The basic mission of the Christian Educational Centre is the realization and support of Christian educational, social and research programmes.

The main aims of the Centre:
• Revival of Christian culture,
• Assistance to establishing of Orthodox Theological education in the Republic of Belarus,
• Propaganda of peace, moral health and common to all mankind values,
• Revival of traditions of the community of Church,
• Participation in the Christian inter-confession dialogue and collaboration in educational and scientific areas,
• Voluntary unification of public figures from the sphere of education, Church, science, healthcare, culture, art, mass media and business for joint enlightenment, social, educational, scientific, artistic, charity and other activities.

To achieve these aims the International Voluntary Association “Saints Methodius and Cyrill Christian Educational Centre” undertakes a series of projects.

 On November 13-15 in Minsk in Johannes Rau International Centre for Education and Exchange (Minsk) took place the seventh International Ecumenical Conference "Orthodox-Catholic Dialogue: Christian Ethical Values As Contribution To The Life Of Europe”. It was organized on the initiative of the International Public Association "Saints Methodius and Cyrill Christian Educational Centre" and the Institute for Religious Dialogue and Interconfessional Communications at the Synod of the Belarusian Orthodox Church. It has been the seventh interdenominational and interreligious conference arranged by the orthodox organizations in the Republic of Belarus in cooperation with the catholic organizations. Famous religious leaders, scholars from Eastern and Western Europe – experts in theology and other humanities, laymen, interested in the questions proposed for the discussion on the forum sessions and the representatives of secular élite, who profess no religion or hold to atheistic views took part in the event.

 

Among the honoured guests of the Conference were present President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity Cardinal Kurt Koch, Vice-President of the Foundation “Pro Oriente” in Vienna Professor Rudolf Prokschi, general secretary of the Community of St. Egidio Professor Adriano Roccucci, Archbishop of Vilnius and Lithuania Innocenti (Vasiliev) (The Moscow Patriarchate), Deputy Chairman of the Patriarchal Commission on Culture Bishop Jonathan (Eletskikh), Director of the Johann-Adam-Möhler-Institute of Ecumenics (Paderborn) Professor Johannes Oeldemann, the representative of the world-famous community of Sheveton Monastery father Thaddee Barnas (Belgium), Prior of the Taizé Community in France brother Alois etc.

The representatives of Belarusian Orthodox Church and of  the Department for External Church Relations of Moscow Patriarchate, the leaders of Roman Catholic Church in Belarus, representatives of Baptist Church of Belarus, representatives of Jewish and Muslim communities in Belarus also took part in the conference.  The representatives of public authorities of the Republic of Belarus, empowered to tackle the issues for religious organizations and educational issues and representatives of diplomatic corps in Belarus attended the forum. Many of them gave their welcome addresses at the beginning of the conference.

The conference was devoted to the issue of orthodox-catholic dialogue and cooperation between Orthodox and Catholic church in social sphere. Against the current world background of large-scale crisis in geopolitics and global economy, the participants of the Conference were searching for the theological foundations of European values and the place of Christian values in the modern society, were discussing the issues of social ethics the problems of cooperation between Church and state, Church and society, were sharing practical experience of Christian witnessing and mission in the pluralistic world.

In the report of Metropolitan Filaret were heard the leading motifs of the upcoming discussion. His Eminence mentioned that it is very important to understand the term  “christian values” in the context of modern culture and together search for the possibilities for the witnessing about God and faith. The call to collaboration is at the same time a call to the unity of Christian churches: “… The unity of the Christians is not only a unity of faith, but also a unity of good deeds. May we call people to peace when we ourselves do not follow this way? Don’t we lose a moral right to call our coevals to the unity until we ourselves prove our readiness to search for it?”

Cardinal Kurt Koch said in his presentation, that in the modern society, where a man having lost God has lost himself, “for Christian churches… there is nothing more important than an announcement of the mystery of God as a saving shelter for people”. But this announcement – “new evangelization”- is only possible, when it is being realized in the ecumenical community of Christians.

After the plenary session and the presentation of the conference programme made by Grigory Dovgyallo, First vice-chairman of IPA “Saints Methodius and Cyrill Christian Educational Center”, the first solemn presentation of an international prize “Golden Sunflower of Peace” in nomination “For the Moral Leadership” took place. It was awarded to Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk Filaret, to the Institute of Eastern Churches Regensburg (Germany) and to the People's Artist of the USSR Galina Vishnevskaya.

 On the 14th and 15th of November work continued in eight sections.

On the 14th of November during the conference a delegation headed by Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk Filaret and Cardinal Kurt Koch met President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko. «Belarus is a place, that can be an example of relationship of various religions», - said Alexander Lukashenko. President considers that the big merit in it has Metropolitan Filaret and the leadership of Catholic Church. Alexander Lukashenko noted that due to the conference the discussion on Christian values was being held on the high level and added that in Belarus “from the first days of its independence Christian values has been in the centre of moral values”.

On the second day of the forum in Belarusian State Philharmonic was hold the concert "Voices Of Creation - 2011", traditional cultural action of the programme "European Bridges". At the concert were performed Orthodox and Catholic spiritual music pieces,  at the second part the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Belarus played "Requiem" by Mozart as a dedication to the blessed memory of H.E. Cardinal Kazimierz Swiatek. The premiere of the piece by Belarusian writers for chorus and orchestra "Autumn Rhapsody" has also become a dedication. It was performed in memory of Mstislav Rostropovich, the world-renowned cellist, human right activist, an Orthodox Christian. World community will remember the five year anniversary of his death in the early 2012. The ancestors of Mstislav Rostropovich lived for many years in the area of town Oshmyany, so the family of Rostropovich has Belarusian origins. The concert gave the organizators a possibility to extend the audience of the conference and draw the attention of public representatives of Minsk and Belarus to its problematic field.

Important cultural events have become exhibitions of books published by St. Andrew’s Biblical Theological Institute and Alexander Men Foundation. The exhibitions were held in the conference hall of IBB Centre. On view were books on Catholic-Orthodox and interreligious dialogue, dialogue of science and religion. The leaders of Alexander Men Foundation from Moscow and Riga, who have been doing much in mission and orthodox-catholic dialogue for a long time, took part in the conference.

Due to the conference students of the Institute of Theology of Belarusian State University had an opportunity to meet President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity Cardinal Kurt Koch and the first Apostolic Nuntio in the Republic of Belarus, Titular Archbishop of Astigi, Secretary Emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People Agostino Marchetto. His Eminence Archbishop Agostino greatly helped with the formation of the Institute of Theology, initially a faculty of Theology of Europen Humanitarian University. In joyful mood took place a meeting with the brothers from ecumenical community Taizé and a coordinator of the project «Friedensgrund» priest Martin Marahrens.

The programme closed with a round table discussion “Dialogue between religions and civilizations on the issue of social constitution of humankind”. Together with the orthodox and the catholics in discussion were involved baptists, jews and muslims.

Key printed news editions of Belarus and Russia, TV channels and the representatives of electronic news agencies were interested in the conference. The Conference has become an event, due to which catholic and orthodox theologians, Christian theologians and secular scholars could come in contact, and new cooperation opportunities for the representatives of religious circles appeared. Many participants and guests mentioned high level of the conference organization.

Saints Methodius and Cyrill Christian Educational Centre plans to publish a collection of conference materials.

Христианский Образовательный Центр им. свв. Мефодия и Кирилла планирует издать сборник, в который войдут доклады, прозвучавшие на конференции.