Russian Church suggests using Internet to promote positive ideals

The Russian Orthodox Church accepts that it is important and necessary to fight against criminality in Internet, but doesn't think that strengthening of control over world web can play key role in struggling against social vices. "We shouldn't lay all our hopes on some prohibitive measures in Internet, it's way to nowhere," PR head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Fr. Mikhail Prokopenko told Interfax-Religion.

Thus, he commented on the Byelorussian Church initiative to regulate the web contents as it often poses a threat to children's and teen's psyche.

According to Fr. Mikhail, on one hand, Internet is indeed "a favorable environment for fraud, exploitation of human vices, promotion of lie and slender," but at the same time "it allows to expose lie and slender and unite people for good undertakings."

"In short, as any technical facility, Internet can be used both for people's welfare and for things unworthy of human being," the priest noted.

He believes, "if a person bears a seed of vice and it makes him, for example, visit porn sites, it won't be enough to remove them from the web as new similar sites will appear at once." The interviewee of the agency thinks it necessary to "promote positive ideal and responsible behavior" in educational establishments, in the media, in Internet and "it should be done cleverly, in up to date way, and form intolerant attitude to vice in society."

"I don't see such promotion, though I believe it meets public interest," Fr. Mikhail stresses.

Source: Interfax religion