Russian Orthodox Church Pans Parade Decision

The Russian Orthodox Church has denounced a decision by the European Court of Human Rights that ordered Russian authorities to pay compensation for repeatedly refusing to allow gay pride parades in Moscow.

According to the Russian news agency Interfax, church representative Hegumen Filaret said the court decision "insults the feelings of the majority of Russians." The case pitted gay Russian activist Nikolai Alekseyev against Yuri Luzhkov, the former mayor of Moscow, who called the parades "satanic."

"The decision made in Strasbourg essentially constitutes violence against the feelings and morals of the majority of [Russian] society," said Filaret, according to Interfax. "That will hardly help achieve the stated purpose to cultivate tolerance and achieve accord, mutual understanding and peaceful co-existence," he said, in an analysis that subjugated human rights norms to cultural traditions.

Filaret suggested that as a result of the court decision, the Russian Orthodox Church could join the growing political push to reconsider the country's participation in international human rights treaties.