Gone are the days when a Christian had to peer cautiously into the scientific spheres. Today, both the Church and science are being squeezed by a common ailment of our national existence: militant occultism. Thus we were united by the hostility of the popular occult preacher V. Nalimov: "So, our task is to open the way to cosmic consciousness. This is hindered by our culture, in particular, by such of its components as the outdated dogmatization of religion, the excessive logization (and therefore the mechanicality) of science... In other works, I have already written about the expectation of cosmic interference in earthly affairs. In the current planetary situation, we can hope for the intervention of cosmic forces... Marxist-Leninist Orthodoxy will not change the social situation."[140]

For me, the Strastnaya Square area became a symbol of what happened to us. Once upon a time, the Strastnoy Monastery stood here. It was blown up as a "citadel of obscurantism and ignorance". Religion has been replaced by culture. Instead of Strastnaya Square, Pushkinskaya Square became Pushkinskaya Square. Instead of the monastery, the Rossiya cinema was installed. Opposite it, the largest store of scientific literature in Moscow was opened - "Akademkniga".

But the democratic 90s began. Since culture is elitist, it was expelled from these squares. The station (in fact) McDonald's eatery has become the main point of attraction for the entire district. The cinema became a nightclub with a strip show. At the monument to Pushkin, an advertising beer bottle of equal size stood up. And even earlier, the bookstore was closed for perestroika.

When I entered it at the end of the repair, I was struck by the smell that met me at the door. No, it wasn't the smell of fresh paint. It was the smell of burning cow dung (from which the "incense sticks" of Indian cults are made). "Akademkniga" turned into a center for the sale of amulets, books on magic, witchcraft and "esotericism"...

So even non-religious people should respect theology as the representative of reason in the alien world of religious beliefs.

– Father Andrei, many people cannot cross some inner barrier in order to open their souls to God. Isn't the fear of being deceived once again – of being disappointed sooner or later in faith in the same way as, for example, in the communist idea of a bright future – such an obstacle?

– I don't think that anyone stays away from the Church precisely out of fear of disappointment. There is no shortage of people in society who are ready to respond and trust. On the contrary, in various areas of life, we daily come across evidence that people's credulity is beyond any reasonable level – people become enthusiastic about financial pyramids, from the next saviors of Russia, from world democracy and from new pills. What can we say about religion! Therefore, today it is more important to preach distrust as a virtue: "Wait, stop, cool your enthusiasm, think about it!" Even when it comes to church life proper, one sometimes has to say: "Fullness, are you sure that the spiritual adviser you have chosen is spiritually and mentally healthy?" And when it comes to non-church mystical circles, then it is even more appropriate to ask: "What makes you think that the voice that your acquaintance heard yesterday is evidence of the preacher's high spiritual gifts, and not a disorder of the mind?"

In people today it is necessary to cultivate the ability to develop the intonation of a district policeman. When getting acquainted with something new, you should ask strictly, but fairly: "Citizen, show your arguments!"

"There are many people of creative professions among the readers of our newspaper. Tell us about the attitude of the Church to the creative act.

– Everything that is connected with the field of creativity, no matter whether theological, artistic, writing or theatrical, is all an area of increased spiritual risk. The Church does not forbid people to engage in creativity and even blesses them, but asks them to be more attentive to themselves, to their condition. To be extremely sober, not to allow oneself vanity, narcissism, intoxication with oneself and success [XVIII]. Avoid meditativeness, which can lead to obsession.

Even a talented person can find himself in the grip of very low-quality moods and obsessions. The Creator craves "inspiration" and "inspiration." But the quality of these "inspirations" may not be good at all. A person who opens his soul in anticipation of "insights", as well as a person who seeks to provoke a surge of "passions" in himself in order to describe them more reliably, may lose the habit of regulating his passions and feelings and, even worse, may simply become obsessed...

Unfortunately, the history of culture shows how many very gifted and talented people have become toys in the hands of dark forces. They went into drugs, committed suicide, became evil geniuses for everyone around them. Let us recall Leo Tolstoy, about whom Alexandra Andreevna Tolstaya testified that he was sometimes possessed and mad [XIX].

By the way, our famous film director Sergei Bondarchuk was brought up on Tolstoy and is literally in love with him. All his life he lived with Leo Tolstoy, that is, without the Church. His entire apartment was hung with portraits of Tolstoy. But when his soul began to part with his body and his spiritual senses became sharper, he began to see with his own eyes that there is an immaterial, spiritual world and that this world without Christ is terrible. Simply put, he began to see demons. He realized that portraits of Tolstoy would not save him from this. And he called the priest. I confessed and took communion (the priest who confessed Bondarchuk told me about this incident – without, of course, revealing what was discussed at the confession itself).

– Tell me, please: almost nothing is known about the life of Jesus Christ until the age of 33, can you clarify anything about this?