Patriarch's meeting with Pope getting nearer - Metropolitan Hilarion

Moscow, November 26, Interfax - The meeting between the Moscow Patriarch and the Pope is getting nearer each day, the Russian Orthodox Church said.

"Each day brings us closer to this meeting between the Pope and Patriarch," head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, told journalists in Moscow.

"Right now we are not prepared to make known the date, nor are we engaged in any concrete preparations for the meeting, but we are certainly getting closer to it. It is a calendar and astronomical fact," he said.

The work carried out by the Russian Church with the Catholic Church is aimed "improving the general climate and achieving a higher level of mutual understanding," he added.

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=7957




Russian missionary: Moldavian marginal Orthodox believers are part of Western project
Kishinev, November 25, Interfax - Professor of the Moscow Theological Academy Protodeacon Andrey Kurayev believes the marginal Society of Blessed Matrona of Moscow led by Archpriest Anatoly Chibrik is backed by the Western political circles.

"The "society" headed by Anatoly Chibrik has no Moldavian focus. This is an instance of a large-scale project aimed at pursuing schism in the Orthodox Church. The project counts several dozen years. It is sponsored by a Western source," Father Andrey said in an interview published Thursday in the Moldavian issue of Argumenty i Facty weekly.

According to him, if the American intelligence is capable of fostering such anti-Western movement as the Taliban, "it is no wonder that such extreme schismatic groups in the Orthodox community may interest the same customers."

"To prevent the Orthodox Church from becoming an alternative to the American way of "globalization", it should look ridiculous, marginal and broken down. The American Pentecostals have spread the word about the "Number of the Beast" in bar-codes and the alleged reign of the beast," Father Andrey said.

In early October, Father Chibrik, who is currently tried by the Church court, started a fight at Fr. Andrey's lecture delivered in Kishinev. Several dozen aggressive followers of Fr. Chibrik rushed into the lecture hall with threats, beat down the faculty dean and smashed Fr. Andrey in the face.

Late last year, this group members held the anti-Semitic riot in the city center stating that they would not allow Moldavia to "governed by Jews" and tore down Jewish symbols, which were put up in the park two days before to celebrate Chanukah.

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=7954




Moscow rejects U.S. allegations about religious inequality
Moscow, November 22, Interfax - Russia's Foreign Ministry rejected allegations by the U.S. State Department that there exists inequality between religious communities representing different faiths in Russia.

The State Department made its allegations in the 2010 Report on International Religious Freedom.

"The authors of the State Department report were unable to ignore positive trends in our country relating to religious freedoms," the ministry spokesman said in a statement.

However, "the American experts tried to dilute this impression by listing hackneyed complaints about the 'persecution' of totalitarian religious sects and the allegedly privileged status of the Russian Orthodox Church," he said.

If the Orthodox Church enjoys a privileged status in Russia, "one should speak about the same status of the Catholic Church in Italy or Poland, the Muslim [community] in Turkey or Jordan, or the Buddhist [community] in India or Japan," the spokesman said.

"The crux of the matter is apparently not privileges but social status. Such status above all depends on what proportion of the population wants to join a specific church. The Orthodox Church in Russia has traditionally commanded the largest flock, and the State Department report mentions it, by the way," he said.

"The Muslim denomination is second in our country in terms of the number of believers, etc.," the spokesman said.

"Consequently, different denominations and religions may have different representation in civil society institutions. But that is a human factor," he said.

"Legally, the various denominations are equal in status in our country. The growth of the number of registered religious communities, of which there already are 23,500 in Russia, is evidence of this," the spokesman said.

"Interdenominational peace and harmony is an invaluable asset of Russia, something that we treat very carefully, making all necessary efforts to preserve it," he said.

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=dujour&div=33




Russian Church is ready to help USA compile more objective reports on international religious freedom


The USA Department of State has recently published its annual report on international religious freedom. Many Russian religious experts believe that its section on Russia lacks objectivity and analytical depth the same as in previous years.

Deputy head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Hegumen Philipp (Ryabykh) tells Interfax-Religion correspondent Alexey Sosedov about strong and weak sides of the report and things that can be done to make it more objective in the future.

-Father Philipp, please share your impressions on the report
- Annual reports of the USA Department of State on religious freedom have long ago become an informational event for many experts and politicians in Russia. I think that such external view on religious freedom in Russia and other countries can be useful for international discussion over models of interaction between religion and society. Representatives of the Russian Church constantly participate in such discussion on the world arena and in certain countries, for example when registering our parishes and dioceses abroad or when discussing norms adopted by international organizations in this field.

Report 2010 has one essential advantage: it gives rather detailed and reliable description of legal norms, state and public measures taken to provide religious freedom and also some events in the country's religious life. The statistic data cited in the report mentions perish of Orthodox priests and damage inflicted to Orthodox churches.

However, an external view presented in the report has a significant defect that is difficult or perhaps even impossible to overcome. And we always have to consider this serious deviation when we read such reports and discuss them. I hardly believe that representatives of any country that openly declares its national interests will ever base their evaluations on real interests of the society whether it is the Russian society or society of any other country they try to analyze.

