Conclusion on the topic of love for the motherland. Essay on the topic “Love for the Motherland

It seems to me that every person’s great love for the Motherland grows from childhood. It is in childhood that a person develops the concept of “Motherland” and everything connected with it. The native places where one was born and raised, the customs, books and culture of the native country become accessible to a person from a very early age. And then, many years later, you remember all this and think: “Yes, this is all mine, dear, close to my heart.”

Tolstoy said: “The Motherland is the people’s past, present and future.” In my opinion, this statement can be associated with the story of Pyotr Dmitrievich Baranovsky about St. Basil's Cathedral, which, of course, is a monument of our antiquity and reflects the skill of ancient architects. To this day, this temple is considered a holy place.

From the very first days, a person has his own little world, his own little homeland. This is his crib, his mother’s voice, a lullaby, his first rattle, the space and people around him. When a person grows, the concept of his “Homeland” grows with him. Here are his loved ones: home, street, friends, kindergarten, school, park where he walks, a river outside the city, surrounding forests and fields. He begins to realize what a sense of duty, affection, memories are, which can manifest themselves in sadness or joy. By reading a book or studying at school, a person learns that the world is not limited to his city or republic, but it is much wider, and there are different countries, continents, other rivers, lakes and oceans in it. But in his mind there already exists the concept of “native country” in which he lives, and which is very dear to him, without which he cannot imagine life. This is what he calls his “Motherland”.

When I was still little, my mother and father took me to the village to visit my grandmother. And despite the fact that there are wonderful meadows, clean lakes and air, after a week I wanted to go home. After all, it was there that I was born and saw the sun for the first time. Everything there is original, dear.

And I love our river on the outskirts of the city so much, even though it’s not entirely clean, and our yard, even if it has polluted air, that I wouldn’t trade them for anything. After all, the most precious thing for every person will always be the Motherland.

Essay What is love for the Motherland?

Homeland is the most important concept in the life of every person. She is always alone. Affectionate, sweet, gentle homeland. She is often compared to her mother. The older a person is, the more keenly you feel your involvement in everything that happens to your country. With age, separation from the Motherland is felt more acutely, and meeting with it becomes more joyful. Why is this happening?

People say: The homeland is the place where the blood of your umbilical cord dripped. This is a small homeland. Sometimes it is a small village, sometimes it is a big city. By the word Motherland we mean our country, village, house, street, which we can walk along with our eyes closed, because everything there is native and familiar. We love the nature of our Motherland, its people, the history of our region, we are proud of our Motherland. There is no concept of a poor or rich homeland.

What do I mean by the concept of “Motherland”? This is my home, where I was born, where I was taught to speak and respect elders. This is my school, where they give me an education and lead me onto a clean, bright path for my future life. This is a bench in the school garden where I invited my classmate and took her hand for the first time. Our class has a treasured place on the river. Every year, in the summer, we go camping there overnight. In the evening, around the fire, we share our dreams for the future. I think everything will come true for us. Soon we will have a graduation party, we will part for a long time, and maybe forever. I look at the river, at my classmates, my heart aches. I thought this only happened to older people. This is me getting ready to say goodbye to my beloved little Motherland. I will come, and the meeting will be as touching as the farewell.

I recently read a poem by a Kazakh poet. There are the following lines: “Here I was born and grew up, trying to embrace the world...”. Very figurative. Indeed, in childhood we try to embrace everything, not noticing the bad and ugly around us. Now I see many things differently. I see how much needs to be done to make my beloved city more beautiful and its residents happier. I notice injustice and know that it must be fought. I never stop loving my Motherland. I want to change the world for the better, I want my Motherland to be happy, bright and joyful.

Several interesting essays

Essay based on the novel Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev
The work is dedicated to new ideas that penetrated Russia in the nineteenth century. In the images of his heroes, the author shows different sides of the opposing beliefs that dominated society at that time.
Sholokhov wrote a huge number of different works, and “The Birthmark,” like many other works, is part of the “Don Stories” cycle. And it is here that the whole story and biography of the author is told.

Types of patriotism

Patriotism can manifest itself in the following forms:

polis patriotism- existed in ancient city-states (policies);
imperial patriotism- maintained feelings of loyalty to the empire and its government;
ethnic patriotism(nationalism) - based on feelings of love for one’s people;
state patriotism- the basis is feelings of love for the state.
leavened patriotism (jingoism)- it is based on hypertrophied feelings of love for the state and its people.

Patriotism in history

A car magnet is a popular way to demonstrate patriotism among all parties in the United States in 2004.

The concept itself had different content and was understood in different ways. In antiquity, the term patria ("homeland") was applied to the native city-state, but not to wider communities (such as "Hellas", "Italy"); Thus, the term patriota meant a supporter of one's city-state, although, for example, a sense of pan-Greek patriotism existed at least since the Greco-Persian Wars, and in the works of Roman writers of the early Empire one can see a peculiar sense of Italian patriotism.

In the Roman Empire, patriotism existed in the form of local “police” patriotism and imperial patriotism. Polis patriotism was supported by various local religious cults. In order to unite the population of the empire under the leadership of Rome, the Roman emperors attempted to form imperial-wide cults, some of which were based on the deification of the emperor.

Christianity, through its preaching, undermined the foundations of local religious cults and thereby weakened the position of polis patriotism. Preaching the equality of all peoples before God contributed to the rapprochement of the peoples of the Roman Empire and prevented local nationalism. Therefore, at the city level, the preaching of Christianity encountered opposition from patriotic pagans, who saw local cults as the basis for the well-being of the city. A striking example of such a confrontation is the reaction of the Ephesians to the preaching of the Apostle Paul. In this sermon they saw a threat to the local cult of the goddess Artemis, which formed the basis of the material well-being of the city. (Acts 19:-24-28)

Imperial Rome, in turn, saw Christianity as a threat to imperial patriotism. Although Christians preached obedience to authority and offered prayers for the well-being of the empire, they refused to take part in imperial cults, which, according to the emperors, should contribute to the growth of imperial patriotism.

