PROTECTIVE BEARDS

Metropolitan Kornily, Primate of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church (RPSC), has called on Russian men to stop shaving to “protect themselves from homosexuality.” The whimsical cleric explained: “God set down certain rules. The Lord created everyone with a beard. No man can resist his creator.” The RPSC split from the Russian Orthodox Church in 1666 after protesting against reforms made by Patriarch Nikon of Moscow. themoscowtimes.com, 19 June 2017.