- With what particular things do you disagree in the analysis of the religious situation in Russia made by the USA authorities?
- First of all, the report absolutizes religious freedom and its provision at the expense of other important freedoms and values of public life the society can't do without. The report leaves an impression that democracy and prosperity in the country depend only on the society's ability to provide comfortable conditions for religious minorities or even micro groups of various kinds. Freedoms of other part of the society, security, preservation of original national, spiritual and cultural tradition fade at this background. The report considers it least of all that's why it criticizes a 15-year term for obtaining registration or the expert council at the Justice Ministry which was set up to find signs of extremism in religious literature.

The situation with religious education is covered absolutely tendentiously. It refers to lessons of Orthodoxy in schools, but keeps silence over the fact that in Islamic and Buddhist regions foundations of corresponding religious culture are taught. There are schools where Jewish tradition is in the curriculum. Results of the religious educational experiment held in the country's 19 regions sound strange. The report claims that majority of parents have choosen secular ethics for their children and at the same time it mentions that representatives of the Russian Church press on the parents to make them chose Orthodox culture. Is it logical? These conclusions don't match. If Russian church representatives pressed then, according to the report logics, rather significant percent of parents should have chosen foundations of Orthodoxy. Authors of this analysis ignore the fact that today some regional officials of low rank try to influence the parents and make them chose secular ethics. We know such cases and it's strange that reporters who claim to keep the dialogue with all religious organizations in the country do not know such examples or haven't reflected them in the report.

Besides, information that the Russian Church urged to stop Darwinism in schools is presented in a negative way. It's evident there was a US Democratic Party representative among the report authors as there is a wide discussion in America over covering various attitudes to world and human origin at school curriculum. It's worth mentioning that in the past the United States gave an opportunity to priests on Freedom Radio to expose scientific dogmas of the Soviet system and Darwinism in particular. And when the situation in Russian has changed and the country obtained an opportunity to give people religious education basing on their free choice, there appears such unexpected criticism in the field.

The report overemphasizes importance of some scientists and students' protests against presence of religion in Russian educational system. It points out to the student performance in St.Petersburg University in 2009 at a conference on religion and international relations, it says it was demonstration of public opinion. I participated in the conference and I can say that three-four students took part in the action and no one in the congress hall supported them and after the conference majority of students said they didn't accept such actions. It seems that the reporters don't want to see that the model when religion is present in educational system rules out pressure and secures the right of citizens to bring up their children in compliance with their world outlook.

- Major part of the report is dedicated to giving back the property...
- Unfortunately, actions of the government taken to overcome consequences of Soviet times and injustice to religious organizations, and support given to these actions by traditional religions are presented negatively. The report cites strange arguments similar to the report of the previous year that the Russian Church did not own churches and monasteries before 1917, but it doesn't mention that Orthodoxy was a state religion with all ensuing consequences. Current situation has dramatically changed, the state is secular. Thus even if before revolution religious property belonged to the state, the Church was then built in the state system, while today due to secular character of the state such objects should be transferred to religious organizations in ownership or use.

Surprising is an example of the Novodevichy Convent transferred to exclusive ownership of the Church. When examining various violations of religious rights the reporters cite international law, but when speaking about the convent they say nothing about important norms of international laws that regulate preservation of cultural objects enlisted as UNESCO world heritage when religious organizations own or use such objects. UNESCO in such cases stands up to protect rights of the believers and make religious organizations freely use such cultural sites.

At the backgrounds of critical attitude to the actions of the state taken to return expropriated property, the reporters selectively back up rights of the Russian Jewish community on returning Schneerson library and refer to international agreements. Support of some religious communities and creating negative image of other ones also arouse mistrust to the report.

There is one important remark as to the report methodology. It focuses on securing rights of religious minorities. The Russian Church believes that state and society should secure rights of all citizens and not only some of them. Minorities' rights shouldn't be secured at the expense of majority's rights. It often happens that minorities obtain permission for such activity that directly violates rights of the other part of the society.

For example, the report blames Orthodox public organizations for their criticism against actions of religious minorities. However, it doesn't mention that the latter sometimes have very critical or even aggressive position against the Russian Church, it's enough to analyze speeches of some religious leaders of the country. But such speeches are not mentioned in the report and it also makes us doubt fairness of the reporters' evaluations.

The report stresses that equality of religious organizations before the law is an important element. At the same time, it critically says that the Russian Church have more opportunities to reach the society and cooperates with the state. In this connection we should say that such situation in the country doesn't violate the principle of religious organizations equality before the law. Even the reporters say that about hundred million Russians call themselves Orthodox. Thus to secure rights of these citizens more work of the authorities is needed and the Russian Church needs to cooperate with the society to secure rights of these citizens. It is impossible to cooperate with religious minorities to the same degree as it will be out of proportions to their presence in the society and infringe rights of the citizens who adhere to the religion of majority.

The report expresses concerns over the growth of the Russian Church political influence and it is presented as violation of religious freedom. It points out to the cooperation with the United Russia party, other political parties and institutes of the country. But it makes me wonder why such interaction is evaluated negatively: in the United States political forces actively cooperate with religious organizations, politicians speak at religious meetings and it is a democratic process when the country's major political forces build a dialogue with religious organizations. According to the Constitution, Russia stands for pluralism of world outlooks and the duty of any political party is not to ignore the country's religious communities.