The preaching of Christianity about the heavenly homeland and the idea of the Christian community as a special “people of God” raised doubts about the loyalty of Christians to the earthly fatherland.

But subsequently in the Roman Empire there was a rethinking of the political role of Christianity. After the Roman Empire adopted Christianity, it began to use Christianity to strengthen the unity of the empire, counteract local nationalism and local paganism, forming ideas about the Christian empire as the earthly homeland of all Christians.

In the Middle Ages, when loyalty to the civil collective gave way to loyalty to the monarch, the term lost relevance and regained it in modern times.

In the era of the American and French bourgeois revolutions, the concept of “patriotism” was identical to the concept of “nationalism”, with a political (non-ethnic) understanding of the nation; for this reason, in France and America at that time, the concept of “patriot” was synonymous with the concept of “revolutionary”. The symbols of this revolutionary patriotism are the Declaration of Independence and the Marseillaise. With the advent of the concept of “nationalism,” patriotism began to be contrasted with nationalism, as commitment to the country (territory and state) - commitment to the human community (nation). However, often these concepts act as synonyms or similar in meaning.

Rejection of patriotism by universalist ethics

Patriotism is rejected by universalist ethics, which believes that a person is equally bound by moral ties to all humanity without exception. This criticism began with the philosophers of Ancient Greece (cynics, stoics - in particular, the cynic Diogenes was the first to describe himself as a cosmopolitan, that is, a “citizen of the world”).

Patriotism and Christian tradition

Early Christianity

The consistent universalism and cosmopolitanism of early Christianity, its preaching about a heavenly homeland in contrast to earthly fatherlands and the idea of the Christian community as a special “people of God” undermined the very foundations of polis patriotism. Christianity denied any differences not only between the peoples of the empire, but also between the Romans and the “barbarians.” The Apostle Paul instructed: “If you have been raised with Christ, then seek the things that are above (...) putting on the new<человека>where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free, but Christ is all and in all.”(Colossians 3, 11). According to the apologetic "Epistle to Diognetus" attributed to Justin Martyr, “They (Christians) live in their own fatherland, but like strangers (...). For them, every foreign country is a fatherland, and every fatherland is a foreign country. (...) They are on earth, but they are citizens of heaven.”. The French historian Ernest Renan formulated the position of the early Christians as follows: “The Church is the homeland of the Christian, just as the synagogue is the homeland of the Jew; Christians and Jews live in every country as strangers. The Christian hardly recognizes father or mother. He owes nothing to the empire (...) The Christian does not rejoice at the victories of the empire; He considers social disasters to be the fulfillment of prophecies dooming the world to destruction from barbarians and fire.”.

Modern Christianity about patriotism

The opinions of modern theologians and Christian hierarchs about patriotism differ to some extent. Patriarch Alexy II, in particular, stated:

Patriotism is undoubtedly relevant. This is a feeling that makes the people and every person responsible for the life of the country. Without patriotism there is no such responsibility. If I don’t think about my people, then I have no home, no roots. Because a home is not only comfort, it is also responsibility for the order in it, it is responsibility for the children who live in this house. A person without patriotism, in fact, does not have his own country. And a “man of peace” is the same as a homeless person.
Let us remember the Gospel parable of the prodigal son. The young man left home, and then returned, and his father forgave him and accepted him with love. Usually in this parable they pay attention to what the father did when he accepted the prodigal son. But we must not forget that the son, having wandered around the world, returned to his home, because it is impossible for a person to live without his foundations and roots.
<...>It seems to me that the feeling of love for one’s own people is as natural for a person as the feeling of love for God. It can be distorted. And throughout its history, humanity has more than once distorted the feeling invested by God. But it is there.
And here one more thing is very important. A feeling of patriotism must in no case be confused with a feeling of hostility towards other peoples. Patriotism in this sense is consonant with Orthodoxy. One of the most important commandments of Christianity: do not do to others what you do not want them to do to you. Or as it sounds in Orthodox doctrine in the words of Seraphim of Sarov: save yourself, acquire a peaceful spirit, and thousands around you will be saved. Same thing with patriotism. Do not destroy others, but build yourself. Then others will treat you with respect. I think that today this is the main task of patriots: building our own country.

On the other hand, according to the Orthodox theologian Abbot Peter (Meshcherinov), love for the earthly homeland is not something that expresses the essence of Christian teaching and is obligatory for a Christian. However, the church, at the same time, finding its historical existence on earth, is not an opponent of patriotism, as a healthy and natural feeling of love. At the same time, however, she “does not perceive any natural feeling as a moral given, for man is a fallen being, and a feeling, even such as love, left to oneself, does not come out of the state of fall, but in the religious aspect leads to paganism.” Therefore, “patriotism has dignity from a Christian point of view and receives church meaning if and only when love for the homeland is the active implementation of God’s commandments towards it.”

Contemporary Christian publicist Dmitry Talantsev considers patriotism an anti-Christian heresy. In his opinion, patriotism puts the homeland in the place of God, while “the Christian worldview implies the fight against evil, upholding the truth completely regardless of where, in what country this evil occurs and departure from the truth.”

