| Atheism, Not God, is Odd Where Do Atheists Come From? Editorial: Time to accept that atheism, not God, is odd. HERE's a fact to flatter the unbelievers among you: the bright young things at the University of Oxford are among the most godless groups ever studied in the UK. Of 728 students surveyed in 2007, 48.9 per cent claimed not to believe in any god, with 49.6 per cent claiming no religious affiliation. And while a very small number of Britons typically label themselves as " atheist " or " agnostic " (most surveys put it at about 5 per cent), an astonishing 57.3 per cent of the Oxford sample did. This may come as no surprise. After all, atheism is the natural stance of the educated and the informed, is it not? It is only to be expected that Oxford students should be wise to what their own professor Richard Dawkins calls " self-indulgent, thought-denying skyhookery " - and others call " faith " . The old Enlightenment caricature, it seems, is true after all: where Reason reigns, God retires. Of course, things are never quite that simple. Within the sample, for instance, the postgraduates (that is, the even-better educated) were notably more religious than the undergraduates, in terms of both belief in God and self-description. Although the greater number of non-Europeans in the postgraduate population is almost certainly a significant factor here, evidence from elsewhere backs the idea that there is no straightforward relationship between atheism and education. Let's look at some results from the World Values Survey, an international attempt to assess the global state of socio-cultural, moral, religious and political values. The 2005 results show that while there is a clear positive correlation between education and lack of belief in God, the effect is slightly weaker, not stronger, among those with a university education (14.8 per cent were non-believers) compared with those whose highest attainment was secondary level (17.2 per cent). What is more, the survey shows a far stronger correlation between education and certain " irrational " beliefs: for example, only 29.6 per cent of those without even an elementary education believe in telepathy, compared with 51.8 per cent of people with degree-level education. |
| Archive Metropolitan of Volokolamsk Hilarion speaks at the opening of the V All-Russian Theology within the Scientific and Educational Expanse conference 2 December 2021 year 16:28 The V All-Russian (with international participation) Theology within the Scientific and Educational Expanse: The Theory, History and Practice of Inter-religious and Inter-cultural Dialogue within a Situation of Global Challenges conference opened in Moscow on 1st December 2021. The conference is being held with the blessing of His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill. The basic events of the conference are taking place in Moscow on the 1st and 2nd December at the federal institutes of the National Research Nuclear University (MEPhi) (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economic and Public Administration (RANEPA) and the Higher School of Economics (HSE). All preventative measures as recommended by the Russian Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Protection and Human Rights Wellbeing aimed at combating the spread of the coronavirus disease have been taken. The conference is also taking place online with the use of video conference link technology. More than three hundred and fifty people were registered for the conference. Greetings fr om the Russian president Vladimir Putin were read by senior official of the Presidential Administration for Home Policy A. V. Tretyakov. In the greetings it was noted in particular that “theology performs an important mission in forming peoples’ outlook on life, enables inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue and plays a role in countering the terrorist threat.” Greetings fr om His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill were read by the chairman of the Department of External Church Relations, the rector of the Ss. Cyril and Methodius Institute for Post-graduate Studies and the president of the Scientific and Educational Theological Association the metropolitan of Volokolamsk Hilarion. “An important event,” the greetings states, “was the holding of a federal competition for grants in the field of theology. The Congress of Theological Journals and the Forum of Young Theologians also took place within the framework of the current year’s conference. I would like especially to note the work of the Scientific and Educational Theological Association, which at present brings together seventy leading Russian universities and colleges.” |
| The message of His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of Romania, on the occasion of the International Theological Congress “The Relation Between Parish and School in the Life and Mission of the Church in the Contemporary Context,” Bucharest, Dumitru Stniloae National Centre for Continuing Formation, 18-21 October 2015: In the context of the year 2015, declared by the Romanian Patriarchate as the Solemn Year of Parish and Monastery Missions Today and the Commemorative Year of Saint John Chrysostom and of the Great Spiritual Shepherds, the Theological and Educational Department of the Patriarchal Administration, in cooperation with the Patriarch Justinian Faculty of Orthodox Theology within the University of Bucharest, and with the support of the State Secretariat for Religious Cults has organized the International Theological Congress entitled “The Relation Between Parish and School in the Life and Mission of the Church in the Contemporary Context.” This academic event represents an occasion for numerous hierarchs, priests, and professors from home and abroad to meet and analyze and deepen the understanding and systematize