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Teaching Values Is Subject of Seminar for Teachers in Russian Village
Written by UPF - Russia
Friday, February 28, 2014
Pokrovsky, Russia - Members of UPF-Russia’s Ural Branch participated in a seminar in a Sverdlovsk Province village on teaching the basics of religious culture and secular ethics to schoolchildren. The seminar for teachers at School No. 4 in the village of Pokrovsky was organized by the Department of Education of the city of Artyomovsky as part of the ongoing project “The City Helps the Village.”
The Feb. 28, 2014 event brought together not only school administrators and teachers but also parents, the head of the local Orthodox Church, members of a Cossack society and representatives of non-governmental organizations.
UPF maintains that the education of children requires the close cooperation of family, educational institutions, government and public organizations. But such cooperation needs to be based on a universal system of moral values—and this is where the church can help.
Ambassador for Peace Olga Vorobyova, a teacher of Orthodox culture, conducted an open lesson on "Miracles in a Christian’s Life." The educators noted the sincerity and spontaneity of the pupils’ answers, which showed that they were not just memorizing information but really reflecting and looking to make the right decisions.
Natalia Erofeyeva, the head of UPF-Russia’s Ural Branch, continued on the same theme with her talk "Making the World Brighter: Anatomy of a Miracle." She asked: What should be considered a miracle? How does it come about?
The participants were asked to imagine they were students; then they were divided into two groups, to prove one of two statements. The first statement: "A miracle is a special supernatural phenomenon. You just wait for it to happen, and everything will be fine." (Russian philosopher Nikolai Berdyaev once said, "Waiting for a miracle is one of the weak points of the Russian people.") The second statement: "A miracle is a fruit of labor." (Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine, said, "It is impossible to help the one who has no desire to change his life.") After comparing their responses, the participants came to an unexpected conclusion: There’s no clear difference between the two statements.
Natalia quoted Chaim Weizmann, the first president of Israel, "Miracles sometimes occur, but as the result of a lot of work." She explained about UPF’s Five Principles of Peace, and suggested concrete activity in order "to make the world brighter," including volunteer initiatives in the village of Pokrovsky.
Over tea, in an informal setting, the participants discussed the important points of the seminar as well as ways for further cooperation.
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