Website of the Gorlovka and Slavic diocese
How does the life of a priest change after ordination?
Does he have to be different from everyone else? What prohibitions does the priesthood impose? Is it permissible for the clergy to be rich and where do Mercedes come from in the Church? Is God’s will for a person revealed to a priest and is it permissible to ask for his blessing for every step in one’s life? About the rich and the poor among priests, occupations compatible and incompatible with the rank and the true purpose of those who have embarked on this path.
Where do priests get Mercedes?
The image of the “butt in a Mercedes” remains a trend in news and television programs to this day. The topic of the wealth of priests has been greatly exaggerated. Often everything is exaggerated. Let's start with the car. Why does a priest need a car? A priest has many responsibilities and his day is very busy. After the liturgy - performing services, visiting hospitals, funerals, weddings, baptisms, conversations at school, visiting nursing homes, correctional colonies... Nowadays, a priest simply cannot get anywhere without a car. “Not a luxury, but a means of transportation.” When my car broke down, I couldn’t get anywhere. Taking a taxi is quite expensive.
Now about car brands. Some advise priests to travel almost on a scooter or bicycle, or in a car that is thirty or more years old and which takes longer to repair than to drive. This is also wrong. I serve in a fairly poor city (especially before the war). However, among our clergy there is not a single priest driving a Mercedes. I don’t see the kind of priests they show on TV - that someone has a Mercedes, someone has a Gelendvagen, someone wears Gucci or Armani. We don't have those.
A priest is a “slice” of the flock among whom he serves. If his parish has very wealthy parishioners, or he lives in a large, wealthy city where his relatives do business, he can buy himself a more expensive car that won’t break down every month. We have many priests who serve in rural parishes. The parishioners there are poorer. The temple has shabby decoration, and the priest drives a modest car.
There are priests who, having received an expensive business-class car as a gift from sponsors or rich relatives, are proud of it and are not going to change to a more modest car. This causes indignation among people: they do not understand why, without having a corresponding income of their own, he drives such an expensive car. As a rule, such people are random in the Church. There are few of them, they stand out from the rest of the priests, television reporters pay attention to them, each such case is inflated as much as possible and widely covered in the press. I am also categorically against this. It seems to me that the car should be good, reliable, but inexpensive. I would urge such priests to think about the fact that they are confusing people.
For most priests, a car is simply his workhorse. Lanos, Chevrolets, Renaults are the most ordinary and modest cars that do not cause any surprise on the city streets. These are used by doctors, teachers, and factory workers. Look at your priest’s car: as a rule, it is in the middle price segment.
It happens that a person comes to the Svyatogorsk Lavra and sees a lot of expensive cars there. He thinks these are all clergy machines. In fact, very rich guests and deputies of all levels come to the Lavra for major holidays. Their cars are parked at the Lavra.
Many people look at what kind of cars the bishops and the patriarch drive, who are entitled to a business-class car due to their status - in order to be perceived in the highest circles of power, where they have to decide issues important for the Church - and think that all priests are absolutely rich. But that's not true. Go to the Ozeryanovsky Church and see in what conditions the priest serves there, to Nikitovka, to Golma, to Kondratievka, to Bessarabka. Believe me, there is no talk of any Mercedes there. Whoever wants to, come visit me. I live in the most ordinary apartment, I drive the most ordinary car and I don’t have any millions.
Imagine if the patriarch or metropolitan arrives in a Tavria or a Lada to meet with the president. This will only cause laughter and misunderstanding. The Patriarch is the head of the Church. The entire Church is judged by it - whether it is a collection of only some illiterate peasants and poor people, or whether influential, highly erudite and successful people are considered an honor to belong to it.
We have always strived to bring the best to the Church. Look at the lamps in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, at the decorations of the icon cases of many icons. Previously, the icon cases and lamps of our temples were decorated with precious stones and gold, today they try to cover even cheap metal with gold. It was not allowed for the face of the Church to look poor and wretched. People like Serbian Patriarch Pavel, who rode trolleybuses, are an exception to the rule. Such phenomena are condemned and discussed, tried to be accepted or treated with outright misunderstanding.
Now about clothing and liturgical accessories. Like any quality item, they cost some money. Cassocks, for example, are not cheap. I and many other priests have two. I've been wearing them for several years.
How is the church budget formed?
The rector manages the funds. This is the head of a legal entity - an Orthodox religious organization in a certain area. Temples are registered in accordance with the procedure established by the legislation of the Russian Federation as non-profit organizations. They have their own charters and accounting.