The Department of State believes that another example of religious freedom violation is the fact that Christmas is a state holiday and the new memorial date - Day of Russia's Baptism was introduced in the calendar and the Day of Slavic Scripture and Culture is widely celebrated. However, it only vaguely mentions that main Islamic feasts are officially celebrated in some Russian regions. Such information is not full as for example some Buddhist regions celebrate Buddhist feasts. The system adopted in Russia corresponds to democratic requirements as various groups of the society have an opportunity to celebrate main religious feasts.

Besides, such attitude to Christmas is absolutely unclear as this feast as well as some other Christian feasts is a state holiday in the States. Celebrations of such dates in Europe, America and Russia emphasize the importance given to the country's main religious tradition. At the same time, the state doesn't make people go to churches on these days, people spend their free time as they like.

-What would you wish to future State Department reports?
- I'd like to wish that in the future the report will have truly equal, friendly attitude to various religious organizations and will avoid selectiveness so that religious situation is reflected more fully and different points of view are presented - not only claims of religious minorities to the state or to the religious organizations of the majority, but the opinion of the Russian Church as well. We are ready for consultations, for the dialogue on a standing basis. Such a dialogue will help overcome all mentioned defects of the report.

- Have representatives of the USA external political department tried to set up dialogue with the Russian Church Department for External Church Relations, especially when preparing such reports?
- The USA Embassy turns to us when they want to clear out church position on some questions, but it usually happens once a year when the report is prepared and certainly it is impossible to touch upon all the problems during a one-hour talk. I think that representatives of the Department of State should hold consultations with various structures of the Russian Church depending on the questions they are interested in as well as with regional organizations of the Moscow Patriarchate. Sometimes there is an impression that such meetings are very formal, needed only for record and in fact position of the Orthodox Church is not examined and considered. Sometimes there is an impression that USA colleagues are not truly interested in our position and in reflecting it in the report.

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=interview&div=89




People’s Assembly of Georgia expresses no confidence in Saakashvili

TBILISI, November 25 (Itar-Tass) -- The congress of the People’s Assembly of Georgia closed on Thursday by adopting a resolution of no confidence in the authorities. According to organizers, the congress, which took place in the square in front of the Parliament of Georgia and Rustaveli Avenue gathered about 15 thousand demonstrators. During the congress the avenue remained closed to traffic.

The congress’s resolution declares "lack of confidence in the president and the country's authorities."

"The nation-wide assembly is empowered to call upon the people to fight for a peaceful, legal replacement of the current authorities and spearhead the work for achieving this goal,” the document says. “In all regions and cities committees will be set up to prepare for a national civil disobedience campaign.

The congress voted for a "verdict of no confidence in President Saakashvili and the Georgian authorities", which states that "the president has lost the confidence of the people, carried out the monopolization of state power, established an authoritarian regime in the country and ignores the principles of law and justice."

"The people of Georgia expresses its readiness to conduct new fair elections in order to decide their political future," the document says.

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=15717326&PageNum=0




Putin regards Russian base in Tajikistan as factor of stability

DUSHANBE, November 25 (Itar-Tass) -- The Russian military base in Tajikistan is an important factor of stability in the region and proof of mutual confidence between the two countries, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin declared at Russo-Tajik talks on Thursday.

"Cooperation between the defence departments of the two countries and the presence of a full- format, fully-fledged Russian military base in Tajikistan on a long-term basis is a serious sign of mutual confidence between the two countries," Putin stressed. "This is an important factor of stability in this region, taking into account difficult processes continuing in Afghanistan," Putin said.

"All of us should do big work in Central Asia so that people could feel confident, be calm and reliably protected there," the Russian prime minister said.

Putin praised successful development of trade and economic contacts which were badly damaged as a result of the world economic and financial crisis, but which have been steadily revived in recent months. Putin also reminded of a number of joint projects Russia and Tajikistan had realized together or are implementing at present, including the construction of the Sangtuda-1 hydropower plant , which is the most important project underway at present.

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=15717085&PageNum=0




Putin calls to set partnership with Kyrgyzstan on business course

DUSHANBE, November 25 (Itar-Tass) -- Russia and Kyrgyzstan should bring their partnership to a normal, business course, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin declared at a meeting with Kyrgyz President of the transitional period Rosa Otunbayeva on Thursday. "We welcomed the Kyrgyz parliamentary election, and hope that the work on the formation of a new government will be completed soon," Putin said.

"In times of hardships in Kyrgyzstan Russia did everything possible to support Kyrgyzstan and its people. We rendered all the necessary, prompt assistance and gave humanitarian support to Kyrgyzstan," Putin said.

"Russia and Kyrgyzstan should bring their relations to a normal, business course and bring their day-to-day activities to a normal regime," Putin declared.

For her part Rosa Otunbayeva said that Kyrgyzstan appreciates Russia’ s assistance. "We heard Russia’s voice during those "hot" days and received Russia's support, which was vitally important," Otunbayeva said.

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=15717339&PageNum=0




Poland welcomes Russia’s Duma Katyn statement

Polish politicians have welcomed a draft statement on the Katyn massacre being discussed by Russia’s State Duma.

Polish sejm speaker Grzegorz Schetyna believes this to be an important step towards strengthening bilateral relations.

A deputy from the Polish Peasant Party thinks that the bill should be highly assessed by Poland as a gesture of rapprochement.

