Moscow, Russia - Russia's Orthodox Church accused US superstar Madonna of exploiting Christian symbols for her own ends and called for a boycott of her first-ever concert in Moscow.
"The US singer Madonna exploits Christian symbols -- the cross, rosary beads and the crucifix -- and tries to equate human passions, including her own personal passions, with something sacred," the spokesman for the patriarch of Moscow said.
"I don't think that Orthodox believers should support this lady by going to her concert," father Vsevolod Chaplin said on Echo of Moscow radio station.
She "needs spiritual help because she swings between Christianity and Kabbalah," he said, referring to a branch of Jewish mysticism that the singer follows.
Madonna will perform in Russia for the first time on September 11 as part of her "Confessions" world tour. The concert will take place on a specially constructed stage on Sparrow Hills overlooking the city centre, close to Moscow State University.
The pop diva will arrive in the Russian capital with 57 trucks and 200 tonnes of equipment in tow, the organisers said. Tickets cost between 1,500 rubles (55 dollars, 45 euros) and a hefty 25,000 rubles (930 dollars, 730 euros).
Madonna kicked off the European leg of her world tour in the Welsh city of Cardiff on July 30 where she gyrated on a saddle floating above the stage and sang from a crucifix in a performance involving provocative dance routines.
She has often sparked outrage among religious leaders with raunchy video clips, notably when she kissed a black Christ in front of a burning cross in her 1989 hit "Like a Prayer".