Parishes exist on donations from parishioners and parishioners. People buy candles, icons, notes, and other items, order services (sacred rites performed upon request, for example, consecration, baptism, wedding). By purchasing a cross, a person essentially makes a donation in the recommended amount. If we consider this operation legally, then it is impossible to return the religious accessory, since it was received free of charge. The abbot also decides what amount to set for certain goods.
In summer, church income is lower than at other times of the year. People go on vacation and do more personal things. The most profitable times are church holidays, especially Easter, Christmas and Epiphany. In large cities, more money is donated. In villages, grandmothers can bring food from their own garden, some preparations and things. Temples in regional capitals can collect income of about 1–2 million per month. In Moscow there are even more. Sometimes entrepreneurs donate building materials to the church, pay utility bills, or provide other material and non-material assistance.
In addition to regular donations, money is also deposited into a bank account. This must be recorded in accounting documents. The funds received can only be spent for their intended purpose. Directions for spending are prescribed in the Charter.
About “fat butts”
There is a photograph circulating on the Internet where a very plump priest blesses a thin woman. Everyone laughs and comments, but few people know that this priest has a very serious illness - diabetes - due to which he is overweight. People are not interested in this, they need to laugh. Many priests have a metabolic disorder: they spend a lot of time on their feet. Some people have diabetes, others have stomach ulcers. Most priests in our diocese are thin, and if someone has problems with weight, then, as a rule, he has health problems.
Fat priests are accused of eating too much, and parishioners are ordered to strictly fast. This is also far-fetched. I will never allow myself to impose a strict fast on someone. On the contrary, before the start of each fast, I explain to my parishioners that we must fast according to our strength. I know that all the other priests with whom I communicate do the same. I also know that all the priests I know strictly observe fasts themselves. They also strictly observe the Eucharistic fast before each liturgy.
Is wealth not a vice?
Can a priest even be noticeably richer than his parishioners? Every priest, first of all, is a person. Someone has a talent for speaking and becomes a popular preacher. Someone is an excellent builder, someone is an organizer, and in his parish he has all kinds of clubs and various forms of leisure. Someone has entrepreneurial talent, and he opens the production of fireweed tea, natural wax candles or something else in his parish. If, thanks to his talents, a priest was able to earn some money, his duty is to spend it, first of all, on the needs of his parish. If he spends it only on his family, while his temple remains in a deplorable state, I condemn it.
It is great if a priest can earn money through his labor. The main thing is that at the same time everything will be fine at his parish and a friendly community will gather there. But if the church requires repairs, the Sunday school does not work, there is no library, and the priest buys himself an expensive car, the clergy will first of all pay attention to such a priest and give him a severe reprimand.
Each priest has a family and relatives, so he may have “extra” property - have a second apartment or dacha, if it is left to him as an inheritance or his wife owns it. The priest lives by the same laws as the rest of society. There's nothing wrong with that. In the current conditions, a dacha will help the priest survive, and an apartment will eliminate the need to save for housing for his children.
What do churches spend money on?
Most of the money is spent on staff maintenance. Approximately 40% of profits are distributed to wages and mandatory tax deductions. Modern clergy are employed according to labor legislation, have an officially registered position, SNILS and medical insurance. Documents and explanations regarding wages and taxation can be found on the ROC website.
For smooth operation, a staffing table is drawn up, which indicates all employees: rector, priest, deacons, candle makers, cleaners, bell ringers. There is no strictly established salary limit for church ministers. There may be recommended standards based on the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. They try to make the minimum salary no lower than the minimum subsistence level established by the state.
The second largest area of expenditure is the purchase of goods necessary for the temple. This is where the rules of a market economy come into force. The abbot tries to make purchases at the most favorable price. The cost of liturgical sets, censers and other items for worship reaches tens and hundreds of thousands of rubles. If the parish has a lot of money, then it can spend money on replacing or making a new iconostasis. It costs from 1.5 to 10 million rubles. But even wealthy parishes rarely make such purchases. In small village churches, the iconostasis can even be printed on photo paper. From a distance it will not be clear whether these are icons or reproductions.
Is it easy to be a priest?
On the one hand, the city priest at the cathedral has more responsibilities, obediences and more fast days than the rural one. On the other hand, the priest in the village is thinking about how to heat the temple, where to get funds to pay employees from the meager temple income. I would not say that it is easy for any priest to serve. I served both in the cathedral of the city of Slavyansk and in a rural parish, I can compare and say that there is no easy service anywhere.