Modern criticism of patriotism

In modern times, Leo Tolstoy considered patriotism a feeling “rude, harmful, shameful and bad, and most importantly, immoral.” He believed that patriotism inevitably gives rise to war and serves as the main support for state oppression. Tolstoy believed that patriotism was deeply alien to the Russian people, as well as to working representatives of other nations: in his entire life he had not heard from representatives of the people any sincere expressions of feelings of patriotism, but on the contrary, many times he had heard expressions of disdain and contempt for patriotism. One of Tolstoy's favorite expressions was Samuel Johnson's aphorism: Vladimir Ilyich Lenin repeatedly wrote that “the proletariat has no fatherland.” In the April Theses, he ideologically branded the “revolutionary defencists” as compromisers with the Provisional Government. University of Chicago professor Paul Gomberg compares patriotism with racism, in the sense that both presuppose moral obligations and connections of a person primarily with representatives of “their” community. Critics of patriotism also note the following paradox: if patriotism is a virtue, and during the war, soldiers of both the parties are patriots, then they are equally virtuous; but it is precisely for virtue that they kill each other, although ethics prohibits killing for virtue.

Tell people that war is bad, they will laugh: who doesn’t know that? Say that patriotism is bad, and most people will agree, but with a small reservation. -Yes, bad patriotism is bad, but there is another patriotism, the one we adhere to. - But no one explains what this good patriotism is. If good patriotism consists in not being aggressive, as many say, then all patriotism, if it is not aggressive, is certainly retaining, that is, that people want to retain what was previously conquered, since there is no country that would not have been founded by conquest, and it is impossible to retain what has been conquered by other means than those by which something is conquered, that is, by violence, murder. If patriotism is not even restraining, then it is restorative - the patriotism of the conquered, oppressed peoples - Armenians, Poles, Czechs, Irish, etc. And this patriotism is perhaps the worst, because it is the most embittered and requires the greatest violence. They will say: “Patriotism has united people into states and maintains the unity of states.” But people have already united into states, this thing has been accomplished; Why now support the exclusive devotion of people to their state, when this devotion produces terrible disasters for all states and peoples. After all, the same patriotism that brought about the unification of people into states is now destroying these very states. After all, if there was only one patriotism: the patriotism of some Englishmen, then it could be considered unifying or beneficial, but when, as now, there is patriotism: American, English, German, French, Russian, all opposite to one another, then patriotism is no longer connects and separates.

Ideas for the synthesis of patriotism and cosmopolitanism

The opposite of patriotism is usually considered cosmopolitanism, as the ideology of global citizenship and “homeland-world”, in which “attachment to one’s people and fatherland seems to lose all interest from the point of view of universal ideas.”

. In particular, similar oppositions in the USSR during the time of Stalin led to the fight against “rootless cosmopolitans.” “patriotism is a good quality, much better than the selfishness inherent in an individualist, but universal brotherly love is higher than patriotism, and if they come into conflict with each other, then preference should be given to brotherly love.” The modern German philosopher M. Riedel finds this approach already in Immanuel Kant. Contrary to neo-Kantians, who focus on the universalist content of Kant’s ethics and his idea of creating a world republic and a universal legal and political order, M. Riedel believes that in Kant, patriotism and cosmopolitanism are not opposed to each other, but are mutually agreed upon, and Kant sees both in patriotism, so in cosmopolitanism manifestations of love. According to M. Riedel, Kant, in contrast to the universalist cosmopolitanism of the Enlightenment, emphasizes that a person, in accordance with the idea of world citizenship, is involved in both the fatherland and the world, believing that a person, as a citizen of the world and the earth, is a true “cosmopolitan”, in order to “contribute to the good of the whole world , must have a tendency to be attached to his country.”

. In pre-revolutionary Russia, this idea was defended by Vladimir Solovyov, polemicizing with the neo-Slavophile theory of self-sufficient “cultural-historical types.”. In an article on cosmopolitanism in ESBE, Soloviev argued: “just as love for the fatherland does not necessarily contradict attachment to closer social groups, for example, to one’s family, so devotion to universal human interests does not exclude patriotism. The only question is the final or highest standard for assessing this or that moral interest; and, without a doubt, the decisive priority here must belong to the good of the whole of humanity, as including the true good of each part.” .

. On the other hand, Solovyov saw the prospects of patriotism as follows:

