Evangelical Churches: The moral decline of society should be overcome
29 January 2012
Representatives of Evangelical Churches answered questions of journalists, experts and scholars on the participation of evangelical Christians in the elections, their attitude to the economic and political crises and to the declaration of "doomsday" in 2012 and the importance of the Christian worldview values.
It was discussed during a press conference of Evangelical Protestant Churches of Ukraine (EPCU) called "2012 in Ukraine: challenges and prospects in the light of Christian values," which took place on January 24 in the press center of the UNIAN agency.
Press conference was opened by the Executive Director of the Institute for Religious Freedom Maksym Vasin, invited by the organizers to moderate the press conference. He said that there is annually growing number of evangelical protestant communities in Ukraine.
"In early 2011, the number of communities of evangelical Christians in Ukraine amounted to 8734 out of 34 405 religious communities in general. In other words, it is more than a quarter (25%) of believers", – said the expert.
Then the floor was given to the leaders representing various evangelical churches.
The senior bishop of the Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith of Ukraine Mykhaylo Panochko noted that "none area of private and public life does not work without morality: neither politics, business or family nor education ". He said that healthy morality creates a healthy society.
The chairman of EPCU and the Bishop of the Association of Missionary Churches of Evangelical Christians of Ukraine Vasyl Davydiyk said that during the election campaign, "church is not involved in the political blocs and doesn’t agitate for political parties". He said that history has repeatedly demonstrated the malignancy of such actions for the church itself.
In his turn, the head of the spiritual and the advisory board of the Ukrainian Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians-Baptists Grygoriy Komendant said that we shouldn’t fear the fibs about "doomsday" in 2012.
"At first, Jesus Christ said that no one knows exactly when He will return: it will be unexpectedly. Secondly, His Second Coming for Christians is not 'the end' but resurrection and the beginning of the glorious, sinless and perfect life", – explained the Bishop.
Translation by Svitlana Sydorenko
© 2011 The Institute for Religious Freedom – Kyiv, Ukraine
www.irf.in.ua