It is a big misconception to think that if services are held in a rural church only once a week, the rest of the time the priest sits there and is bored. I serve in the front-line village of Zaitsevo. I'll tell you about how the week of an ordinary rural priest goes. Friday and Saturday evenings are all-night vigils, Saturday and Sunday mornings are liturgy. During the week there is a prayer service. Participation in citywide services in cathedrals. Worship services are required on all holidays. Requirements Caring for every member of the community. Constant concern for maintaining your temple with dignity. Where can I find funds to heat the building? How to pay salaries to choristers, candle makers, and prosphora servers on time? What if the building needs renovation?
I wouldn't say that this is too easy work. If anyone wants to try themselves in this field, you are welcome. Finish the seminary and come to serve in the village. This is a job with a very modest salary and many responsibilities.
Knowing our ruling bishop, I can say with confidence that if we suddenly have a parish where “everything has already been done” and the priest just sits on a bench all day long and enjoys life, then such a rector will not stay with us for long. It's never possible to change everything. Even if the temple has already been built, the choir and Sunday school must be developed, missionary and educational work must be carried out.
Each priest of our diocese has a social card of the parish, which indicates orphanages, kindergartens, schools, hospitals, boarding schools for the elderly and disabled, correctional colonies and other institutions that he is obliged to visit. Not just come once a week to serve, but take an active part in their lives and respond to their needs. Many priests teach classes on Christian ethics in schools and speak to students of Foreign Languages and other educational institutions.
Dear fathers. How God sends priests in the Urals
It is no secret that the priests and deacons of the Russian Orthodox Church are divided into two categories, while some are luxurious, purchasing expensive products in elite stores, exchanging foreign cars like gloves, others are trying to buy a cow with their last pennies in order to somehow feed their family. Although, according to the ex-clergy, “everyone steals.” Read about how priests live in the Urals in the material TochkaNews.ru.
“God will send,” they say in the Church. And it’s true that God sends sorrows and illnesses to some, and to others money, foreign cars and a comfortable life, as they say: “serve and sleep well.” We will not talk about bishops, these are the so-called “top managers” of the Russian Orthodox Church and, managing the regions, they do not live poorly. As proof - the motorcades of the patriarch and the foreign cars of the metropolitans.
This article will focus on simple and not so Ural priests. Let’s say right away that they themselves value their cross and do not want to be banned from serving (translated into worldly language as dismissal), so they flatly refuse to talk to journalists’ questions about money and salaries. But there are clergy “under ban”, fired, they have nothing to hide and they openly tell the truth, but the Russian Orthodox Church does not comment on this truth and tries to avoid any mention of income at all.
“Give me a penny and I’ll pray”
“I apologize that I have to get to know you through a request. It’s very awkward and inconvenient, but I just don’t know where or who else to turn to. There are seven of us in our family, me, my wife, four children and my wife’s mother, who is my dependent. I would not write this letter if I had the opportunity to earn extra money, but in the village there is no work, and as a clergyman I simply have no other income. We have urgent repairs in the house related to heating, winter is ahead and the house requires insulation from the outside. We took out a loan to build an extension to our house due to the birth of children. This is a big expense for us, and we need to pay for repairs and materials. The extension was built, but there are a lot of unfinished parts in it,” Kurgan priest Alexy Kuzminykh
.
Later, realizing that the media had created a stir around his problems, he retracted his words. He really faces no help from the Kurgan diocese, but most likely the local bishop will find a reason to ban him from serving. Using his example, one can only discuss how priests live in villages.
Village priests are simple and live simpler lives. Photo: V-kurse.ru
All clergy have large families, the Church prohibits them from using contraceptives, and you can’t earn much in the village with income (requirements: baptism, funeral services, prayer services). Moreover, the diocesan administration takes the lion's share of the income into its treasury.
“You won’t give money, you will run a black cash register, buy candles and goods only from the diocese, this is the law. Moreover, for example, for private owners the price of one candle is much lower than 70 kopecks, but they are sold in the church for 70 rubles. We are forbidden, if someone is found to be purchasing goods bypassing the diocese, then you can safely go out into the street, taking off your pectoral cross,” said one priest, asking not to even use his first and last name.
By church parish and expense
As for small towns, for example, Kamyshlov, Sverdlovsk region. The priests there live relatively well. At least they have real estate, equipment and no sponsors.