Idolatry towards one’s own people, being associated with actual enmity towards strangers, is thereby doomed to inevitable death.(...) Everywhere consciousness and life are being prepared to assimilate a new, true idea of patriotism, derived from the essence of the Christian principle: “by virtue of natural love and moral duties to his fatherland, to place his interest and dignity mainly in those highest goods that do not divide, but unite people and nations"
Those who joyfully march in formation to the music (...) received the brain by mistake: for them, the spinal cord would have been enough. I so hate heroism on command, senseless cruelty and all the disgusting nonsense of what is united under the word “patriotism”, just as I despise vile war, that I would rather allow myself to be torn to pieces than be part of such actions - Albert Einstein.
Patriotism is one of the deepest feelings, consolidated by centuries and millennia of isolated fatherlands. - Vladimir Lenin
Patriotism is an amazing feeling that does not exist in people who say this word out loud. - Igor Guberman.
Patriotism is mainly the belief that a given country is the best in the world because you were born in it. You will never live in a peaceful world until you knock patriotism out of the human race. - Bernard Show
Right or wrong, this is our country. - Stephen Decatur
The soul and essence of what is usually understood by patriotism is and always has been moral cowardice - Mark Twain.
To be a patriot, one had to say and repeat: “this is our country, whether it is right or wrong,” and call for a small war. Isn't it clear that this phrase is an insult to the nation? - Mark Twain
A patriot is a person serving his homeland, and the homeland is, first of all, the people. - Nikolai Chernyshevsky
Patriotism is the willingness to kill and be killed for vulgar reasons - Bertrand Russell
Patriotism is not an outburst of emotions, but a calm and lasting devotion that lasts throughout a person’s life. - Adlai Stevenson
In my opinion, it is a terrible humiliation for a soul to be controlled by geography - George Santayana
Rulers should not blame people for lack of patriotism, but do everything in their power to make them become patriots. - Thomas Macaulay
Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious - Oscar Wilde
Anyone who does not belong to his Fatherland does not belong to humanity. N. G. Chernyshevsky
Is the feeling of national pride alien to us, Great Russian conscious proletarians? Of course not! We love our language and our homeland, we work most of all to raise its working masses (i.e. 9/10 of its population) to the conscious life of democrats and socialists. Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
Our revolution fought against patriotism. In the era of the Brest-Litovsk Peace, we had to go against patriotism. We said: if you are a socialist, then you must sacrifice all your patriotic feelings in the name of the international revolution." (V.I. Lenin, PSS, vol. 37, p. 213).
Patriotism is a feeling that is associated with the living conditions of small owners. (V.I. Lenin, PSS, vol. 38, p. 133)
It is the duty of the conscious proletariat to defend its class unity, its internationalism, its socialist convictions from the rampant chauvinism of the patriotic bourgeois clique (V.I. Lenin, PSS, vol. 26, p. 17)
The fate of his country (the proletariat) is of interest only insofar as it concerns his class struggle, and not because of some bourgeois, completely indecent speech from<оциал>-d<емократа>“patriotism” (V.I. Lenin, PSS. vol. 17, p. 190)
There are no patriots when it comes to taxes. George Orwell
Don't ask what your homeland can do for you - ask what you can do for your homeland. John Kennedy
Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel. Samuel Johnson (Johnson's biographer, who quotes this oral statement, explains that it was not about sincere love of country, but about false patriotism).
Patriotism does not necessarily consist of rebellion: you can hate your king and still not love your country Samuel Johnson.
Patriotism is a fierce virtue, because of which ten times more blood has been shed than from all the vices together. A. I. Herzen.
Patriotism is the belief that people living on one side of a certain conventional line drawn on the surface of the planet should be treated better than those living on the other side. And everything else is a choice of arguments why this should be so. Victor Olsufiev
“Patriotism” is an immoral feeling because, instead of recognizing himself as the son of God, as Christianity teaches us, or at least as a free man guided by his own reason, every person, under the influence of patriotism, recognizes himself as a son of his fatherland, a slave of his government and commits actions contrary to one's reason and conscience. L. N. Tolstoy.
They say to me: “Die for Ireland,” and I answer: “Let Ireland die for me.” James Joyce.
There can be neither patriotic art nor patriotic science. Johann Wolfgang Goethe
We are gentlemen first and foremost, and patriots second. Edmund Burke
My patriotism is not limited to one nation; it is all-embracing, and I am ready to renounce that kind of patriotism that builds the well-being of one nation on the exploitation of others. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
Measuring an inch by your yardstick is patriotic, but tedious. V. A. Shenderovich
Love for our own good produces in us love for the fatherland, and personal pride produces national pride, which serves as the support of patriotism. N. M. Karamzin
Patriotism is a destructive, psychopathic form of idiocy. George Bernard Shaw
Every citizen is obliged to die for the fatherland, but no one is obliged to lie for it. Charles Louis Montesquieu
A true patriot is a person who, having paid a fine for illegal parking, is glad that the system is working effectively. Bill Vaughan
Others praise their country as if they dream of selling it. Hot Petan
If your mother gave birth to you on a ship, would you try to stay at sea forever? Elchin Hasanov
It is important that you are willing to die for your country; but it is even more important that you are ready to live life for its sake. Theodore Roosevelt
In recent times, patriotism consisted of praising everything good that exists in the fatherland; Nowadays this is no longer enough to be a patriot. N. A. Dobrolyubov
Dr. Johnson's famous dictionary defines patriotism as the last refuge of a scoundrel. We take the liberty of calling this refuge the first. Ambrose Gwyneth Bierce
I happened to talk about patriotism, pointing out its incompatibility with Christianity. And I always met the same answer. Patriotism is bad, yes, but there is good patriotism. What is good, no one said. As if patriotism, just like selfishness, could be good and consistent with humanity and Christianity. L. N. Tolstoy
Patriotism is determined by the amount of shame a person feels for crimes committed in the name of his people. Adam Michnik
Patriotism is the virtue of a vicious person. Oscar Wilde
Patriotism is not given to a person, but given to him; it must be washed away from all the selfish, self-intoxicated abomination that sticks to him. With some pressure on the pedal, one could say that patriotism must be “suffered”, otherwise it is worthless. Especially Russian patriotism. G.V. Adamovich
Intelligence, patriotism, Christianity and a strong trust in Him, who never left this blessed land, are still able to best resolve all the difficulties we have today. Abraham Lincoln, First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1861
Patriotism means supporting your country. This does not mean that it is patriotic to support the president or other officials. Only to the extent that they serve the interests of the country. Theodore Roosevelt

Notes

in Brockhaus and Efron contains words about P. as a moral virtue.
An example of public opinion polls shows that the majority of respondents support patriotic slogans.
“Culture shock” from August 2, discussion about Russian patriotism, Viktor Erofeev, Alexey Chadayev, Ksenia Larina. Radio "Echo of Moscow".
on the VTsIOM website.
An example of the interpretation of patriotism: “Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov: “Patriotism is love for one’s own country, not hatred of someone else’s” - Interview of Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov of the Russian Orthodox Church with Boris Klin, Izvestia newspaper, September 12. Among the theses of the interviewee: patriotism is not related to a person’s attitude to state policy, patriotism cannot mean hatred of others, patriotism is cultivated with the help of religion, etc.
Information material from VTsIOM. Report on the public opinion poll of the year on the topic of Russian patriotism. In this report, there is no common understanding of society about patriotism and patriots.
An example of the interpretation of patriotism: The Betrayal Virus, unsigned material, an article from a selection of the website of an ultra-right nationalist organization

Love to motherland – this is a very strong feeling. This is love for your family and the place where you were born and live. These are our bright memories of childhood. This is the desire to protect always and everywhere, what is dear to us. Love for the Motherland makes us strong. This feeling helped our great-grandfathers accomplish a great feat - victory in the Great Patriotic War.
Maxim Dolzhikov.(13 years old, Moscow)

