On November 5, RIA Novosti hosted a press conference dedicated to the XII General Church Congress on Social Service. It was attended by Archpriest Mikhail Potokin, Chairman of the Synodal Department for Charity, and Deacon Igor Kulikov, Deputy Head of the Patriarchal Humanitarian Mission. They talked about the main topics of the Congress, its events and participants.
"The Church holds such a congress once every two years. It will bring together more than 1,000 people from 222 dioceses – heads of church charity projects, heads of diocesan social departments, confessors and senior sisters of the sisterhoods of mercy from all over Russia and abroad," said Archpriest Mikhail Potokin, Chairman of the Synodal Department for Charity. – The peculiarity of this year's Congress is that one of the main topics is assistance to those who have returned from the front and their families. Priests who are already engaged in this activity in dioceses will be able to discuss current issues and exchange experiences at the Congress venues. Another important topic of the Congress is the development of the volunteer movement, including in Donbas."
During the press conference, Archpriest Mikhail Potokin announced the opening of a new aid line in Donbas.
"We plan to launch a new line of assistance – educational assistance for those children who live in the conflict zone. Since the beginning of hostilities, they have not attended schools and studied online if there was a connection. Therefore, now we really need the help of volunteer teachers - those who can conduct classes remotely or are ready to come in person," said Archpriest Mikhail Potokin.
Father Mikhail also told us what kind of help the Church provides in the conflict zone. Today, 12 church aid centers have been opened in the conflict zone and the border area, where over 340,000 requests have been processed. Since March 2023, volunteers of the Patriarchal Humanitarian Mission have been traveling to the cities of Donbass to restore private homes of injured civilians. During this time, 2,164 volunteers went. They have restored 573 houses. Since July 2023, priests from various dioceses of Russia have been regularly traveling to hospitals in the conflict zone to provide spiritual assistance to the wounded. During this time, 352 priests from 70 dioceses and 14 monasteries visited.
At a press conference, Deacon Igor Kulikov, Deputy head of the Patriarchal Humanitarian Mission, told how work is organized in church aid centers in the conflict zone.
"Our centers are not just places where humanitarian aid is distributed. Initially, our centers were focused on several areas of work," emphasized Deacon Igor Kulikov. — Firstly, these are bases for our volunteer repair workers who travel to the conflict zone to rebuild the homes of injured civilians. The second area is home care for those who cannot get to the center themselves: single people with disabilities, the elderly, and large families. Each center has dozens of people in need under its patronage. They are helped in everyday life, with paperwork, food, water and other basic necessities are delivered. The centers also provide assistance in obtaining medical care with the support of local medical institutions, St. Alexy's Moscow Hospital, and the Southern District Medical Center of the Federal Medical and Biological Agency. On the basis of some centers, work is also underway to help children in their studies."
Father Igor also spoke about pastoral care for those who returned from the front and their families. The Synodal Department for Charity has organized an online course for priests to help veterans of the SVR. The course consists of 5 online meetings, 5 videos for self-study, a tutorial and a final test. Similar courses have already been held for the clergy of the Far Eastern Federal District, more than 450 people took part in them. More than 1,200 clergymen of the Siberian Federal District were also trained. Such a course is currently being held for priests of the Central Federal District. More than 3,600 clergy have registered for it. Similar online courses are planned in other federal districts. The project is being implemented with the support of the Presidential Grants Fund.
Since 2022, the Synodal Department for Charity has been operating a pastoral care service. In February 2025, with the support of the Presidential Grants Fund, the Return project was launched. It is aimed at social and psychological assistance and spiritual support for veterans and their family members.
With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the XII Church-wide Congress on Social Service will be held in Moscow on November 8-11. This is the largest forum of the Russian Orthodox Church in the field of charity. His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia is expected to celebrate the Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour on November 9 with the participants of the Congress. It is also expected that the Primate will open the plenary session of the Congress on November 9 in the Cathedral Hall of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.