Visit to Holy Dormition Monastery in Zhirovichi

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko visited the Holy Dormition Monastery located in the agro-town of Zhirovichi, Slonim District, Grodno Oblast.

Upon arriving at the monastery, the head of state visited the Holy Dormition Cathedral where he participated in a short prayer service and lit a candle before the Zhirovichi Icon of the Mother of God. This year marks the 555th anniversary of the miraculous appearance of this Icon, which is among the hundred most venerated shrines in the Orthodox world.

"It is necessary to provide some support to all [faiths], so as to maintain religious peace and calm on Belarusian land," the Belarusian leader emphasized. "For if we help one denomination, we will offend others. And disagreement will begin. Do we need that? We do not. Therefore, we must proceed from what and where we need to act in order to preserve peace and tranquility on this land. And religious peace and tranquility is one of the components of our overall peace."

Aleksandr Lukashenko noted that serious help had been provided to the Orthodox denomination in Zhirovichi, and help had been given to Catholics with the Budslau church, which the President also intended to visit. Similarly, followers of Islam and Judaism, and other smaller denominations, want to put their religious centers in order and develop them.

Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasize that decisions must be based on priority and what is truly necessary to accomplish, noting that the state also carries social functions, including housing construction and other areas. "We have a lot of nationwide issues. One of them is housing. And there are plenty of problems with roads, too. People complain about healthcare, about housing and utilities services. There is a host of issues that need to be resolved. But I have not seen people complain that they have nowhere to go to pray," said the President.

The head of state also observed that sometimes the churches of various denominations stand empty. That is, people have places to go and pray. "Let's figure out where we need to go to unburden our soul or heart, where we need to worship," Aleksandr Lukashenko said. "What about housing? People will not live in religious temples, however unpleasant that may sound for me to say. This is needed, housing is needed. The youth are already raising a question about [additional state] support for a second child. A lot of issues need to be resolved. I said directly that we are not yet ready to pay for a second child. Well, perhaps, we are not ready to restore all the churches and chapels that once existed. And, secondly, do we really need to?"

"We must define our priorities. The priority is that people have a roof over their heads," the Belarusian leader said.

n the same vein, Aleksandr Lukashenko spoke with clergy, including Metropolitan Veniamin. He stressed that the Orthodox denomination is the largest and most numerous in Belarus, but it is important to help others as well. "As for churches, let's build them, if we have the money. If there's no money, we'll help with something, somewhere," he said. "Housing, however, is the foundation. We will channel funding there. As for roads, there are still places you can't get to or through. Farmers lack machinery, not everywhere anymore, but there are still shortages. We need to help because we must feed people. And so on, and so forth."