Eight days after Russian forces invaded Crimea in 2014, evangelical figurehead Reverend Franklin Graham published an op-ed in Decision Magazine which attempted to explain the person of Vladimir Putin to American Christians. Graham quietly applauded Putin’s campaigns to protect traditional values and Christians abroad while lamenting the loss of America’s “high moral ground.” Graham’s article did not mention Russia’s illegal operations in Ukraine, nor the international condemnation it rightly received. The next year, as Russia’s “little green men” occupied Ukrainian territory, Graham even went so far as to meet with Vladimir Putin in Russia.
Graham’s relationship with Putin’s Russia illustrates a broader trend among American Christians who may sympathize with Putin’s self-proclaimed efforts to defend traditional, Christian values against liberal threats – even at the cost of ignoring Putin’s warmongering. While Graham was clear to say “I am not endorsing Putin,” he argued “Putin is right” about LGBTQ issues and his military intervention in Syria.
A decade after Russia invaded Crimea, some evangelical Christians are still finding themselves disappointed with America’s drift from traditional, conservative values and wondering if they have an unexpected champion in the Kremlin. All the while, they too might forget about Ukraine – the sovereign country which Russia again invaded in 2022.
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