The Sardinian face is enclosed in the gentle icon of Russian orthodoxy. A soft beard, with a rounded tip only hinted at, surrounds the image of Giovanni Guaita, a Sardinian priest in the land of Russia. From Sella Square, in its ancient Villa Ecclesiae , the modern Iglesias, to Red Square in the heart of Moscow, the step is 36 years long. All passed between the perestroika of Mikhail Sergeevič Gorbachev and Vladimir Putin's raid on the land of Ukraine. He, the Orthodox priest, when he answers the phone in "his" Russian church, dedicated to Saints Cosmas and Damian, shows off his command of a language that has become a mother tongue.
Universal Sardinian
A Sardinian all in one piece who at the age of 18 leaves the narrow streets of the historic center of his hometown to pursue the dream of a life made of literature and languages. A universal man, open to the cultures of the world, to diversities and to respect for others in every latitude. Rigorous in his Christianity, reaching out to the teachings of faith, with an innate aversion to wars and violence. Three years ago, when 200 young people fled from Putin's special riot troops, he did not hesitate to throw open the doors of his church, the closest to Red Square. He espoused orthodoxy, the "correct opinion", as the Greek translation defines the progress of Christ in the land of Russia.
Never conniving
Yet since that cursed February 24, when the Tsar announced what, shamelessly for words, he defined the special operation in the land of Ukraine, for Father Giovanni Guaita there was never any hesitation: "Do not condemn the evil means to be conniving with it ”. When he punctuates the call to the "connivance of silence with evil", he does so with the wisdom of words, always attentive and calm, but with the firmness of the man of Christ, albeit in Putin's land. When he speaks of that inner agitation of every man in the face of so much violence, he knows that it is not easy, let alone safe, to do it openly. Yet he does it, as a Sardinian, with respect and without fear, with the certainty that sooner or later reason will have to prevail. «I am on this side only geographically, in the sense that I have been here for 36 years and I share the fate of the Russian people in everything. In this case, however, not by choice. In the sense that personally I and also several other people, both in the Church and in Russian society, condemn the events that are taking place in Ukraine ». Strong, clear-cut words that must be read and listened to thinking about the fact that those who pronounce them live a stone's throw from the Kremlin. Not exactly safe from possible consequences of any kind.
The courage of conscience
When I ask him if it was difficult to take this position, to make it public even with a signed appeal, to be identified as an Orthodox priest without hesitation in conscience and spirit, not even a yearning for doubt passes through the antechamber of thought: "It was Naturally, on other occasions we have also expressed similar positions with a group of priests. However, this is an absolutely limited group. The authors of this open letter can be counted on the fingers of one hand and within two hours, however, it was signed by nearly 300 other priests and deacons. This tells us that the positions are also very different within the Church, as, I repeat, also within Russian society ”. His clearest affirmation in this hard and severe human ordeal is carved on the altar of conscience: "Not condemning evil is like taking part in it". I point out to him that the position is no frills, direct, sharp and clear. His reaction does not hesitate: «Well, yes, without a doubt it is an awkward and rather difficult position. I think, however, that there are essential moral norms in life that cannot be questioned. They are like hinges around which everything else revolves. The condemnation of all violence for a Christian is not optional, it is something essential. Certainly from this point of view, a Christian in general, and in any case even more so, I would say a priest, a monk, can only condemn any episode of violence ”. The reflection is in the substance and in the ways. «Another discourse is to understand what it means to condemn, in what ways. I think that, in fact, being silent in this case is a sort of connivance with this violence. On the other hand, however, when speaking, we must also do it with intelligence, because at this moment in our country, that is, in the Russian Federation, laws are in force that even simply punish, for example, the use of some words. So intelligence lies in the fact of making a clear, unequivocal, evident speech. But, perhaps, avoiding breaking a law that, moreover, one cannot agree with, which is considered completely unjust and even unintelligent ».
I am not afraid
Giovanni Guaita is frank, almost "resigned" to being a Sardinian witness to the Russian conscience, regardless of the dangers that loom over those who are not aligned. When I dare to ask him if he's afraid, he doesn't break down and, with the candor of sincerity that is his own, he admits: «Look, it's a good question. I don't know the answer, in the sense that I don't live in fear and terror. This no. I am quite calm, however, this does not mean that I exclude that any kind of measures may be taken against me, as were taken, for example, against another priest who, in order to have spoken openly about peace in a sermon, he was denounced, tried, convicted and fined. This happened a couple of weeks ago. Therefore I cannot exclude that this can happen. None of us can rule it out ».
Risks declared
In this scenario of war there are unmentionable pitfalls and declared dangers: «There are risks of various kinds, of an administrative nature and even penalties of a criminal nature. Because after the first, let's say, administrative fine, that is, money to be paid, there is a second sentence, which instead means a criminal case, which is much more serious. There are, then, other types of convictions, for example, the confiscation of property. In my case, let's say a foreigner, there may be the fact of being repatriated. All these risks exist and I cannot rule out anything. On the other hand, however, my conscience tells me that I must, in any case, express my position quite clearly and I try to do so ».
Sensitive "zones"
When we define the sensitive "areas" of Sardinian reflection on Russian soil, I am aware that we cannot dare to deal with the responsibilities of this war. However, he, the Orthodox Priest of Iglesias in Moscow, does not yield one millimeter on the main line of conscience: "It seems to me that the responsibilities, if one can say so, on the part of the government of the Russian Federation are before everyone's eyes. and on this point I do not return. Simply because they seem quite obvious to me. I would say, however, that they are not the only ones. On this it is important to be objective and very clear. The young Ukrainian government, which made a choice in favor of the West a few years ago, was probably not well advised by its allies, that is, by the United States of America and by the European Community itself. To give just one example, in Ukraine Russian is spoken much more than Ukrainian, that is, all Ukrainians speak the Russian language, not all speak Ukrainian. There are areas and cities where Russian is practically spoken almost exclusively, for example Kharkov, or Odessa and Donbass. The common language of all Ukrainians, paradoxical as this may seem, is Russian. So why pass laws banning the use of the Russian language? It certainly seems to me a very short-sighted choice. The fact of banning the Russian language was not an element of relaxation. On the contrary, it was, as it were, a pretext for a very serious criticism. Certainly, however, this does not justify a military invasion, without any doubt. They are two completely different things ».
Boundaries & Responsibilities
The certain boundary of responsibilities, however, vacillates in the face of short-sightedness and short-sightedness: «I would say, however, that from this point of view the Ukrainian government, and especially its Western allies, have not adopted a very far-sighted policy. I understand the emotional reaction of a Western Europe that can feel threatened by this Russian "bear", however, it is not right to attribute to a whole people the responsibilities of those who govern it ».
No to arms
Time is running out, the conversation becomes tight, from his "No" to the arms race, to the hope of a meeting between Pope Francis and the Russian Patriarch Kirill, to the invasive military bases in Sardinia and the great world war direction. Up to his beloved Sardinian land: «I don't return as often as I would like, for various reasons I am very busy. In addition to the Church, the community in which I celebrate, I also take care of a hospice for terminal children. I follow a project for the reintegration of homeless homeless people. I teach at the University, I write a lot and I am quite busy, however, I must say that I remained Iglesiente and Sardinian to the end ».
No, I'm Sardinian
In his latest book, A Monk in Quarantine, he tells about his life in Covid. The opening words are autobiographical: «I am a monk of the Russian Orthodox Church. I am, however, Italian. Then, however, there is a point and immediately after I say: No, I'm Sardinian ».