News and Views

By Melissa Lauber

On Feb. 26, as the world observed the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, area United Methodists met at the Baltimore-Washington Conference Mission Center to hear from the Rev. Dr. Sergei Nikolaev, president of the Moscow Theological Seminary of The United Methodist Church.

Nikolaev lamented the spiritual, physical and emotional toll the fighting in Ukraine has had on the lives of millions. Speaking from his own experiences, he said that the war has affected the church and the seminary. “There has been a lot of suffering; people’s lives have been disrupted in deep and traumatizing ways.”

The anxiety was particularly pronounced when the war commenced and also when mobilization efforts were announced in Russia last September. Men feared they would be conscripted to fight. Anxiety went through all of society.

People in Russia are divided about how they view the violence. There have been three primary responses. One group wanted the war to stop, one wanted Russia to have victory, and one left Russia. “All of these groups were present in our churches, sometimes in the same congregation or family,” Nikolaev said.

 Pastors, trained at the seminary, must serve all of the groups, he said. 

The 100 students at the school pray for peace. When the mobilization was announced some of the male students who had enrolled to attend in-person changed to online attendance because they didn’t want to be grabbed in the streets and sent to war. Morning devotions sometimes turned into group therapy; the students ministered to each other because the fear was so present.

In a strange twist, Nikolaev also noted that the war brought more students to the seminary. “During times of stress and anxiety, some people pull closer to God; they look for peace and a foundation on which to live their lives that they base on God.”

One of Nikolaev’s acquaintances had thought for more than 30 years about attending seminary. He had an MBA and a psychology degree, but he felt that hole in his spirit that only God can fill, Nikolaev said. This man is in his 50s. Because of the war, he re-evaluated how he wants his life to go forward. He is now a seminarian.

Nikolaev presented his remarks at a banquet hosted by the Baltimore-Washington Conference’s In Mission Together Eurasia Partnership and was also attended by members of the Virginia Conference. 

The BWC has had a partnership with Russia, which has been led by the Revs. Charles Harrell and Rod Miller since 2008. The pair, together with Bishop LaTrelle Easterling, thanked Nikolaev for his ministry in extremely difficult times and for providing a witness to God’s love in a time when the world has turned upside down.

The seminary, they said, offers a ministry of bridge-building that allows people to connect. While there are no direct flights between Russia and the United States, Nikolaev is helping US citizens to participate in the training of leaders for The United Methodist Church in Moscow.

Part of that is relationship-building, he announced, is the creation of a mentorship program between church leaders in the US and the students. Harrell will help in the creation of this initiative. Some at the banquet also expressed the desire to help the students with the $5,000 a year in fees for travel, tuition and housing.

Nikolaev thanked the people of the Baltimore-Washington and Virginia Conferences. “God is continuing to work through you in amazing ways,” he said.

 Learn more about the seminary.
Read an article by Sergei Nikolaev about how the seminary is using covenant groups to keep students connected.