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https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-tren...kxLunhyXx53CjmjsB3qEnwUo3rarAUnUUBflC6J6gf-7g
Speaking to Russian state TV, Patriarch Kirill said smartphone users should be careful when using the "worldwide web of gadgets" because it represented "an opportunity to gain global control over mankind".
"The Antichrist is the person who will be at the head of the worldwide web, controlling all of humankind," he said.
Patriarch Kirill is close to Russian president Vladimir Putin, who participates in big Church celebrations and has gone on pilgrimages to Mount Athos and other famous Orthodox sites. Many Russian Orthodox priests closely identify with President Putin's nationalist agenda.
At a time when internet freedoms are increasingly restricted in Russia - and authorities are reportedly attempting to create an independent Russian internet - this closeness led some to accuse Patriarch Kirill of lending government policy divine authority.
Speaking to Russian state TV, Patriarch Kirill said smartphone users should be careful when using the "worldwide web of gadgets" because it represented "an opportunity to gain global control over mankind".
"The Antichrist is the person who will be at the head of the worldwide web, controlling all of humankind," he said.
Patriarch Kirill is close to Russian president Vladimir Putin, who participates in big Church celebrations and has gone on pilgrimages to Mount Athos and other famous Orthodox sites. Many Russian Orthodox priests closely identify with President Putin's nationalist agenda.
At a time when internet freedoms are increasingly restricted in Russia - and authorities are reportedly attempting to create an independent Russian internet - this closeness led some to accuse Patriarch Kirill of lending government policy divine authority.