Russia’s State Duma has proposed to recognize the Katyn massacre as a Stalin regime crime.

In 1940, thousands of Polish officers were executed in the Katyn forest near the city of Smolensk.

http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/11/26/35708199.html




Medvedev hands over Poland Katyn massacre documents

Prior to the WWII celebrations, Russia’s president Dmitry Medvedev has handed over official papers from the investigation into the Katyn massacre to the acting President of Poland, Bronislaw Komorowski.

The acting Polish president, in turn, expressed his gratitude to the Russian government for the move, which is widely viewed as a step towards improving the countries’ relation.

"We thank you for what you have said and done. We consider it to be the beginning of further work to untie this Katyn knot," Komorowski said.

"The truth about Katyn is a common test that both the Polish and Russian people have endured. This truth could be a good basis for the development of relations between the two countries," he added.

Bronislaw Komorowski has come to Moscow to take part in the Victory Day celebrations this weekend. Dmitry Medvedev thanked the acting president for his willingness to attend the festive events.

The documents, which have also been published online, show that the killing of over twenty thousand Polish officers and prisoners of war in Katyn in 1940 was approved by Soviet leaders led by Stalin.

First acknowledged by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, the massacre has become a major strain in Russian-Polish relations in recent years.

http://english.ruvr.ru/rtvideo/2010/05/09/video_7535387.html




Romanovs' correspondence archives to be auctioned in Geneva

Correspondence archives of the last Russian imperial family will be put up for sale in Geneva on December 6.

More than 2,000 letters, drawings, photographs, cable messages and postcards from Grand Dukes George and Mikhail and Grand Duchesses Xenia and Olga to their Swiss tutor Ferdinand Thormeyer will be auctioned along with a silver cigarette-case and a sapphire – a gift to Thormeyer from Crown Prince Nicholas and Grand Duke George.

http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/11/25/35591835.html

US stops destroying Afghan opium crops

The United States believes the policy of destroying all Afghan opium crops has badly backfired and must be stopped. Its forces on Afghan soil have already received appropriate orders.

Ambassador John Beyrle told this to a Russian news agency in an interview in Moscow Wednesday. He cited numerous instances in which poppy eradication stripped farmers of their livelihoods and forced them to join the Taliban.

At the same time, he did not rule out localized opium destruction operations.

In the period since the year 2000, the Afghan-produced heroin is estimated to have been killing some 100 thousand people each year. The Afghan drug industry generates income for three and a half million people.

http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/06/09/9442883.html



Lavrov urges stepping up struggle against Afghan drug production


Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has called for dealing with drug production in Afghanistan just as effectively as cocaine production is being fought in Latin America.

Opium poppy plantations and heroin labs should be wiped out, he told the international forum “Afghan Drug Production – a Challenge to the International Community”, which is under way in Moscow. We are certain of the need to treat the Afghan drug threat at the UN Security Council as a threat to international peace and security, he added.

Russia’s topmost diplomat feels that the ISAF coalition force in Afghanistan should come to grips with the drug industry problem.

http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/06/09/9427888.html



Russian economy can be seen as more stable in Europe – Gref


The Russian economy can be seen as one of the more stable European economies, but it needs foreign investment.

This came in an interview with the “Rossia 24” TV channel by Russia’s Sberbank CEO Hermann Gref.

The key objective now is the creation of sound macroeconomic conditions that would look attractive to investors, Gref said.

He pointed out that the Russian financial system’s dependence on mineral resources and the non-diversification of the economy was a major drawback. The Sberbank CEO says he is certain that this affects price instability in Russia.

http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/06/09/9424327.html



Russia will not buy The Mistral without the high-tech on it – Putin


Russia will not buy the French Mistral assault ship without the technology on it or contracts to procure much of the equipment for bringing it up to date from Russian companies. It wants the ship’s mammoth price tag of 300 million euros to stimulate naval and civilian manufacturers in Russia, as well as France.

Prime Minister Putin has told this to French media ahead of a visit to France from Thursday.

The Mistral displaces 21 thousand tons and can carry 16 attack helicopters to distances of up to 20 thousand nautical miles.

http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/06/09/9458711.html



Patriarch Bartholomew hopes Ukraine will overcome church schism under Yanukovich


Istanbul, June 9, Interfax – Patriarch Bartholomew hopes that under President Viktor Yanukovich Ukraine will overcome schism in Orthodoxy.

"We know there is a schism of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Ukraine and it distresses us a lot. We pray for this separation to vanish as soon as possible and for our brothers who separated to come back to the canonical Church as it is our salvation," he said at his meeting with the Ukrainian President in his Istanbul residence.

