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Multiple headlines on a story about the Orthodox Church in Ukraine and in Russia. It's a little

difficult to sort out all the facts. Who are the good guys who are the bad guys depends on who

you read, of course. Kremlin says Ukraine illegally attacking Orthodox Church Pope,

urges respect for Orthodox monastery facing eviction in Kiev. It's all about the Kiev per

Chersk Lavra monastery that, well, some monks are getting kicked out by the president of Ukraine

and why is it happening? Well, they say it's leading to spiritual independence. Welcome back to

Issues, etc. I'm Todd Wilkin joining us to talk about media coverage of Eastern Orthodoxy in

Ukraine. Terry Mattingly, senior fellow at the Overbeat Center for Southern Journalism and

Politics at the University of Mississippi, founder and editor of Get Religion and author of the

weekly on-religion column for the Universal Syndicate and the book Popco's Religion. Terry, welcome

back. Glad to be here. So why is this monastery per Chersk Lavra? Why is it so important to Orthodox

leaders and political leaders apparently on both sides of this divide? Well, as you said earlier,

that's a complex question. But let me frame it this way so that people will understand what we're

facing. If the monks are forced out of the monastery at gunpoint, here at the end of this month,

this will be something that hasn't happened in the monastery since 1051. 1051, which was when this

monastery was founded. The communists didn't force the monks out. It persecuted them. They went

down to, it's my understanding, there were as few as eight or nine or maybe ten monks left in

...