Metropolitan Kirill of Stavropol: The life of a pastor should be Christocentric

In an interview with the "Magazine of the Moscow Patriarchate" ( No. 4, 2018 ), the chairman of the Synodal Committee for Interaction with the Cossacks, Metropolitan Kirill of Stavropol and Nevinnomyssky described how the Church helps the Cossacks to grow spiritually, what is the "20-20" program and what was not wearing the red tie in Soviet time. Why Cossacks are trusted - Your Eminence, from the moment of the revival of the Cossacks in Russia passed more than two decades. You are carrying your ministry in the Cossack region and heading the Synodal Committee, which deals directly with the Cossacks. Why are the Cossacks so important to the Russian Orthodox Church? - Unbelievers Cossacks can not be by definition: like priests, they take an oath in the church on the cross and the Gospel, swear to serve the Fatherland, the Cossacks and the faith of the Orthodox. So it was in the past, so it is today. Thus, modern society is taught eloquent evidence of the continuity of national historical traditions and an example of a behavioral norm, which in fact testifies to the spiritual health of our people. Historically, traditionally, the Cossacks are a reliable support for Orthodoxy. For many centuries, the spiritual and moral structure of the daily culture of the Cossacks, the relationships in their families, the system of Orthodox upbringing of children developed. In the territory of the Cossack settlements, the Cossacks always built a temple or a monastery. Among them there are many outstanding Orthodox figures, glorified in the saints' name - the Monk Elijah of Murom, the saints Patriarch Hermogenes, Demetrius of Rostov, Joasaph of Belgorod and others. Of course, one must not forget the consequences of seven decades of the God-seeking government, which affected all social classes - the priesthood and the Cossacks as well. But it is precisely these social institutions that have been spiritually revived in the last 27 years - unlike others that existed in the Russian Empire before 1917. Let me remind you: the real revival of the Cossacks began with the adoption in 1991 of the Russian law "On the Rehabilitation of Repressed Peoples" and with the subsequent legislative acts in the regions. And this process went from below - so much was the desire for it from the Cossacks, who for many years were forbidden to live according to the customs of their ancestors, to carry their own distinct culture, to profess the Orthodox faith. Since March 2010, since the establishment of the Synodal Committee for Interaction with the Cossacks, a purposeful methodological work on the churching of the Cossacks began. His Holiness Patriarch Kirill at the first meeting of the Presidential Council for Cossacks in 2009 said: "The time has come when the country needs the support of the Cossacks". Soon, with the blessing of the Primate, our synodal committee was created. It provides the solution of several tasks: interaction with dioceses and state authorities, interaction with Cossack societies and public organizations of the Cossacks, as well as cooperation with the media and public institutions and educational and methodological work. Now all major events involving the Russian Cossacks and the Russian Orthodox Church are held with the blessing of His Holiness the Patriarch. - What exactly does your Synod Committee do? What are the most important results of his activity? - Over seven and a half years of our work, a lot has been done: the institution of military clergy has been formed, the College of Military Priests has been working, and cooperation has been established with 177 diocesan units for interaction with the Cossacks. In general, more than a thousand priests are engaged in spiritual care. The Synodal Committee regularly holds forums, conferences, seminars, refresher courses for clergy and Cossacks. Within the framework of the International Christmas Readings, a separate Cossack movement has been created, in which more than a thousand people take part annually and submit up to two hundred reports. Useful and important documents are being implemented, including the Concept of Traditional Spiritual and Moral Education, Development and Socialization of Students in Cossack Cadet Corps and the Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church for Spiritual Cossack Nourishment; the collection of ranks of military Cossack society (hereinafter - VKO) and prayers of the Orthodox Cossack, the Internal Charter of Cossack society and the Charter of the Orthodox cadet are constantly in demand. The experience of the Alekseevskaya village of the Krasnodar Territory (VKO "Kuban Cossack Host") is interesting and important, where the Church Cossack Choir began its work. It is noticeable that the Cossacks became more interested in matters of liturgical and spiritual life. This experience, by the way, is recommended for distribution in other dioceses. - His Holiness Patriarch Kirill at the First Congress of Cossack Confessors "Cossack without faith is not a Cossack" ( ZHMP No. 1, 2014 ) in his speech noted the shortcomings in the situation with the churching of the Cossacks. Yes, and you then expressed themselves critically: only every third Cossack marriage is crowned; in some armies, up to a quarter of Cossack families do not rush to baptize children at all; Cossacks confess and receive Communion very rarely. And even gave an example, as one of the registry atamans inadequately