The Patriarch confessed he was "more than convinced" that Yanukovich would spare no effort to "heal these wounds" and restore unity of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

In his turn, Yanukovich pointed out to the importance of unity for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=7348

Russian Anthem, Гимн России, Military Parade 2007

Putin on THE Ukraine: economic stability ushers in political one

Prime Minister Putin believes a Ukraine that is sound economically leads to a Ukraine that is stable politically. He told this to reporters in Sochi on Friday ahead of going into talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Nikolai Azarov about ten major cooperation programmes in oil, gas, nuclear power, heavy engineering and defence manufacturing. He praised the new Ukrainian administration for bringing about positive change that opens up prospects for joint Russian-Ukrainian work to advance social and economic modernization on both sides.


http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/04/30/7156399.html

5,000 people gathered for Easter night service in Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral

Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill led the overnight Easter service in the Christ the Savior Cathedral in Moscow. The Easter morning mass, which started about midnight, was attended by leaders of the Russian state, President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. At the altar they exchanged Easter greetings with the Patriarch, a triple embrace with the words "Christ is Risen!". The cathedral was completely filled with believers. According to local security, the service was attended by more than five thousand people. Due to special precautions , entry was by invitation only. At the beginning of the service, candles were lit from the greatest relic, the Holy Fire, which had been delivered from Jerusalem. This was followed by the Easter procession around the church, accompanied by bell-ringing. In the main Easter service the Gospel was read in 16 languages. The traditional passage from the Gospel of John, beginning with the words "In the beginning was the Word ..." was read by the primate of the church and several clergymen. Reading the Easter Gospel in many languages of the world symbolizes a triumph of great importance. Most of the service from the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour was broadcast by Russian national television. This year, Easter is celebrated on the same day by the Christians of Eastern and Western traditions. Holiday services were conducted by Orthodox Christians, Lutherans, Catholics, and Protestants. The current Easter fell on the earliest of all possible dates. This will not happen again in the next 20 years

http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/04/04/5980958.html

Presidential cadet schools to be formed in Russia

Presidential cadet schools will soon be formed in Russia’s eight federal districts, a Defense Ministry spokesperson said on Sunday, adding that an array of state-of-the-art secondary education programs are expected to be used in such schools. Servicemen’s children and orphans will get special preferences among those looking to be admitted, the spokesperson added. The first cadet school is slated to be set up in the city of Orenburg later this year.


http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/04/04/5984976.html

ГОСУДАРСТВУ НЕ СЛЕДУЕТ ПОЛНОСТЬЮ ОТДЕЛЯТЬ СЕБЯ ОТ РЕЛИГИИ (МНЕНИЯ ПОЛИТИКОВ И ОБЩЕСТВЕННОСТИ)

ГОСУДАРСТВУ НЕ СЛЕДУЕТ ПОЛНОСТЬЮ ОТДЕЛЯТЬ СЕБЯ ОТ РЕЛИГИИ (МНЕНИЯ ПОЛИТИКОВ И ОБЩЕСТВЕННОСТИ)
18.02.2010 11:43

Российские парламентарии и общественные деятели в основном одобрили разработанный "Единой Россией" законопроект о дополнительной господдержке религиозных организаций. По их мнению, благотворительная деятельность религиозных организаций направлена на выполнение задач государственного значения.

"Единая Россия" дополнила законопроект о поддержке некоммерческих организаций поправками, которые дадут религиозным организациям право на государственную помощь. Кроме того, эти организации смогут получать статус социально ориентированных.

Рассмотрение поправок Комитетом Госдумы по делам общественных объединений и религиозных организаций состоится 19 февраля, а обсуждение законопроекта в палате намечено на 26 февраля.

В первоначальной редакции закона на дополнительную господдержку религиозных организаций наряду с политическими партиями и госкорпорациями вводился прямой запрет. Однако Русская Православная Церковь обратилась к президенту с просьбой распространить льготы, которые имеют другие НКО, на религиозные организации.

Цель поправок – побудить религиозные организации активнее заниматься благотворительностью. После принятия поправок приходы РПЦ смогут в приоритетном порядке претендовать на деньги, выделяемые правительством на профилактику абортов и поддержку молодых семей, им также станет проще получать помещения.

Закон не предусматривает автоматического предоставления льгот всем религиозным организациям, а лишь тем, которые занимаются благотворительностью.

Как вы расцениваете этот законопроект? Не нарушает ли он принцип разделения государства и Церкви? С такими вопросами REGIONS.RU/"Новости Федерации" обратились к представителям верхней и нижней палат парламента и общественным деятелям.

Согласен с концепцией законопроекта заместитель председателя Комитета Совета Федерации по природным ресурсам, охране окружающей среды и экологии, представитель в СФ от администрации Костромской области Василий Дума.

"Чем больше мы будем помогать Церкви, тем лучше будет нашим детям", - заявил сенатор. "Наши дети станут добрее, искреннее и милосерднее, ведь Церковь ничего плохого ни пожелать, ни сделать не может", - пояснил он.

По мнению парламентария, в данном случае говорить о нарушении принципа отделения Церкви от государства не приходится. "Несмотря на то, что по Конституции Церковь отделена от государства, такого серьезного разделения между этими институтами, как существовало во времена Советского Союза, сегодня нет", - подчеркнул Василий Дума.

Госпомощь может быть оказана религиозным организациям лишь в отдельных случаях, считает заместитель председателя Комиссии Совета Федерации по вопросам развития институтов гражданского общества, представитель в СФ от исполнительного органа государственной власти Краснодарского края Александр Починок.

"Если Церковь занимается общественно-полезной деятельностью, то тогда государство в праве ей помочь", - заявил сенатор.

Поддержка религиозных организаций бюджетными средствами возможна, по мнению парламентария, в частности, когда речь идет о памятниках культуры, представляющих ценность не только для верующих, но в целом для страны. "Если, например, требуется отреставрировать Троице-Сергиеву Лавру или Новодевичий монастырь, государство обязано принять на себя расходы по реставрационным работам. Между тем оплачивать строительство новых храмов в обязанность государства не входит", - пояснил политик.