Love to motherland- this is love for the country where we were born. The homeland is the country where our family and friends live. We speak our native language, which we have heard since childhood, in which we spoke our first words. We learned to read our favorite books and write letters to our loved ones. Mother’s words in her native language are also part of the Motherland.
Elizaveta Mandrykina(13 years old, Temryuk)

Love to motherland- this is love for the place, for the country where you were born and live. These are yours, and only your memories of the place where you first saw the light and took your first breath. Love for the Motherland is your desire, your opportunity and your duty to protect your family and friends. This is the warmth and hands of mother. Love for the Motherland is the warmest, purest and most honest thing a person has.
Artem Dolzhikov(12 years old, Moscow)

Love to motherland- this means loving the place where you were born, the country where this place and state are located. For me, to love my Motherland means to be a patriot of my country, to perceive it as it is no matter what, to be proud that I was born here, to honor the traditions of my people. Loving your homeland means loving your people, being grateful to them for their glorious history and care, loving the land on which a person lives, loving everything good and beautiful that is connected with it.
Elizaveta Girsanova(13 years old, Novorossiysk)

My country is Russia! I am proud to be a citizen of my great country, which defeated fascism and built beautiful cities. My small homeland is Murmansk, here I was born and live. This is the largest ice-free port in the world and I want to connect my future life with the sea. I love my family, my city, my friends. When I grow up, I want to make their lives better and I will do my best to achieve this.
Semyon Buzmakov(13 years old, Murmansk)

For me "Love for the Motherland" - This is, first of all, respect for the history of my country, for the peoples and traditions. In addition, “Love for the Motherland” must be expressed in actions and deeds. You can most clearly express your devotion to your Motherland by studying its history in detail and visiting significant places in our large country. For me, this concept also means getting a decent education in order to be useful to your country. Loving the Motherland means knowing its heroes, respecting them, supporting the patriotism that our grandfathers bestowed upon us.
Gleb Yurkov(15 years old, Moscow)

Love to motherland is in the heart of each of us. Some people just feel more acutely and deeply. Others, in the whirlwind of everyday life, do not think about it. Love for the Motherland is, first of all, love for the place where you were born, said your first word, took your first step, grew up, found true friends, met your first love, stepped into adulthood. Wherever fate takes you, this place will be sacred, to which you always want to return. It's called Little Motherland. Small Motherlands merge into a whole country, for which each of its citizens experiences sublime feelings - patriotism, pride, admiration. You feel this especially when you are far from your homeland.
Ulyana Alekseeva(14 years old, Kondopoga)

Honestly, I still can’t fully experience this expression. Most likely, when I get older, this feeling will awaken. For now I can say that most Russian people have two Motherlands: one “small” - the region, republic, land where he was born. And the second, of course, is Russia itself! People miss their small homeland if they move to live in other regions. People miss Russia if they go to live abroad. “Love for the Motherland” is love for the people with whom you grew up, love for your home and parents. “Love for the Motherland” is love for the nature of your native land, for the climate, for the traditions in the family and people with whom you lived or are living. Who you become as an adult was instilled in you in the region in which you were born and raised. In our family, our small Motherland is the Republic of Udmurtia! I cannot say about Love for our Motherland better than my mother did:
Embroidered with a heart over the Russian plain,
Arable lands, forests, and talmas
A long, dear thread of springs,
And patterns on dresses with red thread...
My heart sees my homeland - Udmurtia,
In the summer heat, spring, frost and snow.
You are my humble, Udmurtia, and wise,
An ancient amulet of the Cis-Urals!
My Udmurtia gathered into one family
One hundred peoples, one hundred cultures and one hundred hearts...
Everyone says to the earth: "I love you"
Everyone here is an owner and creator!
Daniil Zhuravlev(15 years old, Moscow)

Thinking about the Motherland, I think about the great, beautiful country in which I was born, I connect the concept of homeland with the complex and interesting, rich and sometimes tragic history of my native land. I feel proud to be part of this country, part of this big world. With bated breath, we, with soul-filling patriotism, watch the military parades on the main square of the country, with pride and an enthusiastic quiver in our voices, we congratulate the veterans on Victory Day. Every person has a homeland, and for everyone it is their own... Invisible threads connect you with your family, and therefore with your homeland. That’s why you love her with a love that’s hard to explain: you see all her shortcomings and still love her.
Maria Yakovleva(12 years old, Astrakhan).

Love the Motherland- means knowing the history of your native country, respecting the culture, customs and traditions of your people. Love for the Motherland is different for everyone. For some, this means simply living in their own country, enjoying their native sunsets and native skies, walking on their native land, breathing their native air. And for some, loving the Motherland means glorifying their country, contributing to its development and prosperity through their actions, their labor - both physical and intellectual. In addition, I believe that loving your homeland also means loving people, your fellow citizens, being ready to help any person and not taking the position of “every man for himself.” After all, together we are the strength and power of our country, and individually we are simply residents inhabiting it.
Ekaterina Karpova(14 years old, Reutov)

Expression "Love for the Motherland" For me it means, first of all, love for my family. “Love for the Motherland” of every person and the entire Russian people for their country is the readiness to always defend their Motherland, its interests and people. All Russian people, even in ancient times, were each other’s “brothers.” In difficult times, the Russian people many times proved to “outsiders” their love for their Motherland, uniting and defeating enemies, acting on the principle of Alexander Nevsky’s favorite expression: “Whoever comes to us with a sword will die by the sword!” Also, “Love for the Motherland” is love for the native language, the surrounding nature, cities, villages and towns where people live. We all rejoice at the victories of our athletes at international competitions, the world-class inventions of our scientists, and the successes of our compatriots in various fields of activity. The Motherland can be proud of its soldiers who defended it from enemies, not sparing their lives. If any failures or accidents occur, they are eliminated by the relevant services, volunteers, volunteers. We all rejoice at the victories of our athletes at international competitions, the world-class inventions of our scientists, and the successes of all our people in various fields of activity. Isn't this a manifestation of love for the Motherland?
Alena Oleynikova(11.5 years old, Taganrog)

