What you won't read in Vladikavkaz newspapers

Below is my translation of an article by a journalist from newspaper in Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia, in the North Caucasus region of Russia. The newspaper was supposed to print the article, however at the last minute the editor decided not to print it as he received word from somewhere that ASR was a sect. This is a favorite tactic of the Russian Orthodox Church, which has tremendous political power in Russia. The journalist gave us permission to use the article and include her name.

Alexander Plukci: “Our main goal is to save young people”

For the third year now Association for Spiritual Renewal staff member Alexander Plukci has been selflessly carrying out serious work with the youth of Vladikavkaz in local schools and colleges. This is not a matter of him imposing his beliefs and ideas on young people—it is spiritual formation of the next generation.

Sometimes in the course of searching for interesting information journalists have to visit a lot of organizations and institutions and meet a lot of different people, and this time was no exception. But my efforts were not in vain. I arrived at School #5, and made my way through a crowd of kids to the third floor. A video lecture was being shown at that moment in one of the classrooms, and what I saw shook me to the depths of my soul. Alexander Plukci was holding a lecture on abortion for 10th graders. Looking at the teens, who were listening to the lecture with genuine interest and watching the screen, I remembered my own school years when there could be no mention of “forbidden” topics during class time, which stood in sharp contrast to Alexander Plukci, who speaks in an accessible and interesting way with high schoolers and college students about some of the most pressing issues of our time such as HIV and AIDS, sexually transmitted infections, smoking, drug addiction, alcoholism, abortion, human trafficking, sexual assault, and domestic violence in an attempt to protect youth from making serious mistakes in life.

Alexander moved to North Ossetia in 2004 after the terrorist attack in Beslan. He was among the many who showed up to offer psychological help to children and adults who had been held hostage by terrorists in the Beslan school. Alexander is originally from Moldova, but has been living in Ossetia for six years now. Here he works with the Association for Spiritual Renewal (ASR). ASR carries out a number of educational and community outreach project, seeking to address various societal problems and needs. “Our main goal,” says Alexander, “is to save young people.” Alexander is concerned by the prevailing corruption of the younger generation, and people’s loss of moral values:

“Since I’ve become a Russian citizen I am now concerned with Russia’s future, because I want my children to live in a country without immorality and drug addiction. Of course, the media has an enormous negative influence on the younger generation. We need spiritual reformation. Watching youth, I see degradation taking place. Young people can’t even answer simple questions. Of course I’m not talking about everyone. There are wonderful, talented young people. I see their eyes change after what they see and hear in my lectures. In my lectures I use statistics, I talk about the problems, I share historical facts, give real life examples, sometimes I will do small experiments in lecture. For instance, before the lecture on human trafficking, I will call five people to the front of the class and ask them what they would do if they were offered a job overseas and the opportunity to earn more money than they could earn here in Vladikavkaz. If a few of them say they would accept the offer, I explain that that is precisely how they could end up victims of human trafficking.”

As part of the NEXT Generation project Alexander Plukci had visited many of the schools and colleges of Vladikavkaz. The program is aimed at a large segment of the youth population. It has been created in hopes that through it the younger generation will come to reject drugs, alcohol, and other dangerous habits, and taking their place will be moral values, new principles in life. And this work has brought fruit. The fruit can be seen in the responses of some of the students:

Fatima, 10th grade: “Alexander Plukci’s lectures make me think about a lot, teach me lot, and warn about a lot. The topics are covered comprehensively and understandably. Almost everything in them is surprising and even shocking. Each lecture is a colossal dose of interesting and useful information! I can’t choose a favorite topic because all of them made an impression on me. I always reflect on what I’ve heard and seen, and share it with my friends and peers. My retelling of it is not, of course, as interesting as the original, but my friends listen to me, and after our talks go research the topics further on the internet. Upon analysis of each lecture I find something important to take away, which truly influenced me. I actually even tape-recorded a few of the lectures and played them for my father. He approved of them and respects Alexander greatly. He respects him because he’s not afraid to discuss serious issues with the younger generation, and because he’s found a way to get through to them.”

Marat, age 20, Student body president of the North Caucasus Mountain Metallurgical Institute (NCMMI): “The lectures I saw and heard made me think about things I’d never thought about before. I learned much that was new and useful. I think this needs to be shared with everyone if we want our children to live in a good, kind, pure world.”

William, age 18, NCMMI student: When I attended the lecture on abortion I was moved to tears hearing about how unborn children are killed. A phrase on one of the PowerPoint slides especially made me think: ‘For some, life ends before birth.’ I will share what I heard and saw with all my friends. I want to help them choose the right path in life.”

Is any more proof needed of the importance of what Alexander Plukci is doing for our youth? Here is what he himself says about the NEXT Generation project: “The meaning of our project’s name, NEXT Generation, is that in today’s world, moral values have been turned upside down. That which used to be considered shameful is now considered normal. NEXT Generation is the era of the next generation, which will change our future. It will be a time for a different type of youth, who won’t drink, smoke, or lead a wild life, but will teach eternal values such as purity, kindness, love, and wisdom.”

In ages past moral degradation has led to the collapse of great nations, including the Roman and Babylonian empires. In modern society a lack of boundaries has led hundreds of millions of people to drug use, alcoholism, smoking, sexual immorality, and criminal activity. Russia is in the midst of a demographic crisis, a loss of moral values and devaluation of spiritual cultures. Youth are the future of Russia, and they are also the most vulnerable category of society. It’s better to prevent a sickness than to treat it. We can’t save the whole world, but we can at least save someone, here and now.

By Zalina Guburova