Кроме того, указал Александр Починок, господдержка религиозных организаций оправдана и тогда, когда при них существуют приюты для всех нуждающихся, включая беспризорных и бездомных детей.

"Серьезным и давно выстраданным решением" назвал законопроект о дополнительной господдержке религиозных организаций председатель Комитета Госдумы по экономической политике и предпринимательству, член фракции "Единая Россия" Евгений Федоров.

"Сегодня именно религиозные институты, как наиболее серьезные и устойчивые, должны расширять свою благотворительную деятельность", - заявил депутат. Он пояснил, что у религиозных организаций система внутреннего контроля за механизмами благотворительности "значительно лучше", чем у остальных некоммерческих объединений.

Таким образом, как полагает Федоров, законопроект дает возможность заниматься реальной благотворительностью тем, кто искренне хочет помочь нуждающимся в ней. При этом парламентарий отметил, что никаких бюджетных издержек принятие документа не повлечет, а, напротив, ослабит государству экономическое бремя, связанное с содействием тем или иным благотворительным программам.

"Я также считаю, что дополнительная господдержка религиозных организаций не подразумевает нарушения конституционного принципа об отделении церкви от государства", - заключил Евгений Федоров.

С сомнением относится к законопроекту о дополнительной государственной поддержке религиозных организаций заместитель председателя Комитета Госдумы по образованию, член фракции "Справедливая Россия" Виктор Шудегов.

"Этот документ может вызвать дискуссию хотя бы потому, что предусматривает изменение расходной части уже утвержденного федерального бюджета", - заявил депутат.

Кроме того, как полагает парламентарий, дополнительная господдержка религиозных организаций, пусть даже в рамках их благотворительной деятельности, может нарушить конституционный принцип отделения церкви от государства.

По мнению депутата, вопросы благотворительности должны решаться силами самих религиозных объединений и организаций. "Сегодня у большинства из них для этого достаточно хорошее финансовое положение", - заметил Виктор Шудегов.

Президент Славянского фонда России Галина Боголюбова считает, что законопроект, направленный на господдержку занимающихся благотворительностью религиозных организаций, не нарушает конституционного принципа отделения Церкви от государства.

"Религиозные организации находятся в той же горизонтали общественного влияния, что и другие общественные организации", - заявила она, выразив уверенность, что такой закон предоставит всем конфессиям "прекрасную возможность достойно существовать".

Президент фонда напомнила, что в связи с монетизацией все льготы с Церкви были сняты, поэтому помощь она могла получать "только через посредников и благотворителей". "Ведь одной продажей свечек много не заработаешь", - заметила она.

"Если религиозные организации ведут благотворительные проекты, то они могут претендовать на социальную господдержку", - подытожила Галина Боголюбова.

Одобрительно отнесся к законопроекту, направленному на господдержку занимающихся благотворительностью религиозных организаций, директор Московского бюро по правам человека, член Общественной палаты РФ Александр Брод.

"Уже сейчас многие религиозные организации занимаются достаточно важными социально ориентированными проектами - ведут борьбу с наркоманией, поддерживают малоимущих, воспитывают молодежь, противодействуют детской преступности", - сказал правозащитник.

Член ОП высказал мнение, что статус "социально ориентированные" должен касаться организаций, состоящих при всех основных конфессиях России. "Выделять какую-то одну конфессию – значит не замечать все остальные и их большой позитивный опыт работы в этом направлении", - подчеркнул Александр Брод, предложив включить в список на получение госпомощи не только религиозные организации РПЦ, но и исламские, иудейские и буддистские организации.


http://www.regions.ru/news/2272008/

Aleksandr Dugin's Neo-Eurasianism

Aleksandr Dugin's Neo-Eurasianism

The doctrine of Neo-Eurasianism29 propagated by Dugin, as well as his 'path from a marginal extremist to an ideologue of the post-Soviet academic and political elite' - to cite the title of one of the articles30 - is well researched,31 while the "fascist nature" of Dugin's ideology is "widely discussed.32" This study, however, focuses on a subject that is rarely subjected to thorough analysis, namely the phenomenon of the New Right version of ultranationalism that constitutes - together with the concept of the socio-political rebirth of the 'cultural-ethnic community'33 - a compound core of Neo-Eurasianism. Methodologically, the study is based on the approach elaborated by Roger Griffin who defines generic fascism as follows:


A revolutionary species of political modernism [...] whose mission is to combat the allegedly degenerative forces of contemporary history (decadence) by bringing about an alternative modernity and temporality (a 'new order' and a 'new era') based on the rebirth, or palingenesis, of the nation.34

This approach advances the conceptual framework of a certain 'new consensus' in fascist studies35 and allows it to transcend the boundaries of the research field by considering fascism, modernism, and political religions. It is also important that the approach is applicable both to the interwar and post-war epochs: As Griffin's concept of generic fascism is developed on the middle, theoretical, rung of the ladder of the abstraction,36 it is possible to go down the ladder to the lowest, empirical, rung to analyze appropriate time- or country-specific ideological features of a movement, party or network.

