Head of Orthodox Church blasts social media “disease”

Millions of young people who crave approval on social media are suffering from a “real disease,” Russia’s spiritual leader has said.

Patriarch Kirill, the head of Russia’s Orthodox Church, said that young people were willing to risk their lives in a bid to win approval from their online followers. He claimed that the problem was rooted in vanity, the Interfax news agency reported.

“Some young people see no purpose in life except to get likes,” Kirill told worshippers at Moscow’s Epiphany Cathedral on Tuesday. “If they have no other aim, then we should see that as a tragedy.”