wfn.org | Reaction to Yeltsin Veto

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"UNITED METHODIST DAILY NEWS 97" by SUSAN PEEK on April 15, 1997 at 14:24
Eastern, about DAILY NEWS RELEASES FROM UNITED METHODIST NEWS SERVICE (241
notes).

Note 241 by UMNS on July 25, 1997 at 15:23 Eastern (3614 characters).

Produced by United Methodist News Service, official news agency of
the United Methodist Church, with offices in Nashville, Tenn., New
York, and Washington.

CONTACT:  Linda Bloom                          429(10-21-71B){241}
          New York (212) 870-3803                    July 25, 1997

United Methodists applaud
Yeltsin veto of religion law

               by United Methodist News Service

     The United Methodist bishop in Moscow said July 24 that he
was relieved over Russian President Boris Yeltsin's veto of a
restrictive law on religious groups.
     Yeltsin rejected "Freedom of Conscience and Religious
Associations" on July 22. It had been passed overwhelmingly by
both houses of Parliament and was strongly endorsed by the Russian
Orthodox Church. The Parliament, or Duma, could override the veto
or rework the bill and resubmit it to Yeltsin. 
     "I would like to commend the President for his wisdom and
statesmanship and his determination to defend the Russian
Constitution, human rights and Russia's international
obligations," said Bishop Ruediger Minor of the Eurasia Area,
which includes the Russian United Methodist Church.
     The proposed law would have had the effect of legally barring
all but a few faith groups in Russia and seemed particularly aimed
at shutting out the Roman Catholics and most Protestants.
     Minor thanked the many Christian sisters and brothers, both
in Russia and abroad, who helped raise public awareness of the
restrictive nature of the law.
     Yeltsin had been asked personally by U.S. President Bill
Clinton to veto the bill and had been threatened with loss of
economic aid by the U.S. Senate if he declined to do so. But he
also faced intense pressure from Russians, particularly the
Orthodox Church, to sign the bill into law. 
     The Rev. Joe Hale, general secretary, World Methodist
Council, called Yeltsin "courageous" to veto the bill. "By this
act, he supports human rights and removes what might have been an
impediment to the proclamation of the Christian faith," he said.
     In Hale's opinion, the Russian Orthodox Church will itself
benefit "by letting the gospel have free course and the growing
friendliness of its relations with other Christian churches
throughout the world will be improved."
     Minor pointed out that the Christian community in Russia is
challenged "to find new ways of dialogue and cooperation,
especially in looking for spiritual ways to defend the Christian
truth and to proclaim the gospel to a vast population that is
living without a personal connection to the Christian faith.
     "This would be a better contribution to the spiritual renewal
of Russia and a spiritual and moral stabilization in Russia than
any law could bring," he said.
     United Methodists want to listen to and support Christians
worldwide, including the Russian Orthodox, according to the Rev.
Bruce Robbins, general secretary, United Methodist Commission on
Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns.
     "My hope is that the Russian government can find fairer and
more effective ways of assisting spiritual growth in Russia," he
said.
     Bishop William Boyd Grove, who serves as ecumenical officer
for the United Methodist Council of Bishops, noted that the
council is concerned about restrictions on religious freedom
anywhere.
     "We honor our relationship with the Russian Orthodox Church,
our ecumenical partner in the World Council of Churches, and hope
that it will be possible for us to work together in mission in
Russia," he said.
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