Homeland is my family , the city where I was born, the country where I live, the language I speak. Wherever fate takes a person, the Motherland is a place to which you always want to return. I think that each of us should be a patriot of our country. A patriot is a person who knows, first of all, the history of his homeland. Without a past, we will not have a future. The Motherland is the mother whom each of us protects, cherishes, loves and thanks for his birth.
Ivan Moskin(12 years old, Kerch)

In my opinion, love for the Motherland is, first of all, respect for it. A person who loves his homeland will not exchange it for anything else, no matter what it is. Love for the Motherland is pride in its culture and traditions. A person who loves his homeland tries not only to preserve all this, but also to change his homeland for the better. He is ready at any moment to sacrifice anything for her, even his own life.
Diana Anisimova(15 years old, Moscow).

Love to motherland It means something different for each person. For some, this is the last letter from the front, from which everything inside shrinks and you want to cry, for some it is the open spaces of native fields and the freshness of forests, for others it is a double-headed eagle - a symbol of strength and power. And I believe that love for the Motherland combines all this and even more. The homeland begins with a family, a home, a native yard, a “picture in a primer” and we love all this and keep it in our hearts all our lives and are ready to protect even the memories of it. My attitude towards the Motherland is characterized by a famous poem that was heard in the film “Brother”:
I found out that I have
There is a huge family:
And the path and the forest,
Every spikelet in the field!
River, blue sky -
This is all mine, dear.
This is my homeland!
I love everyone in the world!

I have nothing more to add!

Sofia Lyubova(14 years old, Arkhangelsk)

I think, that “Love for the Motherland” is when you are ready to defend your country.

Motherland, you are like a mother to me!
It’s not for nothing that you are in my destiny.
Motherland, I love you!
Motherland, you are everything to me.
I'll go protect you any minute.
Homeland, you are my life!

Ksyusha Gureeva(11, 5 months Moscow)

Expression "Love for the Motherland" for me it means, first of all, to be a worthy citizen of my country. Be proud of it and change it for the better, first of all, by your example. To experience difficult periods with your country and share the joy of victories and achievements. Through your daily work, service, and studies, contribute to the prosperity and development of your Motherland, creation and movement forward. Know and respect the history and traditions of your people. Be kind and honest, competent and confident in your views. To represent our country and our people abroad with honor and dignity, this is very important for us as residents of the Kaliningrad region, since due to our geographical location we often have to visit neighboring European countries rather than the main part of Russia. Patriotism and love for one’s native land give a person a feeling of belonging to a great culture and make him a part of history. When you love your small homeland, no matter where you are, you know that there is a place where you are happy.
Alisa Knyazeva(14 years old, Kaliningrad)

Love the Motherland- means to be a worthy citizen of your country. Through your deeds and work, contribute to prosperity and development, creation and movement forward. Respect the history of your people. Respect and honor old people, your parents, educators and teachers, be kind and honest. Be literate and confident in your views. Love for the Motherland is a feeling of happiness.
Polina Dudnik(13 years old, Temryuk)

Love to motherland for me it means: my country in which I was born, in which I live. I want there to always be peace in my country, so that there is a clear sky above my head. Love for the homeland is in the heart of each of us. Some people just feel more acutely and deeply. Others, in the whirlwind of everyday life, do not think about it. But if trouble covers the native land with a black wing, everyone will become a patriot of the Fatherland.
Evgeniy Grechishkin(13 years old, Novorossiysk)

Love to motherland is in everyone's heart. But we all perceive it differently. Some people feel this quite acutely and deeply, while others do not notice it in their daily routine. For me, love in the Motherland is love for the place where you were born, said the first word, took the first step, met friends, stepped into adulthood. And no matter where you find yourself, you will always want to return there.
Margarita Agabekyan(13 years old, Novorossiysk)

Love to motherland- this is the feeling that a person experiences for his native land, in which he was born and raised. A person will not betray his beloved country and will not leave, and if he does, he will regret it and wait for his return to his home. It is because of this love that we are ready to fight enemies and defend our land on which our mothers and fathers lived. A person who lives without a sense of homeland will never sacrifice anything for the sake of this Native place - he will simply move.
Anna Sokolova(13 years old, Tuapse).

"Love to motherland"- this is love for the people who live with me in my country, in my city, in my home. Probably people living in other cities and countries feel the same way. I am very sad when some of my friends move to another city, because I get used to seeing these people nearby, I become friends with them, and I don’t want to part with them. And if I need to leave, even if it’s interesting to travel, then I want to go to my city to visit friends and relatives. And when again you see how beautiful my city is, our home and all the people close to you, you feel joy! When I become an adult, I will work together with other people for the benefit of my country, and if someone attacks us, I will go to the navy to protect my parents, sisters, brother and all Russian people. This is love for the Motherland.
Andrey Shevchenko(12 years old, Taganrog)

To be continued....
(check the website for updated information).

A lot of sincere and lofty words have been said about this feeling.
words, and it deserves them. It is inseparable
an integral part of the iron frame on which
the edifice of social life holds together even with destruction
which it turns into a pile of ruins.

Love for the fatherland is one of the deepest
feelings, enshrined in the human soul for centuries and
for thousands of years. “The best sign is for the fatherland
"Let's fight," Homer said; “To the cities, their great-
Many marvel at the splendor and perfection of the buildings,
“Everyone loves their homeland” - these are the words of Lucian; "Fatherland
voice - the voice of the best muse" - P. Beranger; "And the smoke
the fatherland is sweet and pleasant to us” - A. S. Griboedov;

“Man has nothing more beautiful and dearer than his birth-
us. A man without a homeland is a poor man” - Y. Kolas.

