For the second year in a row, the CGB Minsk Family Club of the Belarusian Orthodox Church at St. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Minsk, together with the Synodal Department for Family Affairs, Maternity and Childhood Protection of the Belarusian Exarchate, initiated the Candlemas Family Gathering, which brought together parents and children from different dioceses of Belarus on February 13-14, 2026.

The feast of Candlemas is a meeting fest. Back in the 2000s, when the Association of Orthodox Youth was formed, it became a day of communion. Years have passed, young people have grown up and created families, children have appeared. But the desire to meet remained, and communication resumed in 2025 during the first Candlemas family gathering, where families with children could come.

The purpose of both the first and second meetings was to bring together active families of Orthodox parishes to launch a project to support parish family initiatives, to get to know and share their experiences with each other. Like the first one, the second meeting was held at the GCB educational center near the town of Smolevichi. About 70 people took part in the event.

The meeting began with a prayer service led by Archpriest Pavel Serdyuk, Chairman of the Synodal Department for Family Affairs. During the meeting, the icon of the Mother of God "Ephesus" with images of the holy Prince Alexander Nevsky and his wife, the Blessed Princess Alexandra Briachislavovna, was brought to the Center. This married couple is not only important in the history of Belarus and the Church, but also represents the image of the heavenly patrons of a pious Christian marriage. Father Pavel blessed the families who had arrived, wished them fruitful work and was very pleased that the format of the event allowed parents to come with their children.

There were several parts in the programme of the meeting. Biologists with extensive educational experience were invited to the first ecological part. The participants of the meeting learned about invasive (aggressive alien) plant species that pose a danger to local species, for example, sumac, red-leaved oak, ash maple, goldenrod, and others, which are popular in landscape design today. The participants of the meeting were shown the principles of the iNaturalist special application, which allows not only to identify species of plants, fungi or animals, including through online consultations of scientists, but also to record their observations of nature. Thus, any user makes a small contribution to world science. In the next presentation, the leaders of the Man and Creation programme talked about an environmental studybook prepared for Sunday schools, as well as for those who are interested in the topic of ecology. The studybook was developed within the project "Green Sunday School in a church parish", implemented by the Parish of St. Nicholas of Japan in Minsk with the support of the International Grant Competition "Orthodox Initiative". In the near future, the studybook will be published and distributed to the dioceses of the Belarusian Orthodox Church.

A concert of the bard's club took place on Friday evening in the live format of flat concert. The participants listened songs, communicated with the club's leaders and learned more about their work experience.

Saturday's program began with an unusual tournament: adults and young participants were offered to solve 12 different puzzles in one hour. Everyone's successes were different. Many have discovered that simple children's games can be an occasion to bring children and adults together, and this is another area that can be developed at the parish. After the tournament, there was time to talk with the teacher and ask practical questions.

The participants of the meeting were able to tell about the activities in their parishes. There were speeches about family trips, parish theater studios, Sunday schools for children and parents, parish fairs, sports events between parishes, family local history, language clubs, art history, Orthodox family camps, and more. As a result of the presentations, it was decided to create coordination groups for parish family initiatives in various areas.

After lunch, the Batleyka play "Tsar Herod" was shown by the L.I.S. Theater Studio. The Belarusian text of the 19th-century play was accompanied by a modern song design performed by children and parents together.

At the end of the meeting, Father Pavel thanked the families for their interest in the event. He noted the priests, heads of diocesan departments for family affairs, who were able to attend the meeting. Fr Pavel stressed the importance of creating a family environment in the Church and that one of the most important tasks of the Synodal Department for Family Affairs is to methodically support parish family initiatives, introduce parishes and families to each other, and organize an exchange of experience.

The meeting was held as part of the action plan for the development of cooperation between the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus and the Belarusian Orthodox Church.