reacted to the imposed penance ... What has changed since then? - We always openly and in detail examine the processes of churching and spiritual nurturing of the Cossacks, we use formal and informal ways of coordinating the activities of the clergy, its dialogue with the Cossacks. Quarterly the Committee's employees receive data from the field and analyze the information received. At our meetings with representatives of the Cossacks and the Church, there is an interested exchange of positive experiences of the spiritual and moral education of Cossacks, including Cossack youth; the wishes of the Cossacks themselves in the activity on the revival of temples, the conduct of the processions of the cross are discussed. Finally, in recent years we see the sincere desire of the Cossacks themselves to serve the Church and comprehensively develop the parish Cossack communities, such is the incomplete list of the believers' steps that lead to their full spiritual growth. Of course, there is a considerable distance between the feeling that there is God, the consciousness of belonging to the Russian Orthodox Church and the way of life of a true citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven. This is an extremely difficult and not a short way - an affirmation in the Orthodox faith. All of us are witnesses of how difficult it is for a modern person living in a large city or a rural area, with the complexities of modern realities, to live by faith by all means. Moreover, when it is not a question of one person who comprehends Christ, but of thousands and hundreds of thousands of Cossacks. On this road, none of us who sincerely, with all our hearts, are happy for every soul devoted to God, there can not be a stop and a sense of satisfaction. "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. " (Matthew 7: 7). Cossack confessors, military priests, members of the Synodal Committee painstakingly and methodically accurately advise, if necessary, and correct this very delicate and point work with the Cossacks, respond to their requests, doubts and feelings. Only last year, we and staff of the Committee visited the diocesan departments 22 times in 12 regions of the Russian Federation: to the cities of St. Petersburg, Sevastopol, Simferopol; Voronezh, Tula, Lipetsk, Kaliningrad, Moscow, Orel, Rostov, Sverdlovsk, regions, Krasnodar Territory, the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District. Also there were foreign trips - to the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Czech Republic, France. And always face-to-face consultations of the Committee significantly intensify the work in diocesan departments, Cossack societies and Cossacks' public associations. Yes, if the situation required it, strict measures were taken. On two military atamans, for various reasons, in September 2013 I was imposed 40-day penance, and it was done publicly. One ataman accepted her with humility, another ataman did not accept such penance. Then, with the support of the Committee, the controversial issues were settled, the emotions gradually subsided, misunderstandings remained in the past. Today these military Cossack societies are headed by other atamans. Every day I pray for the health and wisdom of my flock - closer than the Cossacks and the flock of Stavropol and Nevinnomyssk eparchy, I have no one. - In what exactly have the changes for the better? - The Synod Committee annually monitors the religious situation in the military Cossack societies that we send to His Holiness. To get a more complete picture of the spiritual care of the Cossacks in 2017, we synchronized this work with the Council of the President of Russia for Cossacks on Cossacks. A key role in the qualitative change of the situation was played by the great work of the Synodal Committee for the improvement of the skills of the Cossack clergy, atamans and Cossacks, including a joint organization with the All-Church PhD and Ph.D. sv. Cyril and Methodius courses of improvement of professional skill (the project is realized last three years), as well as presentations with information and methodical events and video meetings, regular explanations and communication of the Committee's employees with representatives of problem EKO and diocesan profile departments. Priests are becoming more prepared for administrative, educational, missionary, project activities, more attentive in working with documents, reports of different kinds, in writing reports, as well as news for the Internet pages of diocesan departments, Internet sites of dioceses, the Synodal Committee for Interaction with the Cossacks. According to the received quarterly data from the large Cossack societies in 2016-2017, a large number of participants of divine services are celebrated in the patronal, twinned feasts, during the general prayer services and processions. We see that the number of weddings, the number of Cossack families, weekly participating in divine services and sacraments of the Holy Church, is gradually growing. For example, in the fourth quarter of 2017 in the Astrakhan diocese, 650 Cossacks were visited by temples, 85 of them regularly attend services and 37 together with their families. In the Kalachev Eparchy, out of 470 Cossacks who visited temples, 96 attend system services systematically, 73 with their families. In the Uryupinsk Diocese of the 355 who visited the church, 189 regularly attend services, 97 together with the family, more than half of the regular parishioners. In