Bishop’s Council of the Russian Church to adopt a document on human rights

19 March 2008, 12:35

Geneva, March 19, Interfax – The document manifesting Russian Orthodox position on human rights will be adopted this summer at the Bishop’s Council, head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad said.

The United Nations can provide a platform for discussing human rights conceptions worked out by other Christian confessions and religions, Metropolitan Kirill said speaking in Geneva at the 7th session of the UN Human Rights Council.

He also urged all the countries concerned to back up establishing a consultative religious council at the UN, this idea was first introduced by the participants of the World Summit of Religious Leaders in Moscow in summer 2006.

“Thus, we would give a new impulse to the dialogue on human rights at global level,” the Moscow Patriarchate’s representative said.

According to Metropolitan Kirill, both international law and national legislation in the field of human rights should develop with due consideration of religion’s role in society.

“Otherwise, alienation and opposition of the major part of humanity to current global processes will only grow,” the metropolitan is convinced.

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