different aspects regarding the relation between parish and school within the wider frame of Church missions today. The works of this year’s International Theological Congress is divided into five parts, as follows: 1. The specific role played by religious and theological education in the context of parish missions today: challenges, priorities and perspectives; 2. Religious Education – a catalyst for the partnership between parish and school; 3. The missionary and ecclesial perspective assumed and developed by theological education in the contemporary context of parish missions; 4. Structuring and promoting a specific mission of the Church for today’s youth; 5. Developing a specific missionary strategy for the diaspora. At the 6 th Congress of the Faculties of Orthodox Theology in Romania (Arad, September 21—23 2014), entitled “Theology and Mission. The Role of the faculties of Theology in the Context of Parish Missions,” the coordinates for the improvement of the missionary dimension of university theological education had already been set, taking into the account the current needs of the life of the Church. |
| Russian Religious Communities Carry Out a Humanitarian Action in Syria Unprecedented in Its Scale Source: DECR On February 4, 2018, the delegation of the interreligious working group under the Russian President’s Council carried out a major action for distribution of humanitarian aid to suffering people in Syria. During the whole Sunday, the delegation members together with representatives of Christian Churches and Muslim communities in Syria distributed in churches and mosques the aid donated by Russian believers. Christian priests and Muslim clergy unloaded cars with humanitarian aid and distributed it together to Syrians in need regardless of their religious affiliation. The amount of the distributed goods set record – 77 tons. The cargo was prepacked in over 25 kg-boxes each intended for one family. The foodstuff kits formed taking into consideration the real needs of the Syrian population included flour, sugar, cereals, pasta, dried milk, sunflower oil and canned fish and meat. Syrian beneficiaries pointed to the high quality of the foodstuffs, the right choice of the goods and that many things in the list are very difficult to obtain in Damascus. The contents of each box can be sufficient to sustain a family of five for at least two weeks. The project is supervised personally by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia. The direct management is carried out by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations (DECR). It is an unprecedented action because never before such a full-scale interreligious delegation ever visited warring Syria to distribute aid and nobody ever realized such a project together with representatives of all the major religious communities in Syria. The action began early in the morning at the religious and educational center of the Sheikh Ahmad Kuftaro Islamic Association. The guests from Russia were welcomed by the director of the association, Sheikh Shreef as-Sawaf and Mufti Adnan Afyuni of Damascus and the region. The delegation was introduced to the work of the educational center and saw classrooms. Then, in one of the streets in Damascus close to the Religious Center, a joint distribution of aid to people in need took place. As the Damascus religious leaders noted, in the recent time the population of the city has increased by a half million people from other regions in Syria who have had to leave their ruined cities and villages escaping from terrorists. These were the people who received aid at that distribution station. |
| The Upbringing of Children A Christian upbringing lays a moral and spiritual foundation in a child, while a scholastic education aims at developing his mental abilities. These are two different activities. There is no reason to think that scholastic education automatically facilitates the moral development of a child. Some people may be very educated but ill-bred and unspiritual. On the other hand, totally uneducated peasants can be highly spiritual and moral people. Bishop Alexander (Mileant) 24 January 2005 Introduction The following sources were used: “The Religious upbringing of Children,” by Archpriest Sergey Schukin; “The Orthodox Upbringing of Children in Our Days,” by Bishop Gregory Grabbe; and other Orthodox articles. All aspects of a man”s life – his character, sense of responsibility, good and bad habits, ability to cope with difficulties, and his piety – are shaped primarily during his childhood. The bright memories of his childhood can strengthen and warm a man during trying times, and, contrarily, those who have not had a happy childhood can in no way remake it. When we meet an orphan who has never had parental affection, or a step-son or step-daughter whose broken spirits are a result of difficulties at home, or those left to the care of strangers, we can sense in them the imprint of painful early impressions. The absence of a religious upbringing unfailingly manifests itself in a person”s character – a sort of fissure can be perceived in his spiritual makeup. A child is extraordinarily receptive to religious impressions. He is instinctively drawn toward everything that opens up the beauty and meaning of life. Take this away from him and his soul will become dulled and he will feel lonely in an unfriendly and cruel world. Something similar happens with the physical appearance of a child. If he lives in dismal, damp surroundings, he will grow underdeveloped, ailing and without joy. In both cases of malady, physical or spiritual, the fault lies with the parents. On the other hand, when we consider prominent and successful people, people of great integrity and energy, we see that the majority of them came from large, hard-working families, brought up in religious traditions. |
