Shumikha District, Kurgan Province, Russia, May 27, 2020
A follower of the “Concept of Public Security” (CPS) occult-neopagan teachings from the Kurgan Province has appealed to local police, demanding to open a criminal case against His Eminence Metropolitan Daniel of Kurgan and Belozersk.
The man is outraged by the upcoming opening of an apologetic center in the Kurgan Diocese that will deal in particular with the prevention of religious extremism. Met. Daniel has also blessed the opening of a new missionary organization to help people who have suffered from totalitarian sects and destructive cults, reports the Kurgan Diocese.
“As a CPS supporter, I accuse the Kurgan Diocese and the Russian Orthodox Church or promoting the activities of sects and deceiving the people and not resisting evil-deception,” the man wrote, demanding a legal assessment of the intentions of the apologetic center and to convict those responsible for its opening.
The man’s application was registered twice with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Kurgan Diocese received five inquiries from law enforcement officers between March and May. The results of the investigation are unknown.
This situation shows how serious the spread of sects, neo-paganism, and occultism is in the trans-Urals, Met. Daniel said. Groups such as CPS, Scientologists, and Jehovah’s Witnesses fear theological debate and instead use legal pressure to strengthen their own missions, he noted.
“We will definitely open an apologetic center as soon as the coronavirus restrictions are lifted,” His Eminence said.
The Russian Association of Centers for the Study of Religions and Sects and the Human Rights Center of the World Russian People’s Council are prepared to offer legal and consulting support and to send experts to teach in the Kurgan Diocese.
“We will implement a broad educational program in the diocese, because this is the best prevention of sects and the spread of religious extremism,” Met. Daniel promised.
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According to the Diocese, the “Concept of Public Security” is “a set of conspiracy theories, pseudoscientific ideas, religious beliefs and unconfirmed facts, united by the idea of a worldwide Jewish conspiracy.” The group began to have some influence in the 1990s, and there are currently several centers in Russia, including in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The groups activities and works have been recognized as extremist by courts in various cities in Russia.