other dioceses, there is also a positive trend. It is important to note the dioceses, where spiritual and moral work is organized at a decent level with the Cossack youth. In the Ekaterinodar diocese, on a regular basis, a nurse of the Ataman hour was led by a nourishing confessor for the students of the Cossack classes of the Secondary School No. 21; 15; 18; 41 and other schools. There are catechetical courses for Cossacks. A similar practice has developed in other large Cossack societies with long traditions. An example of tireless work in small Cossack societies is the experience of the feeding priest of the Volgograd diocese, Priest Oleg Ivashchenko, who systemically parishes the parishioners through the process of engaging in parish life. The priest regularly conducts classes in Sunday schools for adult Cossacks, and also teaches those who want to flank. In addition, many Cossacks today bear the obedience of choristers, bell-ringers, sextons, altars of temples. The following example. Since November 2017, the Synodal Committee has been located on the territory of the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God "Otrada i Uteshenie" on the Khodynka Field, and the temple itself has been given the status of "Cossack". Thanks to the restoration of historical justice, as well as numerous events in the Cossack temple, a new impetus was given to the revival of the Cossack center on Khodynka, as well as to the development of the Synodal Committee for Interaction with the Cossacks. Today Cossacks come to the Cossack temple not only of mature age. Together with the mentor Ivan Valentinovich Stulnev, students of the Cossack class named Ataman Matvey Platov from the Moscow school No. 2121, who had not been here before, appear. We spoke about the positive dynamics of churching and spiritual and moral education of the Cossacks, we spoke on the Great Circle of the Russian Cossacks, which was held with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch and the decision of the Council of the President of Russia on Cossacks on February 15 in Moscow in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior . Every year during the summer holidays Cossack confessors participate in the organization and care of participants in Cossack military camps, children's and youth camps. I personally hold dozens of meetings with the clergy, atamans of the East Kazakhstan region, public organizations of the Cossacks, including the descendants of Cossacks living abroad. Our key concern is the spiritual and moral upbringing and education of the Cossack youth. We note the growing interest of young Cossacks to revive the Cossack traditions, crafts, martial arts, family way of life. The number of Cossack classes, Cossack schools is growing. Only Cossack cadet corps we have three dozen. And you can go there, withstood a lot of competition. All Cossack educational organizations have their own confessor, a prayer room; the day for the students of the Cossacks begins and ends with the reading of the prayer rule. - What is the participation of the Committee in the issues of education, upbringing and spiritual nurturing of the Cossack youth? What are the main results of this work? - In Russia, for more than 25 years, there has been a formation of a system of continuous education for the Cossacks, the core of which is military-patriotic and spiritual-moral upbringing based on the traditions of the Cossacks. The task of the Church within the framework of this system is to spiritually nurture the educational institutions of the Cossacks. Under the decision of the Council under the President for Cossacks and the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia, the scientific and methodical resource center of this system was the Moscow State University of Technology and Management named after K.G. Razumovsky (First Cossack University). On the basis of the university and its affiliates, training programs for Cossack mentors, leaders for the Cossack classes are being realized, atamans of Cossack societies are being upgraded, Cossack students of all the registered Cossack societies of Russia are being trained. In the head university and in each of its branches, confessors were appointed, spiritual and educational centers were created. Obedience of the confessor of the First Cossack University is the responsible secretary of the Synodal Committee for Interaction with the Cossacks priest Timofei Chaykin. In the main building of the university, videoconferences and seminars for the improvement of qualifications of the confessors of the regional branches of the university, the confessors of the Cossack cadet corps, in which leaders, teachers, students, representatives of Cossack societies take part, are held quarterly by the joint efforts of the Synodal Committee for Interaction with the Cossacks and the University. Cossack scientific and practical conferences are held on the basis of branches within the framework of the regional stages of the International Christmas Educational Readings. Today, under the leadership of the MGUTU, the formation of clusters of Cossack education in the regions of Russia is underway. In addition, all the Cossack cadet corps concluded agreements with the parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church. At present, confessors are appointed in all Cossack cadet corps. By the way, I am well aware that many of the Cossacks bring their parents to the temples. Perhaps this is one of the brightest testimonies of