Religious Institutions as Regulators of the Moral Principles in Geopolitics

The materials of the international round table “Religious institutions as regulators of moral principles in geopolitics”, held as part of the Christmas Readings “Global challenges of modernity and the spiritual choice of man” by the National Research Institute for the Communications Development (NIIRK), the Belarusian Exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church, the International Public Association “Christian Educational Center named after Saints Methodius and Cyril”. The article reflects the views of Russian and Belarusian scientists on the influence of geopolitics on the activities of religious institutions, their communication with the state and society, the influence of religion on geopolitical and political decisions. The idea is expressed about the moral leadership of the church in modern society and politics, the youth education. The problem of developing the communication skills of clergy, new forms of information in the context of digitalization and the development of the information society is considered. The compensatory function of religious institutions in the socio-cultural sphere, aimed at smoothing emerging institutional imbalances and balanced development of society, is substantiated.

1. Bendin A.Yu. State-religious institutions of the Russian Empire in the 18th – early 20th centuries: the evolution of relations “ours – others – others”. Bulletin of the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia. Series: History of Russia. 2021. Vol. 20, No 1, February: 8–31. [In Russian].

2. Vasilyeva E.N. John Milton Yinger’s contribution to the sociology of religion. In: Religion in the history of the peoples of Russia and Central Asia: materials of the 2nd international scientific conf. Ed. P. C. Dashkovsky. Barnaul: Alt. un-ty, 2014:19–21. [In Russian].

3. Weber M. Selected works. The image of the Society. Moscow: Jurist, 1994:702. [In Russian].

4. Gentile E. Political religions. Between democracy and totalitarianism. St. Petersburg: Vladimir Dal’, 2021:400. [In Russian].

5. Dugin A.G. Postmodern geopolitics. Times of new empires. Essays on geopolitics of the XXI century. St. Petersburg: Amphora, 2007. [In Russian].

6. Kirdina S.G. Institutional matrices and development of Russia: introduction in X–Y theory. St. Petersburg: Nestor-History. 2014. [In Russian].

7. Komleva V.V. Religious institutions as regulators of the moral paradigm in geopolitics. Ethnosociety and International Culture. 2017; (110):40–44. [In Russian].

8. Krasnozhen M.E. Infidels in Rus’. Vol. 1: The situation of non-Orthodox Christians in Russia. Yuriev, 1900. [In Russian].

9. Kuznetsov N.D. Management of affairs of foreign confessions in Russia in its historical development. Yaroslavl’, 1898. [In Russian].

10. Lunkin R.N. Churches in politics and politics in churches. How modern Christianity is changing European society. Moscow: Institute of Natural Science RAS, Nestor–History, 2020. [In Russian].

11. Mchedlova M.M. The cultural basis of national security and religion: from value space to the prevention of extremism. Bulletin of the Russian nation. 2020. No 6(76):93–104. [In Russian].

12. Mchedlova M.M. Religion, Society, Politics: Changing Institutional Boundaries. In: Religion in Modern Russia: Pandemic Events and Discourses. Moscow: Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia (RUDN), 2021. [In Russian].

13. Mchedlova M.M. Social consolidation of Russian society: the role of the religious factor. Bulletin of the Russian nation. 2015; 3(41):65–80. [In Russian].

14. Pavlov A.S. The course of church law. St. Petersburg, 2002. [In Russian].

15. Sadkov V.G., Chubarets O.V., Aronov D.V. Global values of a planetary civilization and ensuring the leading role of Russia in the modernization of the UN. National interests: priorities and security. 2015. Vol. 11. No 40(325):47–63. [In Russian].

16. Voegelin E. The New Science of Politics. Introduction. St. Petersburg: Vladimir Dal’, 202:372. [In Russian].

17. Filatov A.S. Euro-Atlantic civilizational aggression in the context of geopolitical confrontation with Russia. Svobodnaja Mysl’. 2022; 1(1691):159–169. [In Russian].

18. Filatov A. S. Russia and the world. Geopolitics in the civilization dimension: monograph. Moscow: Prospekt, 2015:352. [In Russian].

19. Frank S.L. Spiritual foundations of society. Moscow, 1992:488–489. [In Russian].

20. Huntington S. Clash of Civilizations. Moscow: LLC AST Publishing House, 2003:603. [In Russian].

21. Tsvetaev D.V. From the history of foreign confessions in Russia in the 16th and 17th centuries. Moscow, 1886. [In Russian].

22. Agnew J. Deus Vult: The Geopolitics of the Catholic Church. Geopolitics, 2010; 15:39-61. [In English].

23. Habashi J. Geopolitics of Religion and Its Role in Youth Agency. In: Political Socialization of Youth. Palgrave Macmillan, 2017, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-47523-7_5 [In English].

24. Megoran N. Evangelical Geopolitics: Practices of Worship, Justice and Peacemaking. In: Brunn S. (eds) The Changing World Religion Map. Springer, Dordrecht. 2015. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9376-6_162 [In English].

25. Polanyi K. The Livelihood of Man (Studies in Social Discontivity). NY: Academic Press, Inc. 1977. [In English].

26. Vidal de la Blache P. Principios de Geografia Humana. Lisbon: Cosmos. 1954 [1921]. [In English].

27. Wittfogel K.A. Oriental Despotism. Comparative study of total power. New Haven, London: Yale University Press. 1963. [In English].