| Accept The site uses cookies to help show you the most up-to-date information. By continuing to use the site, you consent to the use of your Metadata and cookies. Cookie policy International conference on “Church care for mentally ill people: religious mystical experience and mental health” Download reports (PDF) The international conference on “Church care for mentally ill people: religious mystical experience and mental health” took place on November 7-8, 2019, at the Moscow Patriarchate Department for external church relations. It was organized with a blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia. Its co-organizers were the Commission for Church Education and Diakonia of the Inter-Council Presence of the Russian Orthodox Church, DECR MP, the diocese of Voronezh and the Metal Health Research Center (MHRC) of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS). It was organized with the support of Kirche in Not (Aid to the Church in Need) international foundation. It was attended by representatives of various Christian confessions from Italy, Netherlands, Spain, USA and Russia – clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church with an experience of providing pastoral care for mentally ill people, as well as professors and students of theological university departments and theological schools, MHRC RAN staff members, theologians and experts. The conference was presided over by Metropolitan Sergiy of Voronezh and Liski, leader of the working group on Pastoral Care for the Mentally Ill of the respective commission of the Inter-Council Presence. In his introductory remarks, Metropolitan Sergiy pointed to a sad tendency existing in the modern psychiatry to ignore the religious life of patients and the information they give about mystical phenomena they experience and to view them only as manifestations of mental illnesses. To distinguish between psychopathological and mystical phenomena “it is necessary for a doctor to be open for the spiritual life and for a pastor to have sufficient knowledge in the field of psychopathology”. In this cooperation, it is important that a psychiatrist should have an idea of a patient’s religious values and faith in order to distinguish a mental disorder from expressions of spiritual, religious dimension of human life. “A medical doctor and a priest should understand that no spiritual phenomenon or psychotic symptom can be torn away from the context of a person’s established relations with his or her neighbours, relatives, the Church and, finally, God”. |
| Arhiva Cu privire la slujirea religios-educativ i de catehizare a Bisericii Ortodoxe Ruse 28 decembrie 2011 16:45 Документ утвержден определением Священного Синода Русской Православной Церкви от 27 декабря 2011 года ( журнал 152 ). Христианская вера основана на Божественном Откровении, возвещенном пророками и апостолами. «Бог, многократно и многообразно говоривший издревле отцам в пророках, в последние дни сии говорил нам в Сыне, Которого поставил наследником всего, чрез Которого и веки сотворил» (Евр. 1:1-2). Одно из наиболее часто встречающихся в Евангелии обращений ко Христу Спасителю, явившему нам полноту Божественного Откровения — Учитель. Он возвещал приближение Царства Божьего и учил народ как словами, так и делами, подавая личный пример послушания Небесному Отцу и жертвенного служения людям. Своим ученикам и апостолам Спаситель заповедал продолжать Его учительное служение: «Идите, научите все народы, крестя их во имя Отца и Сына и Святаго Духа, уча их соблюдать всё, что Я повелел вам» (Мф. 28:19-20). «Принявшие Крещение в день Пятидесятницы члены иерусалимской церкви постоянно пребывали в учении Апостолов, в общении и преломлении хлеба и молитвах» (Деян. 2:42). Научение вере связано с общинной, литургической и молитвенной жизнью Церкви. В центре этого научения — «Слово Божие, которое живо и действенно и острее всякого меча обоюдоострого» (Евр. 4:12). А потому, как свидетельствует апостол Павел, «и слово мое, и проповедь моя не в убедительных словах человеческой мудрости, но в явлении духа и силы, чтобы вера ваша утверждалась не на мудрости человеческой, но на силе Божией» (1 Кор. 2:4-5). Церковное учительство принципиально шире и глубже интеллектуального процесса передачи и усвоения знаний и информации. Средоточием и смыслом церковного просвещения является благодатное преображение всего естества человека в общении с Богом и Его Церковью. Практика духовного назидания, восходящая к апостольскому времени, отражена в Предании Церкви, в том числе канонических постановлениях Вселенских и Поместных Соборов и в творениях святых отцов: |
| Patriarch Daniel: Let Us Always Thank God Because We Live Permanently from His Mercy Source: Basilica.ro On his 13th enthronement anniversary, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel urged the faithful to always be thankfulness to God because ‘we live permanently from His help and mercy and feel His blessing.’ Work in communion The Patriarch confessed that in this period of patriarchal stewardship he felt ‘God’s blessing,’ especially through ‘the work in communion’: ‘what we accomplished together with the members of the Holy Synod, helped by the clergy and the believers, but also by the central and local state authorities for the profit of the Romanian people.’ ‘These years of ministry showed us that when we obey one another and together we obey to Christ the Lord, the result of these humble obediences is turned into visible and enduring works. Therefore, we found that the work of the Synod together was and remains the greatest blessing from God,’ His Beatitude said Sept. 30. In his speech at the Patriarchal Cathedral, the Patriarch of Romania presented the effects of the elevation to the rank of archdiocese in 2009 of several dioceses. “They have intensified the pastoral, missionary, building activity, so that any new step raised in life, as Nicolae Iorga said, is a new altar of sacrifice.” Romanians abroad He also spoke about the changes brought about by the establishment, during his patriarchal mandate, of new dioceses abroad. They pointed out that the Church must take care not only of the faithful who remain in the country, but also of those who live abroad. “Those who are spatially farther from us must feel more parental and fraternal love from the mother Church,” said the Patriarch, who explained that this role belongs to “hierarchs and clergy outside the country and in the Western diaspora.” Religious education The work carried out in theological schools and by professors of religious education he described as “a joy and a great blessing.” “Professors have always been eager to pass on the faith to the new generation, but at the same time to form characters, to teach children to value love for God, for their parents, teachers and professors, but also for their peers.” Pastoral challenges during coronavirus pandemic |
| Accept The site uses cookies to help show you the most up-to-date information. By continuing to use the site, you consent to the use of your Metadata and cookies. Cookie policy Speech by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill at the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and representatives of Russia’s religious communities. On 25th October 2023 a meeting took place at the Saint Catherine Hall of the Moscow Kremlin between the Russian President Vladimir Putin and representatives of Russia’s religious communities. Participating in the meeting was His Holiness Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus " . After the presentation by the Russian President, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church addressed the Russian head of state and all those gathered. “Vladimir Vladimirovich, I express my gratitude to you for the initiative of holding this meeting and for the words which you have just addressed to us. This is indeed a much-needed and urgent meeting. I am especially concerned over the many new conflicts which have arisen with renewed force in the eastern mediterranean. The attention of the faithful of the Abrahamic religious traditions has been focused on this region for centuries. Jerusalem was and remains a holy city for both Christians, Jews and Muslims. Palestine and Israel are territories making up the Holy Land where the most important events in world history took place, primarily events directly tied to the encounter between God and the human person. Russia has historically supported the closest ties with the Holy Land, it strives to retain a Russian presence there, the history of which is exceptionally replete with facts and events. The many written testimonies and cultural artifacts point towards the fact that pilgrimage to the Holy Land was one of the most desired and significant events in the life of God-fearing Russian people. It was the securing of the opportunity of visiting the Holy Land for a great number of our compatriots that was one of the main goals of establishing more than 140 years ago by Emperor Alexander III the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society. This organization has undoubtedly made a significant contribution to supporting the Palestinian people, primarily in the educational and social spheres. Schools, homes and hospitals were built, which is to say that great charity work was done aimed at supporting the local population. |
| Head of UOC Representation to European International Organizations: Bill No. 5309 Shows Apparent Disregard for European Legal Values Source: DECR Interview given by Bishop Victor of Barushevka, head of the UOC representation to European international organizations, to the Information and Education Department of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. – Your Eminence, in recent days, voices have been heard from various resources about a danger for the parishes of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, considering that the Ukrainian Supreme Rada has adopted Bill No. 5305 providing for a change in the names of our Church’s religious organizations. What can you say about this? – I would like to note that actually the adopted Bill No. 5309 applies only to the religious organizations having governing center located in the state recognized by law as a state that has carried out a military aggression against Ukraine and has temporarily occupied the territory of Ukraine. However, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is subject to the governing center located in Kiev. For this reason, this law does not apply to our organization. – Yes, but perhaps the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture and other state bodies will see it otherwise. In this case, what the religious organizations of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church are to expect? – We understand that in this particular historical period, certain political forces, which are in power in Ukraine today, have chosen to put pressure upon our confession. That is why we are called to defend people’s rights against the arbitrariness of power bodies. If public servants interpret this law arbitrarily and demand that the names of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s communities should be changed, then our religious organizations will have the right to challenge the actions of such public servants or state bodies in court, and this means that lawsuits will continue in Ukraine. – What are the prospects of such disputes, in your view? – From the legal point of view, there are prospects as, indeed, even the Ukrainian Supreme Rada chief office of scientific expertise has made a negative assessment of this bill and recommended that it should be declined. |
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