From the Right to Difference to Ethno-cultural Ghettos

It is seemingly difficult to apply the concept of a nation to the ENR, as the thinkers associated with this network certify (or glorify?) the irrevocable death of a nation-state. As de Benoist assumes, '[t]he idea of the nation-state, which reigned in Europe from the Peace of Westphalia until the first half of the 20th century, is today reaching its end'.37 However, it is possible to surmount this conceptual contradiction in this study as Griffin's approach implies an organic conception of the nation that is not necessarily equated with the nation-state or its existing boundaries, and which is indebted to modern notion of the sovereignty of the 'people' as a discrete supra-individual historical entity and actor.38

By repudiating the 'modernist' idea of the nation-state, or a political union of the nation-states (i.e., the European Union), the ENR thinkers propose a seemingly 'post-modernist' concept of 'a decentralized federation of organic, ethno-cultural identities that portray the deep "historical" spirit of cultural Europe'.39 The concept itself is a result of the ultimately modernist, or rather alternative modernist, re-synthesis of the older notion of organic nationalism that holds that 'nations and their characters are organisms that can be easily ascertained by their cultural differentiae' and 'that the members of nations may, and frequently have, lost their national self-consciousness along with their independence', while 'the duty of nationalists is to restore that self-consciousness and independence to the "reawakened" organic nation'.40 The re-synthesised nature of the ENR's concept of an organic nation incorporates the New Left's ideas of political regionalism, thus shifting the emphasis from an organic nation to a federation of organic nations, or mythologized 'ethnie[s] as homogeneous historical or ethnic communities]'.41

Dugin fully agrees with the ENR concept of organic nations, and defines the 'etnos' (Russian word for the 'ethnie') as an 'immediate identity of an individual of the traditional society, from which he [sic!] draws everything - language, customs, psychological and cultural attitudes, life programme, and system of age-related and social identifications'.42 Thus, according to Dugin, the etnosy are 'principal values and subjects of human history', which 'live in reconciliation with natural organic cycles, wave-like mutation, etc.'.43

As Dugin believes the nature of an ethnic community to be superior to, and deeper than, that of a state, Neo-Eurasianism refutes the idea of a modern nation-state, even the Russian one, and promotes the concept of a 'Eurasian empire' built on the principles of 'Eurasian federalism'. According to the concept, all the political units of this 'empire' should be established in accordance with cultural, historical, and ethnic identifications rather than simple administrative division.44

In the 1980s the ENR, especially the Nouvelle Droite, took a 'cultural turn' and its thinkers began highlighting the cultural essence of an ethnie. The 'turn' allowed them to distance themselves from a biological conception of ethnicity by using the notion of a culture as a euphemism for an ethnie. World cultures or cultural identities, seen as 'historic', 'rooted', 'authentic', or 'traditional', became the most important and valuable entities for the ENR. Yet as sovereign peoples may be deprived of their culture, there is a need to preserve and protect cultural authenticity by any means. It is significant to note that the contemporary ENR perceive their own ethnic community, or rather a European national community and culture, as suffering a decadent phase that should be surmounted by reviving, reinvigorating, and restoring the spiritual substance of the community. Therefore, this way of 'preserving' the cultural authenticity is hardly related to conservative thinking as the European community should be rejuvenated to create history rather than be kept as a historical museum piece.

The Neo-Eurasianist doctrine does not stress culture and cultural identity as prominently as the ideological constructs of its French counterparts. Dugin does speak of cultural authenticity but, in his view, culture is only one - even if very important - of the manifestations of an ethnic community, an ethnie. This peculiarity of Neo-Eurasianism is rooted in Dugin's adoption of the Soviet ethnologist and anthropologist Lev Gumilev's theory of ethnogenesis.45 Since the 1970s, Gumilev's pseudoscientific 'research' on ethnic communities became increasingly influential in the academic circles of the Soviet Union. He virtually legitimised the racist discourse within allegedly internationalist Soviet science. According to Gumilev's theory of ethnogenesis, etnos is a biologised organic community - with its life-energy determined by the forces from outer space - subject to certain irresistible laws of historical development, as it passes the stages of the rise, climax, and convolution. Dugin unequivocally perceives his own, Russian, ethnic community as in the state of decline. He believes the Russian nation is going through a phase of dilapidation stemming from its alienation from its mystical essence. In his judgement, the improvement of the Russian people's severe 'condition in the ethnic, biological and spiritual sense' means appealing to a Russian nationalism defined in cultural ethnic terms.46

If the cultural (and therefore ethnic) identity is seen by the ENR as the most important and valuable entity, then it is logical to assume that the ENR's principal enemy is a force perceived as being opposed to the preservation and rejuvenation of world's unique national communities. Thus, the radical rejection of multiculturalism (the liberal project) and internationalism (the socialist/communist project) are inherent to the ultranationalist core of the ENR's world-view. The movement's ideologists believe that 'homogenizing' and 'assimilationist' practices (first of all, miscegenation) associated with these concepts dilute the differences between cultures and turn them into one universal culture. Multiculturalism and internationalism do not remain abstract in the ENR's world-view: if the relevance of the USSR-promoted internationalism (at least officially) dramatically decreased after the fall of the Soviet Empire, multiculturalism is still embodied by the "Great Melting Pot" of the US. The Anglo-American world in general is viewed as synonymous with materialist decadence, with a world where 'cultural diversity, human solidarity, and spirituality are obliterated in the march towards Americanization and the final victory of the homo oeconomicus'.47

