RUSSIA RELIGION NEWS


Kremlin poses as defender of religious rights

SESSION OF PRESIDENTIAL COUNCIL ON COOPERATION WITH RELIGIOUS ASSOCIATIONS HELD IN KREMLIN

Representatives of RPTs and other religions of Russia called for protection of believers in zones of armed conflicts

Ekklesiia.ru, 12 December 2014

 

Events in the last four years connected with the so-called "Arab Spring" in countries of the Middle East and North Africa have been unprecedented in modern history in their cruelty with respect to Christians and representatives of other traditional religious of this region. Having gotten freedom of actions, representatives of radical Islam, for example in Iraq and Syria, have made life unbearable not only for local Christians but also for Muslims of a traditional type.

 

An especially difficult situation has now developed in the zone of armed actions in Ukraine. Beginning in February 2014, more than 60 cases of attacks on churches and clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church have been identified.

 

All these important questions were discussed yesterday in the Kremlin at the presidential Council for Cooperation with Religious Associations and Organizations. The participants in the meeting that was held under the chairmanship of the head of the Kremlin administration, Sergei Ivanov, included the head of OVTS, Metropolitan of Volokolamsk Ilarion, Metropolitan of Krutitsy Yuvenaly, the head of OVTsO Archpriest Vsevolod chaplin, as well as leaders of several traditional confessions of Russia [Islam, Judaism, Buddhism], TASS reports.

 

On the basis of the results of this meeting, a special declaration was adopted in which the council called for respect of the rights of believers in zones of military conflicts. The statement deals with concern about the fate of believers of traditional religions in territories of the Middle East, North Africa, and Ukraine. . . . (tr. by PDS, posted 21 December 2014)

 

ON MEASURES FOR PROTECTION OF BELIEVERS IN ZONES OF MILITARY CONFLICTS

 

Declaration of the Council for Cooperation with Religious Associations of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation

 

Peoples who have settled Russia have lived together for centuries in traditions of good neighborliness and mutual respect, despite cultural, religious, and ethnic differences. Common moral values which traditional religions of Russia preach are inherent to our society.

 

However today Russia faces various challenges aimed at undermining the well-being and integrity of our country. Unable to split Russian society from within and unable to frighten us with terrorist acts, extremists are fanning the flames of instability around our country.

 

A special characteristic of recent years has been persistent efforts aimed at giving the appearance of a religious and ethnic cause of conflicts of a political and social character and covering the struggle for economic interests or geopolitical dominance with slogans in which words about God and faith that are precious for millions of people are inscribed. Proponents of traditional spiritual and moral values and staunch supporters of peaceful coexistence have been the first victims of those who are guided by the ideas of misanthropy.

 

We see that in a number of countries of the Middle East and North Africa, the blood of peaceful residents who do not accept radical pseudo-religious ideology is flowing. In the biblical region, the situation of Christian communities and religious minorities has become ever more threatening and has produced mass flight from the land of their ancestors. Hundreds of thousands of Christians live in conditions of humanitarian catastrophe on the territory of Kurdistan in Iraq. Extremists in Syria are destroying representatives of the suffering Armenian people and its shrines; Kesab has been devastated and the Armenian memorial complex in Deir-ez-Zor of Syria has been destroyed. Extreme hardships are being endured by the population of the Syrian city of Aleppo that has been swept by war. So far there has been no reliable information about the fate of metropolitans of this city Paul and Gregory Ioann Ibrahim who were abducted on 22 April 2013. Almost no Christians remain in Libya, where the regular murders of Copts are continuing. In the republic of Sudan, government troops are deliberately destroying Christian objects: churches, hospitals, and schools. Christians are subjected to repressions and murders in Nigeria and a number of other countries of this region.

 

We view with pain the civil conflict into which it turned out that our fraternal nation of Ukraine has been plunged. We empathize with all our hearts with the civilian population of southeast Ukraine who are guilty of nothing and are suffering for their rejection of the politics of radical nationalism. We are deeply disturbed by the situation of believers in the zone of this armed conflict that is very close to us. In a number of regions of Ukraine there have occurred illegal seizures of houses of worship from religious parishes belonging to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, who have consistently occupied a peacemaking position. There are known incidents of unjust treatment of protestant and Jewish communities in various parts of the country, including the southeast. We think that it is necessary to coordinate the efforts of various religious organizations in search of ways to settle the armed conflict in the Donbass and Luhansk area.

 

Guided by the moral obligation to cooperate in the peaceful resolution of conflict situations, we call all parties involved in armed conflict:

 

--to ensure freedom of conscience and freedom of religious confession;

 

--to cease violent and discriminatory actions based on intolerance under religious or nationalistic slogans;

 

--to respect the dignity of every person;

 

--to display mercy toward people who hold different political views;

 

--to treat prisoners of war humanely;

 

--to ensure protection of the civilian population, especially the elderly, women, and children;

 

--to cooperate in  unhindered access to humanitarian aid that arrives for all who are in need;

 

--to organize humanitarian corridors for the free departure of refugees from zones of armed actions. (tr. by PDS, posted 21 December 2014)

 

Russian original posted on Religare site, 16 December 2014


Russia Religion News Current News Items

Editorial disclaimer: RRN does not intend to certify the accuracy of information presented in articles. RRN simply intends to certify the accuracy of the English translation of the contents of the articles as they appeared in news media of countries of the former USSR.

If material is quoted, please give credit to the publication from which it came. It is not necessary to credit this Web page. If material is transmitted electronically, please include reference to the URL, http://www.stetson.edu/~psteeves/relnews/.