faith. The outpost of Orthodoxy in the North Caucasus - You have been heading the Stavropol chair for more than six years. Please tell us about the peculiarities of the episcopal ministry in the North Caucasus. - I will give a few figures, so that the dynamics of church life in my diocese could be understood. Over the years, 27 newly built temples have been consecrated. In addition, a few dozen churches have been restored or restored at the moment. Today in the diocese there are 240 different prayer rooms - from cathedrals to prayer rooms. Earlier, our priests performed the Liturgy only on Sundays. Now I call on them to serve at least three Liturgies a week in the countryside and every day, if it is a multi-caste parish in the city. A person who comes to the church should always have the opportunity to participate in the worship. The Stavropol Ecclesiastical Seminary, which is in the common custody of the three dioceses of our metropolia, over these years has produced more than 80 people in full-time and more than 130 people in correspondence. During my service in the Stavropol diocese, I performed a hundred consecrations! In addition, four dozen graduates of the seminary completed our regency school. Now a lot of students are studying at the Parish Professional Training Center, for two years of its activity, it has produced 135 people.They are assistants to the abbots for social and youth work, catechists and missionaries. If in the seminary the number of students is stable from year to year, here we see more than twofold growth! But still I can not say that for these seven years I have achieved everything I aspired to. Of course, there are joyful moments when I ordain to the pastors, consecrate or lay a new temple, open an Orthodox kindergarten, a gymnasium. Of course, working with people is very important: we are all different, and here, in the North Caucasus, you feel this especially. But this is not a minus, but on the contrary, a plus. It is necessary to try to explain to people in all this diversity the foundations of faith, the position of the Church, the patriotic and social orientation of its activities, the need for theological education, and much more. This is the wisdom of the leader. It is necessary to talk with people, show mercy, love and a righteous Christian life. I believe that a person who says he has done much good ceases to develop further. Man exists forever and can endlessly develop to the likeness of God. And since the Lord Himself is infinite, then this likeness will be infinite in this and future life. For the years of my ministry in the North Caucasus, I am pleased only with the fact that the fathers sincerely worked and many people brought to salvation. I myself am not worthy, but "I can do everything in Jesus Christ who strengthens me" (Phil 4:13) and with the help of God, with the blessing of the Holy Office, with the help of the clergy of the diocese, and with the prayers of our good parishioners, I will continue to work. - How did you manage to build an effective dialogue with authorities and public organizations in the Stavropol Territory? - Any power from God, and this must always be remembered. From the very beginning of the ministry at the Stavropol department, I have never had a conflict with the authorities. I always meet support for various areas of the diocese, from the governor of the province Vladimir Vladimirov, and from the deputy corps. Every year in December in the Duma of the Stavropol Territory we hold parliamentary meetings in the framework of the diocesan stage of the Christmas readings. This is an example of fruitful cooperation between the Church and the authorities in strengthening the moral foundations of society. So, in the first year the deputies of the regional Duma asked such questions: "Why are there so few priests now? Why are few seminarians brought up? The priests do not have enough for all the churches! "I am glad that the question has been put exactly this way. No one asked the question: "Why is a temple built instead of a shop? It would have been better to have a secular institution in this place. " I believe that today worthy deputies have been elected both to the regional and city dumas. We have good relations not only with the administrations of the region and the city. Since there is a spiritual educational institution in our territory, we are in constant contact with the Ministry of Education. Not once in our diocesan administration hall our joint meetings were held. For example, the issue of the prevention of suicide among children and adolescents was recently discussed. As a result of this meeting, a responsible clergyman was assigned to each school. This is our common problem, and, thank God, we solve it together. We agreed to jointly help families who are in difficult life situations, hold talks, and help restore the legitimate interests of children. - How do you plan to further develop the diocese entrusted to you? - If we proceed from the words of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, who speaks about the need to have one church for 10 thousand people, then we need 40 temples in 400 thousand Stavropol. When I arrived in Stavropol, in the city there were only fifteen parishes with a regular celebration of worship. They were unevenly located in the territory of the regional center, as a result of which the majority of the population lived outside the walking distance of the temples. The most difficult was for older people and children - that is, for those who do not have the opportunity to move independently over long distances. This was the impetus for the start of the implementation of the Diocesan Program "20 - 20", which originally envisaged the construction of 20 new temples in Stavropol by 2020. But to date, the program includes 24 churches. For them, allocated plots for development, appointed by the abbots or responsible clergymen. Some of the temples we have already consecrated, some are preparing for this, but most are still at the stage of erection. But we need to complete the temples not only in the capital of the region, but in every locality of the diocese and the metropolia. In the plans for the development of the diocese, there are other, equally important points. We need to do everything possible to delay the outflow of the rural population. It is necessary to create a wide network of diocesan kindergartens and gymnasiums and to complete the creation of a system for the training of aide and dean's assistants in catechetical, missionary and social work. In addition, we still have to create a system for financing the diocese, in which the diocesan administration would have financial independence, and every clergyman would receive a decent salary so that the parishes could engage in social and charitable activities more widely. - How do you manage to strengthen the necessary missionary service in the Caucasus, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, deepen the interethnic and interreligious peace, including through the establishment of interaction between Orthodox and Muslim youth? - As I have already said, annually the Stavropol Theological Seminary produces a certain number of potential clergymen. Thank God, the staffs of all the parishes of our diocese are manned. Of course, in some churches the clergy are replenished with new priests, but in general, the situation with the cadres is stable. Proceeding from this, at the last meeting of the Council of Bishops of the Stavropol Metropolia , which was held in Zheleznovodsk last December, I initiated the initiative to send graduates of our common seminary with three dioceses to the pastoral ministry in those dioceses of the North Caucasus, which lack a high-qualified clergymen. That is, regardless of where the young man came to study at the spiritual school, after his completion we will offer him three years to work for the benefit of the Russian Orthodox Church, which has taught and educated him. For example, in the Makhachkala diocese or in the parishes in North Ossetia. And the members of the Council of Bishops supported me! I had previously communicated with the ruling bishops of other North Caucasian dioceses - they too were inspired by this idea. I hope that our graduates with understanding and Christian love will receive the blessing of the hierarchy for choosing the temporary place of service. And if anyone wants to stay for a longer period, it's his choice. If we talk about the missionary activity of the Church in the North Caucasus, I would like to quote the words of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, just this: "It is very important that our sermon (in the North Caucasus) be a good word and a good deed" . That is, proselytism is not appropriate here. In the Caucasus, one can not preach, grabbing people by the hand in the streets, walking around the apartments, just as some Protestant groups do. It seems to me that if anyone who communicates, whether with a Muslim or an unbeliever, or with his brother an Orthodox Christian, behaves in a Christian way, then the success of our mission will be assured. The entire North Caucasus is a large and friendly family of nationalities and nationalities. Regardless of the region, the Russians and Adygs, the Avars and the Ingushs are close by, they work and are friends. At the same time, the religions are also getting along: in the Caucasus, besides those who profess Orthodoxy and Islam, there are representatives of Judaism and Catholicism. There are followers of the Old Believers. We are striving for a high quality of interethnic and interreligious relations. This year, on the initiative of the Youth Department of the Diocese, the youth inter-confessional forum of the Stavropol Territory "The Caucasus is Our Common Home" will be held for the eleventh time. Every year more than 100 representatives of Orthodox and Muslim youth aged from 14 to 23 gather there. Within 7 days the guys participate in thematic seminars and round tables. For the participants of the forum there are guided tours of Stavropol and its environs, sports competitions, holding lecture halls, meetings with priests, representatives of the Spiritual Board of Muslims, speeches of the deputies of the Duma of the Stavropol Territory, honored people awarded the title of Hero of Russia. Over the years, the guys confirmed that the representatives of the two confessions are united by an understanding of the priorities of spiritual and moral values ​​and family traditions, the principles of good neighborliness and respect for elders, a focus on serving the Motherland and honest work. "I forbid to classify cell phone numbers of priests" - Your Eminence! You mentioned earlier about the Stavropol Seminary that it fills the clergy with fresh forces. But the diocese is growing. To what extent can you, in your opinion, succeed in meeting the requirements of the time - in terms of the number of graduates, and in terms of the level of education? - I will remind you