Сектоведение. Тоталитарные секты. Опыт систематического исследования

A.L. Dvorkin’s book “Sectology” immediately acquired the status of a basic textbook at the Theological Faculty at the Ural State Vocational Pedagogical University, which was opened by the Ekaterinburg diocese.
The undoubted advantages of the collected and systematized material about the teachings, methods, history and specific harm of totalitarian sects make this study a reference book for a missionary in any parish that lives surrounded by the aggressive expansion of destructive cults and where ordinary people turn, seeking protection and truthful information about cults. The methodology for studying totalitarian sects adopted and developed by the author is an expression of the decisions and definitions of the Council of Bishops in 1994, which are binding on the entire Church. The author's Orthodox position, based on the patristic experience of perceiving the constantly changing temptations of this age, is a guide for any reader who will be able to see totalitarian sects through the eyes of the Orthodox tradition, having the opportunity to compare and contrast not only the social and psychological harm of cults, but also their spiritual inferiority and wretchedness . For any Orthodox Christian, “methodological agnosticism” and a “value-free” approach are simply impossible, since we all have the highest value of the experience of life in the Holy Spirit, given to us by our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. May God's blessing rest on the works of the author of the book, with which he faithfully and tirelessly serves the Mother of the Church.