The Russian Orthodox on abortion, RACU

Russian Orthodox Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov has spoken out against abortion, which is contributing to the demographic collapse of his country. As the major form of "birth control", abortion ends the lives of some 4 to 6 million unborn children annually in Russia.

In the meantime not all Russians are happy with the presence in Moscow of the Russian-American Christian University (RACU). Although it was the Russian Minister of Education who suggested the building of a christian liberal arts university back in 1990, and although its faculty includes Christians of several traditions, including Russian Orthodox, some Orthodox fear "an encroachment of foreign faiths and branches of Christianity into the area." Last tuesday saw protests against the construction of the new RACU campus. The president of RACU, John Bernbaum, was formerly the head of the CCCU's American Studies Program and spoke at Redeemer's graduation exercises back in 1991. If Bernbaum and company can manage to allay the fears of local Orthodox Christians, RACU could become a significant force for the revitalization of Christianity within Russia. It might even help to stem the country's demographic collapse. Definitely something to pray for.