that the Stavropol Seminary, founded in 1846, which was called the Caucasus in those years, was famous for its high level of education from the very beginning. The local clergy at that time were mostly illiterate. Moreover, the clergy were sorely lacking. And this is quite understandable - there was a long, agonizing Caucasian war in the region. In addition, paganism flourished here, and the dialogue between Orthodox and Muslims was just beginning. And then the seminary became the main in the Caucasus educational institution - not only spiritual, but also humanitarian. It is difficult to overestimate the importance of the Stavropol spiritual school. In Soviet times, there were only a few dozen temples in the Caucasus, and today there are about six hundred parishes. This means that you need at least 600 priests, and all of them have to be trained. Some pastors studied and studied in the Moscow theological schools, but still most of the priests who serve in the Caucasus were educated in our seminary. When I came to Stavropol in 2011, I saw many young educated priests here. Our seminary is not just necessary - it is vital! Although the level of education of graduates of our spiritual school is quite high, we organized training courses for clergy. They are needed to refresh some of the objects in memory, and most importantly - to get acquainted with the new documents of the Church that come out after each Bishops' Council, as well as are worked out by the commissions of the Inter-Sobornaya Presence, are accepted by the Holy Synod and the Supreme Church Council. Each priest should know them, and it is better if he gets acquainted with them in the courses of professional development, where you can ask something and discuss with the teacher. Undoubtedly, our seminary has grown into such a spiritual educational institution, for which I am not ashamed of the rector. Of course, I'm just continuing the work of my predecessors, but I hope that during those seven years I also did a lot for the seminary. Our teachers have reached a new level of education, new teachers have appeared, including our graduates, who after graduating from the seminary completed a master's program, postgraduate studies in Moscow and St. Petersburg. They wrote monographs and other scientific works. Today the Bulletin of the Stavropol Theological Seminary is published in two languages ​​- Russian and English. In November 2016, the school committee visited the spiritual school, which, after the inspection, placed the seminary in high esteem. We hope that we will continue to improve our level of work. Today 60 full-time students study at the full-time department of the seminary, 160 students study at the correspondence department. We have students not only from the Stavropol Territory, but also from the Volgograd and Rostov regions, the Krasnodar Territory, Kalmykia and other regions. We have no right to refuse anyone. All graduates of the Stavropol Ecclesiastical School are in demand, since there are still no clergymen. We also have a regency school, which for over a quarter of a century has been preparing the leaders of church choirs. Today, there are 26 girls studying there. Most students after receiving a diploma become regents of the temples not only of Stavropol, but also of many other dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church. - What are the problems with today's clergyman? What questions should he prioritize in his daily ministry? - Of course, the clergy have many problems. They were at all times. Most importantly, modern priests do not forget that the cornerstone of their lives is the pastoral ministry. First of all, this is the continuation of the ministry of the Savior Himself, and therefore it requires the priest to continuously endeavor to purify his soul, since one can not approach the Lord with a sin-defiled soul. Spiritual leadership requires the pastor to have true pastoral wisdom and complete self-denial in order to save his fellowmen. The Holy Apostle Paul describes the behavior of the priest in these words: "... but loving, loving, chaste, just, pious, temperate, clinging to the true word, according to the teaching, that he should be strong and instruct in sound doctrine, and discourage the opposing" ( Titus 1: 8-9). The whole life of the shepherd must be Christocentric, and in its basis there must be the fulfillment of the Divine Liturgy and the sacrament of the Holy Christ's Mysteries. No missionary, social or other activity can be an excuse for the rare celebration of worship. If we do not draw spiritual strength in prayer, in worship, then all our work will become meaningless and empty, for it will not be filled with the grace of God. Every worship performed by a priest must be sublime, festive, as sincere as possible. Solemn - this does not mean in expensive vestments, which means with prayerful attentiveness, with the chorus's authorized singing. Communicating with parishioners during extracurricular time is an important duty of every priest. The shepherd must be constantly available to the parishioners and, at least the number of his cell phone should be known to all comers, and not just a narrow circle of particularly close associates. Often people who first come to the temple are embarrassed or afraid to come and talk during confession, ask their questions. They should be able to communicate with the shepherd several times a week outside the service, quench their thirst for knowledge, ask their questions. Any worship