Archimandrite Gennady called for using the experience of “Nashi” to create an Orthodox youth organization

On January 31, 2007, the deputy chairman of the Synodal Department for Youth Affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate, Archimandrite Gennady (Gogolev), made a report at the youth section of the XV Christmas readings, in which he called for looking for “active people, passionaries,” using the experience of the youth organization “Nashi.”

Archimandrite Gennady spoke in detail about the activities of the Nashi emissary in Kostroma, who recruited about one and a half thousand new activists into the organization, and proposed creating an Orthodox youth organization similar to Nashi. “To create an Orthodox youth organization, a clear project is needed with the development of goals and objectives; resources and financial support must be calculated,” he said.

The need for such an organization, according to the speaker, is explained by the “strange lack of activity” of Orthodox believers in Russia, which could lead to the cessation of teaching “Fundamentals of Orthodox Culture.” According to Fr. Gennady, “thanks to the tough lobbyingof Islamic structures ,” the following prospect will be realized: “A subject like “A little about all religions” will be dropped from the federal level, and Orthodox children will study Islamic, Jewish rituals and a little bit of Orthodoxy.”

Sources

• A representative of the Russian Orthodox Church called for using the experience of “Nashi” in Orthodox youth organizations // NEWSru.com. 2007. February 1.