The PMR President met with representatives of religious denominations in Pridnestrovie at the House of Official Receptions. The event is scheduled and has become traditional, taking the form of a tea party. Officials representing government agencies and structures interacting with the church were invited to the conversation in addition to clergy. Welcoming the participants, Vadim Krasnoselsky emphasized the importance of such dialogue for him as the country's leader.
Particular attention was paid to the church's involvement in the education of children and youth. It was noted that clergy not only participate in various educational projects and cultural events, but also host their own. For example, a national fine arts festival and an Easter festival of Orthodox music were organized this year. A Christmas and carol festival is being prepared, preceded by themed events at local venues. A creative competition is planned for these events. They discussed ways to engage young people in the history of religion, knowledge of which can serve as a guide to faith. They also discussed joint work to expand the exhibition space in the Pridnestrovian State Museum. Furthermore, there are proposals to create special museums for various faiths. An example of successful work in this area is the Old Believer Church in Bendery, which dispels stereotypes about the closed nature of Old Believers. Ksenia Kostromina, a member of the Church Council of the Old Believer Community in Bendery and director of the "Old Russian Bibliophile" cultural and educational center, spoke about the museum, its seminars, lectures, and meetings on a wide range of topics. These are held not only for adults but also for schoolchildren. Furthermore, there is a successful experience inviting preschool-aged children, for whom a special excursion and educational program has been developed. She expressed a desire to intensify interaction with university students. She outlined specific proposals, including organizing internships at the Old Believers' Church and the corresponding center for philology students. There are also ideas and developments related to church archeology. Vadim Krasnoselsky noted that these issues will be included on the agenda of today's presidential meeting with the leadership of Pridnestrovian State University named after Shevchenko. The topic of icon restoration was also addressed. This project by the Old Believers of Bendery won a competition for presidential grants. The funds allocated were used to restore 69 ancient icons, thereby preserving them for future generations.
The head of the largest denomination in Pridnestrovie – the Orthodox Church – Archbishop Sawa of Tiraspol and Dubossary, spoke about the functioning of Sunday schools. The largest number of them are in Tiraspol, but there are also some at churches in other towns. A Sunday school was opened a year ago at the Alexander Nevsky Church in Bendery. The class is designed for 30-35 young people, but on some days, up to fifty attendees can gather. Ages range from 5 to 12. "Squeezed but pleased", said Mikhail Lungu, Dean of the Bendery District, describing the situation. He also noted that there are plans to eventually organize two classes – a junior and a senior – for the lessons to the children's ages.
The rector of the Roman Catholic Church Petr Kushman spoke about the implementation of the "Mobile Team" humanitarian project, whose participants provided food and medicine to 2500 citizens across the republic, regardless of their religious affiliation. He noted that there are currently seven Catholic parishes in Pridnestrovie, serving approximately 2000 people. The largest is Sloboda-Rashkov.
Petr Kuzminsky reported that approximately 3000 parishioners are members of 24 Evangelical Christian Baptist Church parishes located in the republic. He also discussed the support provided to citizens. One of the current priorities is the provision of firewood.
Publishing activities were mentioned during the discussion, with achievements and plans shared. The president was presented with a book on the Old Believers and the new, 17th edition of the historical and cultural almanac "Pridnestrovian Heritage". It contains four dozen articles of various types. In total, the complete collection of issues contains over six hundred materials. All of them are available electronically on the Pridnestrovian Historical Portal platform.
Following the meeting, Vadim Krasnoselsky told that work assignments will be issued. Specific agreements on practical cooperation have also been reached. For example clergy will join lectures for schoolchildren jointly conducted by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the near future.
