On October 15, 2025, the St. Sophia Cathedral in Polotsk hosted the forum "Talking about important things: a happy family is a strong State", which was led by Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus Metropolitan Veniamin of Minsk and Zaslavsky and Chairman of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus Natalia Kochanova.
The event was attended by young and large families, members of the Council of the Republic, heads of ministries, social services, regional executive committees and the Minsk City Executive Committee, representatives of education, healthcare, culture, the Belarusian Orthodox Church, public organizations and the media.
Opening the forum, Natalia Kochanova addressed the audience with a welcoming speech, in which she noted: "Against the background of the deep global crisis of the system of relations, the decline of morals, the devaluation of family values, Belarus maintains a balance of interests of different social and community groups, religious denominations and social institutions. We understand what the active propaganda of same—sex marriage, childlessness, conscious loneliness and gender changes, characteristic of modern Western society, can lead to - the collapse of the entire civilization. That is why, thanks to the personal participation and support of the president, Belarus is pursuing a consistent policy to preserve and protect our traditional values and demographic security."
Metropolitan Veniamin noted in his speech that the fate of the country will largely depend on which families will be in Belarus and on what values they will be built: "A family where mutual love and respect reign is the key to the prosperity of the state. After all, it is the family that is the favorable environment where the personality of a future citizen is nurtured. And what kind of environment this is depends on who a person will grow up to be, what kind of father or mother he will become himself, how he will treat his compatriots, his land, and how he will fulfill the most important commandments in Christianity — about love for God and neighbor. All this imposes a great responsibility on parents, on the generation of current adults. Looking at them, children build social bonds, gain motivation to start a family, decide to have children, and finally raise these children based on the experience gained in their own family."
The Patriarchal exarch emphasized the importance for the younger generation of examples that they could emulate in their lives, including family ones. Such an example of a pious family is the married couple of the blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky and Princess Alexandra of Polotsk. Princess Alexandra Bryachislavna was the great-niece of Saint Euphrosyne of Polotsk, and the saint blessed this marriage by presenting the princely couple with an icon of the Mother of God of Ephesus, given to Saint Euphrosyne of Polotsk by the Emperor of Byzantium. "The family of St. Alexander Nevsky, in which five pious children were born, three of whom are canonized, is the best possible guide for the younger generation. The example of the pious marriage of Prince Alexander Nevsky with Princess Alexandra of Polotsk is of particular importance today both in the sphere of spiritual and socio-cultural cooperation between Belarus and Russia, and in strengthening the spiritual and moral values of the traditional family as a space for shaping meanings and goals in life," the bishop noted.
The meeting featured speeches by scientists, representatives of ministries, the media, and the Belarusian Orthodox Church.
After summing up the results of the forum, the Chairman of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus presented his commendations.
On October 14, 35 families from different regions of Belarus met with Metropolitan Veniamin and Natalia Kochanova at the republican forum "Talking about important things: a happy family is a strong State" in Polotsk. During the meeting, the participants shared their personal experiences of parenting, marital relationships, participation in public life, and voiced topical issues and problems faced by families.
At the end of the conversation, Metropolitan Veniamin and Natalia Kochanova presented their spouses with letters of thanks for their kind example of the beauty and well-being of family relations, for their significant contribution to the strengthening and development of ancestral family values.