia to imagine what an ideal post-secular order might look like. And Sister Vassa Larin speaks about navigating the secular world in our spiritual lives. In a preview of her book in progress, she offers some practical advice about how Christians can sanctify ordinary time. The front and back sections also have tributes to the recently reposed priests Leonid Kishkovsky and Sergei Glagolev; a beautiful reflection from Anastasia Farison on why young mothers should avoid the path of “self-abandonment” as they sacrifice for their kids; a pastoral note from David Wooten about practicing civility in our hyper-politicized age; two poems by Erik Osterberg; and more. Planning for this issue was already complete when Vladimir Putin launched his attack on Ukraine in late February, and since that time, there have been moments where it felt odd to be focusing on anything else. However, in a context like this one, the question of secularism could not be more relevant. Putin has, for years, tried to reimpose some version of symphonia, the Byzantine model of unity between church and state, and, in drawing on the shared religious history of Russia and Ukraine to justify the war,
he has also received critical support from Russia’s head bishop, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow. But Paul Gavrilyuk and Seraphim Danckaert, who have launched the organization Rebuild Ukraine, have a different understanding of Orthodoxy’s value in wartime. They joined our assistant editor Amelia Antzoulatos for a conversation about the crisis and what it means for Orthodox Christians to work within their tradition—and without— to respond. NICK TABOR is a freelance journalist and the Acting Editor-in-Chief of Jacob's Well. His first book, Africatown: America's Last Slave Ship
and the Community It Created is forthcoming from St. Martin's Press. He is a parishioner at the Cathedral of the Holy Virgin Protection in Manhattan.
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