Love for the homeland is one of the most distinct
examples of love as such. “Our parents are dear to us,
children, loved ones, relatives are dear, - says Tsitsa -
ron, - but all ideas about love for something
combined in one word “fatherland”. How honest
a man will hesitate to die for her if he
can this benefit her?

Love for the motherland means love for the native land
and the people living on it. These two components
common feelings usually go together, supporting and
strengthening each other. But it happens that they are tragically
They disagree: a person loves his homeland, but not his compatriots.
honest people. Love for the motherland, opposed
love for living people, inevitably turns out to be ab-
constructive and declarative. And if such a person is restored
goes to the pinnacle of power, he brings disaster to his
to the people.

The foundation of dictatorship and tyranny often lies
opposition to the “high interests” of the homeland (so
or otherwise identified by the dictator with his
own interests or the interests behind
him of a narrow group) to the interests of someone supposedly unworthy of her
people. This was already well expressed by Sophocles in the image
dictator Creon, who, as it seemed to him, loved his birth
well, but not her people, and not only brought misfortune
on them, but also on himself.

The Czech philosopher of the last century J. Kolar was inclined
I don’t want to contrast love for the people, the nation with love
look to the fatherland and place the first above the second. "...What
should a reasonable person love more - the country or
people, fatherland or nation? Fatherland we can easily
to find, even if we have lost it, but the nation and language -
nowhere and never; the homeland itself is dead
earth, a foreign object, is not a person; nation

but there is our blood, life, spirit, personal property.” Liu-
love for the fatherland, for the native places it seems to Kolar
blind natural instinct, inherent not only
to humans, but also to animals and even plants, at that time
how love for the people is always ennobled by reason
and education. “...Many trees and flowers with such
they cling with affection to their homeland, its land,
spirit and water, which immediately wither, wither and change if
transplant them; stork, swallow and other migratory birds
birds return from more beautiful countries to their
cold native land, to poor nests; many
animals allow themselves to be killed rather than leave their land
love, my territory, my cave, my home and food, and
if we forcibly tear them out of their native conditions
life and transfer them to foreign lands, they will die from
homesick." Love for one's native land is the lowest
the level of love for the homeland is more characteristic, he thinks
Kolar, an undeveloped person, a savage who does not know
nothing like a nation; modern, developed and
An educated person puts his nation above. "Gru-
the savage clings more to his poor, sooty-
a shack filled with smoke and bad smells
and to the inhospitable desert than an educated person
century to his palace and park. The homeland of the Eskimo, his
wife and children - this is a large ice floe floating in the Shi-
rock the sea; the ice floe sways and tilts on the menacing
waves, sea storms and sea currents carry it along
wide open spaces. Seals and seabirds - here
his fellow countrymen, fish and carrion are his food. Year after year
he lives with his family on this ice homeland,
fiercely protects her from enemies and loves her so much
so much that I wouldn’t trade her for the most beautiful
corners of the earth. The savage knows only the land that is his
gave birth, and the stranger and the enemy are called
one concept; the whole world is closed within the borders of his country.
Who should we thank for that best and blessing?

dearest thing we have? Not ourselves, not our land,
and our ancestors and contemporaries."

This is hardly a colorful but biased description
fair. Eskimo countrymen are not only seals and
birds, and he loves not only his wife and children, but also his
a people, albeit small, but a people, with its special ones, only
its inherent language, legends, traditions, na-
clothes, etc.

It is also reckless to assert that modern
a person’s sense of his native land weakens, giving way to
commitment to one's people.

Composer Sergei Rachmaninov and his wife, hot
those who loved Russia, finding themselves in Switzerland, created
near Lucerne there is some semblance of Ivanovka, a village in
which they once lived. But a complete replacement
Did not work out. Rachmaninov loved this place, there to him
the music returned, after a long break he was back on-
started composing. But one day he said sadly
about lost native places. “Are there mosquitoes here?”
he cried, slamming one of them. “They’re thirsty—”
They don’t know how to pour. Not like ours, Ivanovsky - screamed -
It turns out you won’t be able to see God’s light.”

I. Bunin told his secretary Bakhrach: “How
the Russians withered away in a foreign land. From poverty, from bo-
cooler? I don’t know, I think - much more from longing for
Tverskaya street or some poor village
Rooster, lost among the swamps and forests...” From
Chekhov's letters from Nice to his sister Bunin were copied out
sal: “...I work, to my great chagrin, not hard enough
and not good enough, because working on someone else’s side
It’s uncomfortable at someone else’s table...” After reading this extract,
recalls Bakhrakh, Ivan Alekseevich paused, looking
into the evening sky of Grasse, and somehow dim, north-

Kolar J. On literary reciprocity // Anthology of Czech and
Slovak philosophy. M., 1982. S. 234-235.

One Russian writer who lived in exile recalled
passed the judgment of his fellow countryman, settled by the will of fate
in Paris: “What is this Paris? Nothing special. Here
our region: you drive through the swamps for a week and get nowhere
you’ll leave!”

Even though it is unimportant, it is familiar to modern people as well.
the century may seem better than good, but alien
earthly.

The contrast between the motherland and its people has never
has not brought and is not capable of bringing good. Neither
case when the interests of the homeland are placed above the interests
people, nor when love for the people is given to
respect for the love of one's native land.

The feeling of patriotism makes a person a part of greatness.
who whole - his homeland, with which he is ready to part
share both joy and sorrow.

Russia, my love, this is no joke,
All your pains - they pierced me with pain.
Russia, I am your capillary vessel,
It hurts me when you hurt, Russia.

A. Voznesensky

Patriotic feelings flared up with particular acuteness
are heard when severe trials befall the homeland.
tania. “Each of us feels the wound inflicted on our homeland,”
spares in the depths of his heart” (V. Hugo). War, famine,
natural disasters unite people and make them forget
everything private and transitory, to abandon “the previous
passions and devote all your strength to one thing - the salvation of the
Dina.

