I don't know that it is quite *that* bad, but I do not acept Putin as the religious and "Christian" hero he enjoys portraying himself to be, either
It is as put on 'plastic' as the rebuilt Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow is in many ways (other than just in physical properties of the replica, ornate moldings and trim).
How real is it?
To many in Russia today it is real enough, both the (Russian Orthodox) Church itself, and Putin's alleged turn towards Christian faith (be that what it may).
To others the blending of Church and State leaves them colder to both than they may have been before, and perplexed that what they themselves saw as peaceful & positive be highjacked by the chief enabler of the oligarchs who more or less own Russia today as modern fiefdom distributed among those who are "made men" (sort-of like mafia dons only BIGGER).
In between are the honest souls(?) who prefer Christ to nationalism, even as the original was something of a Russian nationalist shrine as much as a genuine church...?
Layers & layers of onion to the various onion domes in the vicinity of the place, and the domes on it's own spires too.
Peel the layers back, to find yet more sharp & pungent onion...and sometimes a bit of mold?
Where is Jesus in all that?
Is He -->in the minds of many (if that is actually Jesus) and the hearts of some? I don't know how many for sure...at this distance from it I am at, it can be difficult to tell.
Plus there is a claim that in the Middle East, the Christians who are right now are suffering under a growing Islamofacist threat it is supposed that the Russian Orthodox Church is protecting them from what I have heard.