Church Appoints Putin’s Spiritual Adviser Metropolitan of Crimea

The Russian Orthodox Church has installed one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest allies as the highest-ranking church leader in Crimea. “His Eminence of Simferopol and Crimea, the head of the Crimean Metropolis is to be His Eminence Metropolitan Tikhon of Pskov and Porkhov with his release from the administration of the Pskov Metropolis,” the church announced in a statement on Wednesday (Oct. 11). Tikhon, whose secular name is Georgy Shevkunov, is one of the most influential church leaders in Russia. He has long been reported to be particularly close to Putin, and there is speculation that he is Putin’s confessor.