At this point Neo-Eurasianist doctrine completely concurs with the ENR's world-view. Dugin sees today's globalisation as a process, in which the Western (first of all, Anglo-Saxon, American) cultural approaches become universal, while different socio-political, ethnic, religious, and cultural aspects are often violently or artificially reduced to a single pattern.48 Within the terms of Neo-Eurasianism, the globalisation and universalism of the Western liberal model led to the decomposition of ethnic communities into autonomous individuals - the process that in turn leads to total mixing of races and peoples, as well as a birth of a new cosmopolitan human. The American multicultural society is hence understood as a purposeful blurring of ethno-cultural differences:


The levelling of economic and political models on a planetary scale assumes the establishment of a single cultural stereotype. It is reasonable to suggest that the modelling of this stereotype shall be done by those forces and poles, which come to be sponsors and guardians of the whole globalisation process. The American way of life, clichés of Americanized ersatz culture transmitted via global media shall supplant local cultural projects, adjusting the historically established diversity to one-dimensional preset patterns.49

In his most important book, Osnovy geopolitiki [Foundations of geopolitics], Dugin - 'a sort of mouthpiece and ideologue' of 'the demonization of Western values'50 - has geopolitically grounded Neo-Eurasianist aversion to the US and the Anglo-Saxon world in general. According to the imperialist geopolitical theories to which he adheres,51 the planet is roughly divided into three large spaces: the World Island (principally the US and the UK), Eurasia (predominantly Central Europe, Russia, and Asia), and the Rimland (the states between the World Island and Eurasia). According to the Neo-Eurasianist doctrine, there is a perennial irresolvable confrontation between the 'Sea power' associated with the US dominated 'homogenizing New World Order' and the 'Land power' of the Russia-oriented 'New Eurasian Order' which resists globalisation and ethno-cultural universalisation. In classic Manichean tradition, Dugin demonises the US and the whole Atlanticist 'World Island' as a 'reign of Antichrist'.52

The propagators of both a decentralised federal Europe ('a Europe of a hundred flags'53) and the Eurasian empire of ethno-cultural regions assume the Third World states that allegedly embody the rooted traditional communities to be their natural allies in a battle against the 'homogenizing New World Order'. According to de Benoist, the cultural 'diversity is the wealth of the world',54 and the ENR promote the idea of anthropological culturalism in their 'struggle against the hegemony of certain standardising imperialisms and against the elimination of minority or dominated civilizations'.55 Here the ENR imitate - in a rather twisted way - the democratic call for the right of all peoples and cultures to be different. As the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples affirms, 'all peoples contribute to the diversity and richness of civilizations and cultures, which constitute the common heritage of humankind', while 'recognizing the right of all peoples to be different, to consider themselves different, and to be respected as such'.56 The ENR turn this right into an imperative, so 'exclusion is given a place of honour'.57 Now,


'[t]he right to difference' changed from being a means of defending oppressed minorities and their 'cultural rights' into an instrument for legitimating the most extreme appeals for the self-defence of a 'threatened' national (and/or European) identity.58


As a result, the ENR tend to support cultural-ethnic pluralism of the world rather than cultural pluralism (multiculturalism) of a given society or community. The ENR demonstrate pro-Third World solidarity, but eventually the ENR's respect for other indigenous cultural and/or national communities is a way of legitimising European exclusionism and rejection of miscegenation (for a graphic representation of this thesis see Figure 3).

This kind of legitimisation was required to maintain respectability as the tragic developments of the twentieth century discredited biological racism and it was 'no longer possible to speak publicly of perceived difference through the language of the "old racism"'.59 Therefore, the ENR claim the insurmountable difference not in biological or ethnic terms but rather in terms of culture, while - in a politically correct manner - rejecting the idea of the hierarchy of cultures. However, the main thrust of the ENR is of European identity, and their ideal is 'a federal Europe' made up of 'homogeneous ethnic-cultural communities'.60

As the name suggests, Neo-Eurasianism refers to Eurasia rather than Europe. Dugin advances the idea of 'positive ethnic pluralism', a project focused on keeping a positive or at least zero sum demographic balance to prevent the disappearance of Eurasian ethnic communities. It is precisely the idea of this project that explains the need for a politically divided Eurasia to give way to a federal Eurasian empire led spiritually by the Russian Federation. All political frontiers are expected to be abolished in favor of new 'natural, organic, ethnic borders'. Dugin asserts that these borders do not imply the political domination of one ethnic community over another, however, they inherently lead to the appearance of ethno-cultural ghettos. In the terms of Neo-Eurasianism, this is called an 'organic cultural-ethnic process' intended to create individual 'national realities' for the Russians, as well as for Tatars, Chechens, Armenians, and the rest.62

Although he claims that Neo-Eurasianist ethnic differentialism excludes mixophobia and sometimes ethnic mixing is an inevitable and positive process,63 Dugin stresses that the Russian nation is in need of keeping its ethnic identity and that there should be special legal regulations to secure preservation of the Russian nation's ethnic identity within the supranational Eurasian empire.64

http://www.mod-langs.ox.ac.uk/russian/nationalism/shekhovtsov2.html