“Our priests live well, here is the rector of the church under construction on Konstantinovka, Father Oleg, who is finishing his house, and he seems to have six children, all well-fed and well dressed, he has a car. The rector of the Intercession Cathedral, Father Pavel Kulbitsky, also has his own apartment, and a lot of people go to the Intercession Cathedral. Things are, of course, worse for Father Igor in the village of Obukhovskoe. My family and I rent a house, but he seems to have an apartment in Yekaterinburg, which he rents out, and they live with this money in Obukhovsky. The temple is being restored, but due to lack of money it is not happening quickly,” say the Orthodox Kamyshlovites.
Intercession Cathedral in Kamyshlov
City “hieromagnates”
Of course, lucky are those who serve and work in big cities, for example, in Yekaterinburg and Nizhny Tagil. There are more believers here, they are richer, and the prices for baptisms, weddings, funeral services and the blessing of cars (by the way, in some cases depends on the price of the car) are much higher.
Archimandrite Hermogenes, rector of the Church of St. Seraphim of Sarov in Yekaterinburg. Far from being a poor priest, even though he is a monk
“About how the priests I know live in Yekaterinburg and the region. They live, it must be said, differently. The average salary of a priest in Yekaterinburg ranges from 20 to 35 thousand rubles (depending on the parish). However, a priest’s income is not limited to his salary. In addition to the salary, the priest performs services (blessing of apartments, cars, crosses, funeral services, etc.), which can bring up to 50-75% of the salary per month. The priest also has the opportunity to take the “memorial service” home, those alms of food (cereals, butter, canned food) that are brought to the temple to commemorate the dead. That is, if a priest has a salary of 35, then with his requirements he gets 50-60 thousand on average. In principle, it’s very good for the city,” says former seminarian and oppositionist of the Russian Orthodox Church Viktor Norkin
.
According to him, the difference between urban and rural clergy is colossal.
“The situation in the village is different. There, the average salary in parishes ranges from 8 to 15 thousand rubles. Requirements are limited compared to the city. In the summer, income from services increases due to regular baptisms, but mainly village parishes survive by holding funeral services for local residents. Unfortunately, everything is in order with mortality in Russia. Well, of course, the abbots of the temples stand apart. They have no salary cap; all finances of the temple (after paying taxes to the bishop) remain with the rector. Therefore, a number of abbots in Yekaterinburg have several apartments in new buildings, high-quality European or Japanese cars, and the opportunity to buy any products without taking into account the economic crisis. Quite a prosperous life. There is a huge economic gap between an ordinary priest and the rector of a good parish. Ordinary priests bear the entire burden of work in the church - from conducting services, conversations, to performing funeral services and other requirements. The task of the rector is to skillfully maneuver and look for approaches to the bishop, paying taxes to the diocese on time and not leaving his pocket empty,” Norkin emphasized.
The ex-clergyman, who at one time was banned because he married a second time, also agrees with him.
“I have my own experience, in 1996 I became the head of the audit group, an auditor of the diocese, I traveled almost the entire diocese, caught swindlers in robes and saw who plows and who steals. Of course, everyone drags, but there is no need to fight. And it’s a pity for this father, most likely he will be banned and will be left without everything, at best for him to come. Blacks never understood the problems of whites; I labored at one monastery. There was one plus all the meat from the funeral service was mine. Poverty is not a vice. I would not compare priests living in the village and the city, namely living. This is as incompatible as a milkmaid and a manager. The peculiarity of life in the village is, of course, working on your own land, which feeds you. A city dweller earns money to go to the store, and a village dweller earns by his own labor. There is, of course, a lot of drama in the story with the priest from the Kurgan diocese. But this publicity most likely harmed him. A ban on service and, as a consequence, termination of payment for his work. In simple terms, dismissal. The priest serves in the monastery, which means he cannot perform services without permission, all his income goes to the treasury of the monastery from which he receives his salary. If he served in the parish, it would be easier for him; the parish will always provide food,” says the ex-clergyman.
He is also sure that everything depends on the priest; some live well in the village:
“I myself served both in the city and in the countryside. Family income consisted of money for caring for the spouse's children and donations for performing services (Communion, Confession, consecration of houses, apartments, cars). The difference in the income of a priest in a village or small town with a regional center is simply in the number of these demands performed, well, in the capital they don’t always sacrifice potatoes, they can throw in a fiver. And the most important thing still depends on the priest. If he can communicate with people, lead his flock, love his work, then he will never be left without food, money and attention. If I were him, I would ask to come.”
