Rubbed Orthodox crosses: the new Constitution of the Russian Federation for children caused a scandal

A special textbook for schoolchildren on the Constitution of Russia from the Phoenix publishing house has appeared in Russian marketplaces. Orthodox crosses were "rubbed" on the cover of the publication from the domes of St. Basil's Cathedral, the Readovka telegram channel drew attention.

"Instead of them, some faceless pommels are depicted, more like children's pyramids. What prevented the publisher from replacing the image on the cover with something more secular rather than distorting Orthodox shrines with such a dislike of Christian symbols is unknown," the authors of the publication note.

According to open data, the Phoenix Group of companies has been producing various publications for 37 years. Now "Phoenix" is more than 6 thousand titles of books and more than 700 novelties of books produced annually. Over the years, the company has released about 200 million books of various genres — from fiction to textbooks.

Leonid Valdman, the founder and CEO of Phoenix Holding, was awarded the medal "For Valiant Labor for the Benefit of the Don Region" in December 2024. The medal was presented by the acting Governor of the Rostov region Yuri Slyusar.

As reported by EADaily, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia at the Kremlin Palace on At the Christmas educational readings in January of this year, he said that the shameful mashing of crosses in state symbols, in photos and images is an attempt to turn multinational Russia into a "non—national" and "unprofessional."