At a rural school in Russia’s Tver region this March, a class of ninth-grade students examined models of fetuses during a lesson

"Future adults have come to understand a woman's responsibility toward the life of an unborn child,” the school administration wrote of the lesson. “This is the period that determines whether a small human being will live a full life or die forever”

This class was a so-called “chastity lesson,” part of a growing nationwide campaign that brings Orthodox priests into classrooms to promote abstinence before marriage, discourage abortion and reinforce what Russian authorities describe as traditional family values

The campaign comes as Russia grapples with a deepening demographic crisis[…]
Many of the so-called “chastity lessons” take place as part of Family Studies, the Education Ministry's new course on family life introduced in 2024[…]
Some church officials have proposed taking the campaign beyond the classroom. Archpriest Igor Aksenov has suggested producing chastity-themed merch, including T-shirts with slogans like “I'm waiting” and “Chaste until marriage,” that could appeal to teenagers[…]
The Russian Orthodox Church says spiritual and moral education should provide an alternative to what it calls the "hedonistic values that dominate society." As a result, classes often contrast Christian marriage with cohabitation, which is commonly referred to in Russia as a "civil marriage."

At a school in the Tver region town of Staritsa earlier this year, 10th-graders were asked: “What should a strong family life be built on — chastity or passion?”

Students walked to the front of the classroom and cast their votes on a board divided into two columns, one for each choice. Photos of the vote were later published on the school's official VKontakte page[…]
Alongside fetal models and presentations featuring images of embryos, priests also screen films promoting anti-abortion messages and traditional family values