Dear Metropolitan Kirill and his “bastards”
A separate expense item is the visit of the ruling bishop. Usually he comes to serve the Liturgy on a patronal feast day, for example, on Intercession at the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God; there are several of them in the Yekaterinburg diocese, one of them in Kamyshlov. And if the arrival of the metropolitan is a holiday for believers, then for the rector of the temple it is a headache.
“The average amount for a metropolitan’s visit today is approximately 70 thousand rubles. This includes payment for the choir (about 10), payment for the so-called “bastards” (as subdeacons and protodeacons are called in church jargon - about 20), about 30 for the metropolitan himself, and 10-15 for meals. This is data for one of the temples that was recently consecrated. As for the central churches, I’m afraid the amount will be higher,” says ex-seminarian Viktor Norkin.
Let us note that in the Yekaterinburg diocese, as mentioned above, they do not comment on income and expenses of any level. The diocesan press secretary answered another question from a TochkaNews.ru correspondent with reverent silence.
Metropolitan Kirill’s meetings are far from being held in an ascetic atmosphere
"God will help"
Let us note that Patriarch Kirill, unlike the same Ekaterinburg diocese, today slightly lifted the veil of financial secrecy. Patriarch Kirill explained where funding for the implementation of church projects can and should be obtained from. According to the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Lord God can solve the financial problems of the church. This statement by the patriarch was made at the Church-wide Congress on Social Ministry. The search for premises for Orthodox kindergartens was discussed at the event.
“Sometimes the question arises: with what money? When we opened the first kindergartens in the Smolensk diocese in the difficult 90s, I never asked the question of how much money they would use. I was criticized all the time for this: why are you forcing us, but what about the money? I answered: The Lord will help. And this is not just a phrase to end the discussion, it really is - the Lord is coming to meet you halfway,” Rupolit news agency quoted Patriarch Kirill as saying.
By the way, journalists writing on the topic of the Russian Orthodox Church support the idea of helping village priests.
“In Orthodoxy it is considered bad form when lay people try to advise something to a bishop or metropolitan. And I understand perfectly well with what a grin the bishops will read these lines. Nevertheless, I will say: it is better to cancel one or two festive dinners or send less money to the patriarchate, but find an opportunity to help priests in need. And this help should be regular. The division into rich and hopelessly poor clergy is the tragedy of the Church. I have no illusions: for many bishops, mercy is an unfamiliar and sometimes alien word, but it’s time to change. Priests must be protected! This is not only the task of the parishioners; the bishop can do a lot about this. Including helping with money, if necessary,” insists Sergei Chapnin , in 2009-1015. worked as executive editor of the “Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate”
So some priests have to go on a diet so that their cassock can be fastened, while others have to milk a cow between prayers to feed their family. But everyone needs to pray, in case “God sends it.”
poor priests rich priests income Yekaterinburg diocese Metropolitan Kirill Russian Orthodox Church
Who can a priest be?
Often, a priest today not only does not own Mercedes and other luxury items, but is also forced to work as someone else in order to feed his family. At the same time, there is work that is compatible with the priesthood, and incompatible with it for moral reasons. For example, a priest cannot be an actor. Hypocrisy is not befitting the priesthood. Examples such as Ivan Okhlobystin will always cause public resonance. I am in no way trying to condemn his life, but for me personally these professions are incompatible.
The same applies to deputy, judicial, and prosecutorial positions. A priest cannot judge or have authority. This is a canonical rule. Not every business can be done by him. A business based on speculation and usury is unacceptable for a priest. I have never met a police or firefighter priest. I think that a priest will not be able to engage in such work that will take up almost all of his time. As they say, God’s is God’s, and Caesar’s is Caesar’s.
Contrary to popular prejudices, a priest can be a hunter or fisherman. The commandment “thou shalt not kill” is common to all Christians, although Christians can hunt or run their own farms and, for example, slaughter a chicken for soup. Some people think that a priest cannot even kill a mosquito. I’ll be honest, I don’t kill mosquitoes, I catch them with a vacuum cleaner, but I’ve never heard of such a ban.
Some people think that a priest cannot work as a doctor, lest he accidentally kill a person. But we have heard of an excellent example of a leading surgeon, from whose textbooks purulent surgery was taught for a long time - St. Luke (Voino-Yasenetsky). Today he is canonized. Many saints glorified by the Church were also doctors.
