Muslims support the initiative of the Russian Orthodox Church to include a mention of faith in God into the list of traditional values of Russia. The draft of the state policy on preserving and strengthening spiritual and moral values presented for discussion is very much in demand in the society, Head of the Spiritual Assembly of Russian Muslims Mufti Albir Krganov said on Monday.
"The draft document discussed today is demanded by the very life of society and has long been expected against the background of the noticeable degradation of the spiritual and moral sphere. <...> Thousands of years of history of Islam and our nations, our literature, art, architecture - everything is permeated by religious and spiritual foundations, and in this sense, we think it would be very correct to prescribe and specify the phrase "faith in God" in our document," said Krganov during the discussion at the Civic Chamber of the RF on the draft of state policy on preservation and consolidation of traditional Russian values.
He said that after reading the draft text he came to the conclusion that its developers "underestimated the thousand-year experience and potential of Russian traditional religions in forming spiritual and moral grounds of the society".
The mufti noted the "connection and continuity" between the discussed draft and the 2011 document of the World Russian People's Council (WRPC) "Basic values as a basis of national identity" where the approximate list of fundamental values of the Russian society has already been formulated and proposed for public discussion. In Krganov's opinion, the provisions of this document could be used when preparing a new draft as well.
"State attention to the policy of preserving and strengthening traditional Russian spiritual and moral values should be welcomed and supported, but the formation of such a policy, its presentation in appropriate documents requires, of course, even more attention, qualification and responsibility. I strongly believe that the emerging system of traditional Russian spiritual and moral values can unite our multi-ethnic and multi-religious country, strengthen our unity and cohesion and define strategic prospects for stable and sustainable development of our common Fatherland", concluded Krganov.
During the discussion in the Civic Chamber, Vladimir Legoyda, Рead of the Moscow Patriarchate's Synodal Department for Relations with Society and the Mass Media, stated that "it is very important to add a mention of faith in God or religious belief to the list of traditional values.
About the draft of the "Fundamentals of state policy for preserving traditional values"
Earlier, the version of the new Principles of state policy for the preservation and strengthening of traditional Russian spiritual and moral values developed by the Likhachev Russian Research Institute of Cultural and Natural Heritage was published for public discussion. The Heritage Institute underlined that the version of the document is not final and it will still be discussed at the Upper and Lower Houses of the Parliament, at the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation and at other institutions.
The current version of the document posted on the federal portal of normative legal acts lists among the traditional values "life, dignity, human rights and freedoms, patriotism, citizenship, service to the Fatherland and responsibility for its fate, high moral ideals, a strong family, constructive labor, priority of the spiritual over the material, humanism, mercy, justice, collectivism, mutual assistance and mutual respect, historical memory and continuity of generations, and unity of the peoples of Russia". According to the authors of the draft, the traditional values are "threatened by the activities of extremist and terrorist organizations, the actions of the United States and its allies, transnational corporations, and foreign non-profit organizations".
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: Alexander Shcherbak / TASS
Based on materials from TASS