Home page News
Round Table Held on the Ethical Problems of V…

Round Table Held on the Ethical Problems of Vaccination in the Light of Orthodox Teaching

A round table was held on 20th May 2021 at Sretensky Theological Academy in Moscow within the framework of the Inter-conciliar Presence of the Russian Orthodox Church on the topic of vaccination and ethical problems in the light of Orthodox teaching.

The event was headed by the chancellor of the Moscow Patriarchy and secretary of the Inter-conciliar Presence the metropolitan of Voskresensk Dionisy.

The round table was attended by bishops and clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church, scholars, doctors, public figures and Orthodox faithful keen to express their stance publicly. The topic of discussion was the vaccination programme and how the faithful are to relate to it. The problems of the relationship between Christian bio-ethics and the technologies used for making particular vaccines were examined separately.

The round table was opened by the metropolitan of Voskresensk Dionisy who in his greetings reminded participants that discussion on the vaccination programme had been ongoing for a while since 2008 when, with the blessing of the ever-memorable Patriarch Alexy II, the Synodal Department for Church Charity and Social Ministry held a round table on the topic of vaccine prophylactics for children, the problems that arose in connection with this and the means of resolving such problems. Further to this, the issues of vaccinations were discussed at the All-Russian Congress of Orthodox Physicians which issued a joint statement of the Council and Society of Orthodox Physicians of Russia on the problems of vaccination in Russia. Then, in 2019 the Patriarchal commission on the family, the defence of motherhood and children issued a statement on parental rights in the sphere of protecting children’s health and immuno-prophylactics.

Among the round table’s participants were the metropolitan of Zaporozhie and Melitopol Luke, the chairman of the Synodal Department for Church Charity and Social Ministry the bishop of Vereya Panteleimon, the bishop of Kalachinsk and Muromtsevo Peter, the deputy chancellor of the Moscow Patriarchy the bishop of Zvenigorod Savva, the chairman of the Synodal commission on bio-ethics the bishop of Peterhof Siluan, the deputy chairman of the Department of External Church Relations archpriest Nikolai Balashov, the chairman of the Committee for Education of the Russian Orthodox Church and acting rector of Sretensky Theological Academy archpriest Maxim Kozlov, the chairman of the Synodal Department for Public Relations between the Church, Society and the Media Vladimir Legoida, the head doctor of the St. Alexis of Moscow Hospital Alexei Zarov, the director of laboratory for genomics and epigenomics of the spine at the biotechonology federal research centre under the Russian Academy of Sciences and dean of the faculty of biomedicine at the Russian National Research Medical University Yegor Prokhorchuk, the head of the department for hospital therapy at the pediatric faculty of the Russian National Research Medical University, vice-president of the national medical chamber, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences and doctor of medicine Alexander Chuchalin, the deputy chairman of the Synodal Department for Public Relations between the Church, Society and Media Vakhtang Kipshidze and many others.

The round table studied the historical experience of the Church’s reaction to vaccination programmes as the basic means of dealing with epidemics and examined the problems of the safety and the voluntary nature of vaccination.

A final document was adopted at the end of the round table, states the official site of the Moscow Patriarchate with a link to the Synodal Department for Public Relations between the Church, Society and the Media.

Share:
Congratulations of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill to the President of Turkey on his 70th birthday

26.02.2024

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill's condolences in connection with the murder of the monks of the Ziquala Abo Monastery in Ethiopia

24.02.2024

Address by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill at the XII Christmas Parliamentary Meetings at the Federation Council of the Russian Federation

23.01.2024

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill: Patriarch of Constantinople is not a free man

07.01.2024

Christmas Message from Patriarch KIRILL of Moscow and All Rus’

06.01.2024

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill had phone conversation with Metropolitan Ioann of Belgorod and Stary Oskol

02.01.2024

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill expresses condolences over deadly earthquake in northwest China

19.12.2023

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill congratulates Mr Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on his re-election as President of Egypt

19.12.2023

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill welcomes the opening of an exhibition dedicated to the decoration of the Church of St Sava in Belgrade

19.12.2023

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill presides over jubilee meeting of Inter-Religious Council of Russia

07.12.2023

Address by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill at jubilee meeting of Inter-Religious Council of Russia

07.12.2023

Patriarchal greetings on the occasion of 60th anniversary of the Diocese of Vienna and Austria

26.11.2023

Primate of Russian Church presents historic miracle-working Kazan Icon of the Mother of God to the faithful and celebrates Liturgy in the Kremlin Dormition Cathedral

04.11.2023

Address by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’ to the participants of the World Conference of Compatriots Living Abroad

01.11.2023

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill met with the Primate of the Assyrian Church of the East

31.10.2023

Metropolitan Hilarion: Many things in a person's life depend on faith

29.08.2021

Metropolitan Hilarion: The Holy Spirit is the main treasure of the Christian soul

01.08.2021

Metropolitan Hilarion: Holiness is a constant striving to imitate the Lord Jesus Christ

27.06.2021

Metropolitan Hilarion: God does not want to condemn, but to save us

07.03.2021

Metropolitan Hilarion: The Lord always grants to us the opportunity to display our talents

24.01.2021

Metropolitan Hilarion: The Lord has imbued the waters of Jordan with his divine presence to wash away human sins

19.01.2021

Metropolitan Hilarion: to repent means to change your way of life

17.01.2021

On commemoration day of St. Catherine, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk officiated at the Church of St. Catherine the Great Martyr In-the-Fields  the representation of the Orthodox Church in America

07.12.2020

Metropolitan Hilarion: We can always show compassion for people

29.11.2020

Metropolitan Hilarion celebrates on commemoration day of St. Varlaam of Khutyn at the church of ‘Joy to All the Afflicted’ icon of the Mother of God

19.11.2020

Metropolitan Hilarion: We should remember that the life of each human being is in the hands of God

06.11.2020

Metropolitan Hilarion: For God there is nothing impossible

25.10.2020

Metropoplitan Hilarion: The cross which was an instrument of dishonourable execution becomes the symbol of salvation for millions of people

27.09.2020

Metropolitan Hilarion: Eucharist is the wedding feast, to which Lord Jesus Christ invites each of us

13.09.2020

Metropolitan Hilarion: Faith alone is not enough for salvation

30.08.2020

Page is available in the following languages
Feedback

Fields marked by * are mandatory required

Send a message
Рус Укр Eng Deu Ελλ Fra Ita Бълг ქარ Срп Rom عرب