A priest can defend himself from criminals, protect his own or someone else’s life. If he sees lawlessness, a threat to the life of someone, as a citizen, he is obliged to prevent it. I don’t see the need for a priest to carry a weapon, but calling the police and stopping a criminal is his sacred duty. Besides being a priest, he is also a law-abiding citizen.
What happens if, in self-defense, a priest kills a man? Such things are considered by the church court. The Gospel says: Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends (John 15:13). Many priests took part in the defense of cities and villages during the Great Patriotic War. It would be wrong to say that a priest cannot resist crime and must imitate the example of St. Seraphim of Sarov, who submitted to the robbers.
Priests are not afraid to drive a car, although this also involves a risk to their life. The only thing is that if a priest goes to give communion to a sick person, it is advisable to put someone else behind the wheel, because he should be focused only on the Holy Gifts that he is carrying.
I know priests who speak several languages and do translations. Some write articles and even fiction books. Rural priests strive to do something with their own hands. They cut doors, frames from wood, and make furniture. A priest can head an icon-painting workshop or a candle production workshop. There are priests who work in schools or even work as taxi drivers to survive.
Apartment of Patriarch Kirill
While still a metropolitan, he lived for a long time in Serebryany Bor in a small wooden house. The area of the land is about seven thousand square meters. On the territory there are outbuildings and buildings for educational and church activities, but the main house is small and already quite dilapidated.
During this period, President Boris Yeltsin and his entourage decided to improve living conditions and presented the clergyman with a five-room apartment measuring 140 square meters. meters. The living space is located in the famous “House on the Embankment” at 2 Serafimovicha Street.
He does not live here and never has lived. Initially, the donated property was in very poor condition and unsuitable for habitation. Over time, the apartment was put in order and a collection of rare books, which Kirill’s father began collecting back in Soviet times, was moved here for storage.
The apartment is located on the top floor of the building and has a magnificent view of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. This is the only real estate officially owned by Vladimir Gundyaev.
According to CIAN, the apartments at Serafimovicha, 2 are more than 100 square meters in size. meters cost from 95 to 300 million rubles.
Not a prehistoric dinosaur
Can a priest play sports or be a fan? There are gambling sports where people place bets and play for money. Then a person willy-nilly falls into sin. You can also root for your favorite team in different ways. If there is irritation, anger, anger, aggression, this is unacceptable. I have great respect for the sport itself. Since childhood, I have played football and go to the swimming pool. There are no restrictions here.
Regarding board and computer games, playing for money is unworthy of a priest. Cards and other gambling games are also prohibited as those that awaken passions in a person. Computer games are also different. There are those where cruelty is promoted and blood is shed. And there are popular games of “tanks” with equipment from the Great Patriotic War or “ships”, which are quite harmless. There are a lot of interesting strategies - all kinds of empires, civilizations. They provide an opportunity to learn a foreign language and develop thinking.
I am only for it if the priest is aware of Internet games and can talk about it with the young people who come to his church, explain what is good and what is not. It is very important that in the eyes of young parishioners the priest does not look like some kind of dinosaur of the prehistoric era, who does not understand the realities of modern life at all, but is an educated person who understands what he is talking about.
The same applies to the priest’s access to the Internet. Today on social networks we see a lot of not just priests, but also monks, hieromonks, archimandrites, bishops and metropolitans. They actively carry out their mission of preaching about Christ via the Internet. Forums are very important where priests can find out the opinions of others on certain current contemporary issues and different points of view.
Today, a significant part of a priest’s public ministry takes place on the Internet. Asking a priest a question on the Internet is much easier than devoting time to this in real life by coming to the temple and waiting until he has free time.
A common image of a priest’s family in the minds of many believers is a wife in long gray clothes reaching to her toes and a bunch of children. It is wrong to believe that a priest should have many children, or to condemn him for having few children or being childless. In this way we are like the Jews who condemned the parents of the holy prophet John the Baptist and other righteous people for being childless. Everything happens in our lives according to the will of God.
Often the Lord tests people's faith and gives them children at a later age. A priest's family cannot, for example, as some people think, give birth to a child every year. Without even thinking about abortion, the priest and his wife take care of their health and know the physical strength of their body.
The style of the priest and his family in everyday life can also be quite modern and at the same time remain modest. For example, wearing a long beard is not at all necessary. This is a form of missionary preaching: Orthodox does not mean an ancient dinosaur.
