On November 29, 2023, a roundtable meeting was held at the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation on the topic “Strategic objectives in the field of ensuring national unity and protecting traditional values: New problems and solutions.”

The participants of the roundtable were: members of the Commission of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation on interethnic and interreligious relations and migration; members of the Russian Association of Religious Freedom (RARS); and representatives of federal government bodies, public organizations, and the scientific community.

At the roundtable, issues were discussed related to the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation, N-809, dated November 9, 2022, “On approval of the Fundamentals of State Policy for the Preservation and Strengthening of Traditional Russian Spiritual and Moral Values.”

Pastor Oleg Goncharov, Public Relations director for the Euro-Asia Division (ESD) of Seventh-day Adventists and general secretary of RARS, took part in the roundtable with a report on the topic “Activities of Russian religious organizations to strengthen traditional spiritual values.”

In his report, Pastor Goncharov noted that almost all values, such as life, dignity, human rights and freedoms, patriotism, citizenship, service to the Fatherland and responsibility for its destiny, high moral ideals, a strong family, creative work, the priority of the spiritual over the material, humanism, mercy, justice, collectivism, mutual assistance and respect, historical memory and continuity of generations, and the unity of the peoples of Russia, which are all discussed in the presidential decree, find their basis in the texts of the holy books of world religions—above all, in the Holy Scriptures.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church regularly conducts various Bible programs in every region of Russia, which are attended by hundreds and thousands of people every year. Drawing the attention of fellow citizens to biblical values ​​is a significant contribution of the church to strengthening the spiritual and moral foundations of society, as stated in the decree. Pastor Goncharov appealed to representatives of regional authorities to not interfere but rather support the conducting of biblical programs by the Seventh-day Adventist Church. After all, the more people become familiar with the Bible, the fewer problems in society will be associated with immoral behavior. Thus, the most important service of Adventists to their country always remains the preaching of the Word of God.

Bible programs are of particular relevance in connection with the announcement of 2024 as the “Year of the Family” in Russia. From where else but the Holy Scriptures can a person gain a true understanding of family and raising children? It is the Bible that defines the concept of family and marital relationships. If people followed its teachings, then there would not be a crisis in the institution of the family, which every society, including Russian, faces today. At the end of his speech, Pastor Goncharov proposed holding a special event dedicated to family issues within the Public Chamber in the near future, with the participation of representatives from all Russian faiths. This proposal was supported by all participants of the roundtable.

The original version of this story was posted on the Euro-Asia Division Russian-language news site.