Metropolitan Athanasios of Limassol met with the students of the Belarusian Medical University
Nadezhda Filipchik – October 2015
Reported for OCP Media Network – OCP News Service
Belarus: The Belarusian State Medical University is famous as the place of communication between the Orthodox Church and medical industry. From time to time specific forums are held here which give to the students the possibility of learning the position of Church on the most acute bioethical problems.
Recently the students of the university had a meeting with the guest from Cyprus – Metropolitan Athanasios of Limassol. During his opening speech the Metropolitan spoke about the understanding of the Church as of a hospital and of similarity between the work of doctors and the people of church. With the help of a treatment – ascetics and keeping the commandments – Our Lord Jesus Christ heals the people not only in a physical way but also in a spiritual one. There are doctors and sick people in hospitals, but the Church also has sick people (we are these people) and doctors – apostolic fathers and mentors. Our Church has both the medical science represented by the patristic tradition and a chief doctor – Our Lord, who gives us our life. And no one has the right to take the human life – the main gift given by the Lord to a human, that is why the Church is against euthanasia.
Metropolitan Athanasios told during the meeting: “The Church sees a person not as a creature which lives 80 or 90 years, a person has an eternal life in the Church. Every minute of his life can determine his eternal path. Who can deprive a person of this last minute?”
After the end of the meeting the students were complaining for the discussion having been too short. The program of the Metropolitan’s visit to Belarus also includes visiting different regions of the country and a number of the Belarusian monasteries.
