Participants of XII All-Ukrainian Conference of UOC discuss experience in working with youth in dioceses

On June 2, the XII All-Ukrainian Conference of Heads and Representatives of Diocesan Departments for Work with Youth completed its work with the Divine Liturgy at the St. Alekseevsky Church in the village of Lazurnoye in the Kherson region, reports the Information and Education Department of the UOC.

The Divine service was headed by the chairman of the Synodal Department, the vicar of the Kiev Metropolia Bishop Jonah of Obukhov, who was concelebrated by clergymen, participants of the conference. The Liturgy was attended by 75 representatives of diocesan youth departments and organizations of the UOC.

With the blessing of His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry, the event was held by the Synodal Youth Department of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church from 29 May to 2 June.

During the four days of the event, the participants presented church youth and volunteer projects and made reports on topical issues of the day.

First Deputy Chairman of the Synodal Youth Department of the UOC Archimandrite Joasaph (Peretiatko) considered the topic "Psychological aspects of juvenile suicides", and Deputy Chairman of the Synodal Youth Department of the UOC on cooperation with scout organizations, Protopriest John Tronko, spoke about his own experience of parish prayer services for marriage.

Heads of diocesan departments on family issues raised the topic of interaction between the state, the Church and public organizations and preaching in the youth environment.

The well-known Kiev historian Vladislav Diatlov told the participants about church myths, the church journalist Yulia Kominko presented the report "Opportunities for evangelism in the era of post-truth". The member of the Department for External Church Relations of the UOC, Sergei Bortnik, spoke about the international activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

At the forum, speeches were made on the issues of patriotic education of youth and the use of modern psychological techniques in missionary work and catechesis.

For active work in the media the first place was awarded to the Volyn diocese, the second – to the Kirovograd diocese, the third – to the Kamensk and Odessa diocese.

The chairman of the Synodal Youth Department Bishop Jonah of Obukhov thanked the participants for their inspirational daily work, extraordinary projects and devotional service to God and people.