of a priest, the performance of a tribune must end with at least a short sermon, an edifying word. You can not just consecrate a dwelling, a car, or make a sobor of a sick person without explaining the evangelical meaning of the sacrament, without even giving a short lecture. The same applies to the ordinances of Baptism and Wedding. In doing this, the shepherd must be sure that people who come to the church do not baptize the child "against the evil eye", or by tradition, but they understand the meaning of what is happening, and the chosen godparents clearly understand what responsibility they take on themselves before God. - Should the Church, in your opinion, actively participate in the socio-political events taking place in the country and the world? Should it loudly express its opinion and, perhaps, try to influence the policy of the state in certain issues, such as, for example, abortion, juvenile justice and so on? - Of course, the Church does not interfere in the policy of governing the state or in the activities of parties, in their ideology. But the role of the Russian Orthodox Church in the modern world is enormous. And today I hear a lot of such questions: "The church touches on topical political issues. Is this an attempt to be modern? " First, the Church still does not speak for political issues. Yes, His Holiness the Patriarch and other hierarchs spoke at large events dedicated to countering terrorism in the Middle East. But this was not a political issue for the Church, but a matter of life, suffering and the survival of Christians in this region. The church then said that Syria is, first of all, people where at least 10% of Christians of the Antiochian Orthodox Church , Copts and other Christians live, these are captured monks, devastated temples and monasteries. Can the Church be far from the problems of our people? As an example, I will cite the development of various draft laws that affect all without exception. The brightest one is juvenile justice. Thank God, it is not yet in our country, but a number of laws have already been adopted that are close to this. The church made a lot of efforts to prevent the creation of the same juvenile structures in our country as in the Western countries. We can not remain silent about health services: in the field of health, the Church insists on removing abortions from the mandatory health insurance system and committing them for money only according to the doctors' testimony. The church prays to be useful to the people, to the people. Of course, the Church will speak, warn, plead, ask not to be mistaken again, so that our country does not collapse again, and the fratricidal civil war does not begin. - Remember, please, the years of your childhood. How did your parents raise you, who instilled love for the Church, taught in the faith of Christ? - We lived next door to the families of my mother's sister and brother on the same street in the city of Miass, Chelyabinsk region, where I come from. Out of three families, more than 50 priests, including nephews and their children, now attended spiritual schools. The fact that I was not a pioneer and a Komsomol in the school, getting ridiculed by peers for this, was certainly compensated by a happy opportunity to live in a real Orthodox family. Together we went to church regularly to worship, besides, parents (father was not yet a priest) sang in the choir. At the age of 11, I, already a chorister of a large church choir, taught musical notation. So I liked to read in the temple that some of the workers of the choir probably took offense when I tried to read everything that was on the evening service - psalms, canons, paremias. All that I present today as a person, a priest and a bishop are my parents, their entourage, close and dear people to us, with their devotion to God, Christian love, inexhaustible goodness for peace and humility. The family, beautiful, moral, Orthodox, who introduced me to the Church from the early years, and I fell in love with the church structure myself, felt the touch of God's grace, touched the heavenly world. Even the air in the temple is filled with the prayers and deeds of all those who are struggling in this place. All this deeply penetrated into my soul, and I could not have any other destiny as an earnest service to God. In the line of the Pope, all the men were priests. The sacred name of grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather Pokrovsky speaks for itself. For their religious beliefs, both grandfathers - Protopriest Nikolai and Georgy Andreevich were repressed. With weakened health, they came out of prison, lived their last years free and invested in us, children, the highest religiosity, true love for the Church, patience, sacrificial attitude to the family, to service. I thank God that my mother still lives with me. By origin she is from a family of deeply religious peasants. She is already 86 years old. On the one hand, my mother shares with me all the obediences, on the other - her daily prayers warm me motherly warmth and comfort. My father, the priest, at any moment of a difficult life, my mother was a strong support. In our family it was especially appreciated that she is the daughter of a Russian soldier, participant of many battles and, in particular, Brusilovsky breakthrough, Georgy Andreyevich Chaykin. For outstanding bravery shown in battle, Georgievsky cross handed him in 1916 the hero of World War I, the general from the cavalry Alexei Maximovich Kaledin.