Christmas readings is an annual event hosted by the Belarusian Orthodox Church. It is the largest intellectual, educational and cultural forum of the year when the entire range of issues of cooperation between the Church and the state is discussed.

Holding Christmas readings in the Year of Peace and Creation contributes to a comprehensive understanding of the significance of the Orthodox Church in the context of the historical, religious, cultural development of Belarus, its role in the spiritual and moral education of the younger generation.

Today, the National Library of Belarus hosted the opening ceremony of the IX Belarusian Christmas readings “Orthodoxy and national culture: losses and gains of the past, shape of the future”.

The plenary session was attended by: Deputy Minister of Education Alexander Kadlubay; Metropolitan Benjamin of Minsk and Zaslavl, Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus, His Eminence Guriy, Archbishop of Novogrudok and Slonim; Chairman of the Synodal Department of the Belarusian Orthodox Church for cooperation with secular educational institutions, Archpriest Fyodor Povny; General Director of the National Library of Belarus Vadim Gigin, Rector of the Belarusian State Academy of Arts Mikhail Borozna and others.

Among the priority tasks considered during the Christmas readings are the disclosure of the role of spiritual and moral values in the formation of national culture, the continuity of spiritual traditions in preserving the national identity of the Belarusian people, the formation of an image of the future of our country and education of the younger generation.

Opening the forum, Metropolitan Benjamin of Minsk and Zaslavl, Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus, noted that this year’s Christmas readings are dedicated to understanding the centuries-old path of Orthodoxy and culture on the Belarusian lands.

It is noted that the modern world where many acute contradictions and crisis problems have arisen, needs to mobilize the entire arsenal of human resources to establish real humanism, true freedom, material well-being and spiritual wealth of the individual. Under these conditions, the importance of interaction and cooperation of all social institutions, including the most important of them – the state and the church increases.

In his speech, Deputy Minister of Education Alexander Kadlubay indicated that the interaction between the education system and the Belarusian Orthodox Church has been developing steadily and dynamically for several decades. Cooperation is carried out taking into account the recognition of the important role of the Belarusian Orthodox Church in the public and state life of the country, the need to strengthen the spiritual and moral basis of raising children and students.

“The future of our country closely depends on the spiritual and moral renewal of society, and the task of patriotic education of the younger generation acquires special significance. This task must be understood as one of the priorities in the development of the education system, the basis for the security of Belarus,” emphasized Alexander Kadlubay.

Alexander Kadlubay expressed confidence that joint work will make a significant contribution to the preservation and enrichment of the spiritual and moral traditions of the Belarusian people as an effective basis for the education of children and students of our country.

As part of the IX Belarusian Christmas Readings, an award ceremony took place for the winners of the “Library – Center for Spiritual Enlightenment and Education” competition.

The Grand Prix was won by the Central City Library named after K. Marx of Mogilev.

Diplomas of the Patriarchal Exarch for work in the field of spiritual and moral education of children and youth were awarded to the libraries of the State Educational Institution “Secondary School No. 24 of Borisov” and the Educational Institution “Mogilev State University named after. A. A. Kuleshov”.

For works in the field of local history work on the history of Orthodoxy of the native land, Diplomas of the Patriarchal Exarch were awarded to the libraries of the Vitebsk State College of Electrical Engineering and the Vitebsk State Technical College.

Also for the guests and participants of the Christmas readings, an exhibition of books from the publishing houses “Adukatsya i Vyakhavanne”, the Belarusian Exarchate and an exhibition “Social and educational activities of the Center for Support of Family, Motherhood and Childhood “Pokrova” and the Charitable Foundation for Support of Family, Motherhood and Childhood “Pokrova” were organized.

The presentation of the 12-volume book collection “Russian Classical Writers and Orthodoxy,” published by the International Foundation for the Spiritual Unity of Peoples, was also presented to those present at the event.

Today there will also be a round table “Spiritual enlightenment through the activities of libraries.” The winners of the “Library – Center for Spiritual Enlightenment and Education” competition who took 2nd and 3rd places and those who received encouragement will receive awards.

During the IX Belarusian Christmas Readings, educational conferences, sectional sessions, and thematic round tables will be held.