14:04, 13 December 2013

Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin: prayer rooms of five world religions are ready for the Olympics

On the eve of the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, prayer premises of five world religions – Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism and Christianity – have been prepared, said Vsevolod Chaplin, the head of the Synodal Department for Church and Society Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church. The prayer rooms are available in all the three Olympic Villages.

The rooms were equipped by representatives of the above religions themselves, who were helped by local believers and volunteers of the 2014 Games. All the prayer rooms are under one roof.

"Each of the prayer premises has five subdivisions: Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish and Christian with the possibility for the latter to pray in different rooms for the Orthodox believers, Catholics and Protestants," the ITAR-TASS quotes Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin as saying.

The priests and volunteers are not only ready to answer visitors' questions, but will also hand out brochures about the history of different religions and the inter-religious dialogue in Russia, and show videos.