In the autumn of 1941, when the fascist armada seemed to l
uncontrollably marched towards Moscow, Bunin said, remembering?!

probably the recent revolution and civil war:
“In your home you can quarrel, even fight.
But when the bandits attack you, that’s it, my friend.
squabbles must be put aside and the whole world agrees
strangers to gasp, so that fluff and feathers fly from them.
Here Tolstoy preached non-resistance to evil through violence,
wrote that wars are needed only by those in power.
But if the enemies had attacked Russia, the war would have continued
curse, but with all my heart I would root for my own people. That's it
a normal, healthy person is built differently
there shouldn't be. And the Russian is struck by melancholy and love
to the fatherland stronger than anyone..." "

Admiral Kolchak, who declared himself a citizen
war by the “supreme ruler of Russia”, recognized
felt that it would be easier for him to die from cholera than
at the hands of the proletariat. “It’s all the same,” he said, “
that of being eaten by domestic pigs.” However
love for one's people turned out to be stronger than acute
hatred of the class enemy. His beloved through
for many years she recalled that when she and Kolchak were...
were traveling from Omsk, Russian gold reserves followed with them,
proved fatal for the admiral: twenty-nine
Pullman cars with gold, platinum, silver,
jewels of the royal treasures. The admiral was afraid
that gold will fall into the hands of foreigners. One day before
arrest, he said: “Duty commanded me to fight the pain
Cheviks until the last possible opportunity. I'm defeated
and gold? Let it go to the Bolsheviks rather than
Czechs. And among the Bolsheviks there are Russian people” 2.

In defending his people, Moses, as is known,
rebuked God himself: “And Moses returned to the Lord
I went and said: Oh, this people have committed a great sin;

made himself a golden god. Forgive them their sin. And if
no, then blot me out from Your book, in which
You wrote it down" (Exodus 32:31-32).

Passionate desire to serve the people, not to abandon
even love can overcome him in times of misfortune
to God, if between these feelings you suddenly have to
choose.

It's bad when a person leaves another person
in trouble or betrays him. But leave the fatherland in trouble
and even more so to betray him is a crime for which
There is no statute of limitations, no repentance, no forgiveness.

Love for one's homeland is least of all blind,
an instinctive feeling that makes you mindlessly
to extol the fatherland without noticing its vices. Be in love
homeland means, first of all, to wish it well, to
to make it better.

One of the most remarkable patriots in history
Russia, P. Ya. Chaadaev, wrote: “More than anyone
of you, I love my Motherland, I wish it glory, I can
appreciate the high qualities of my people. Probably pat-
the riotic feeling that inspires me is not
this is similar to the one whose screams disturbed my being -
tion. I haven’t learned to love my Motherland since the closure
with your eyes, with your head bowed, with locked
lips. I find the person to be helpful
his country only if he clearly sees
her. I think the time for blind love is over^
that now we first of all owe the truth to the Motherland.”
Chaadaev was considered a slanderer of his fatherland,
declared insane and banned from publishing. His "Apo-
the logic of a madman,” from which the excerpt was taken, was
written in the mid-30s of the last century,
but in Russia it was published only at the beginning of our
century.

The idea that true patriotism should be pro-
shone with the light of critical reason, not represented by everyone

seems obvious. Love for the fatherland is still often
echoes with that sugary boasting that in Russia
these were once ironically called “leavened patriotism”
mom." Listen to such a leavened patriot, I noticed
Gogol, and even if he is sincere, “only plus-
you're talking about Russia!

M. Saltykov-Shchedrin was ardently, selflessly devoted
to your country. “I love Russia to the point of heartache,”
he wrote, “and I can’t even imagine myself anywhere
except Russia." And at the same time his attitude towards the country
and the people were filled with that tragic duality
ity, which A. Blok later said in “Retribution”:

And disgust from life,

And thoughtless love for her,

And passion and hatred for the fatherland...

Saltykov-Shchedrin, who saw the economic
cultural and political backwardness of Russia, unable
take advantage of the vastness of material resources
and the talents of his people, created the most severe and
a gloomy picture of his homeland in Russian literature.
Passion for his homeland did not prevent him from condemning
denigration and ridicule of her vices.

True patriotism is alien and hostile to national
listic arrogance and any national
stic prejudices.

“...Beware of the stupid, intolerant, arrogant pat-
riotism, because it is often only a pre-
a lair for the darkest actions...” (J. Kolar).

Love for one's fatherland, not connected with thoughts
I speak about the supremacy of the universal human idea, about equality
of all peoples, regardless of the level of their social
cultural and cultural development, causes harm in the first place
it’s the motherland’s turn. “...It’s impossible not to love our father-
quality... - wrote V. Belinsky, - it is only necessary that
this love was not the dead contentment that
there is, but with a living desire for improvement; word-

vom - love for the fatherland should be together and love
love for humanity." “Loving your homeland means
one ardently desires to see in it the realization of the ideal
la humanity and to the best of our ability to advance
this." "On the inferiority of national egoism and se-
paratism, the need to unite the national with
Russian literature has always spoken of universal things.
“...The moral principles of every individual people
“these are universal human principles,” wrote Saltykov.
Shchedrin, and in another place: “An idea that warms pat-
Riotism is the idea of the common good... it is a school in which
Roy man develops to perceive the idea of man-
humanity."

The opposite of nationalism is the acceptance
the life of his homeland and his people, a unique
national nihilism exhibited in recent
past is almost a natural consequence of inter-
nationalism. “Unfortunately, there are forces,” noted in
one of the interviews with writer Ch. Aitmatov, who
among the people themselves, and this often happens, they themselves deny
myself. They are busy self-incriminating. I call it national
nal nihilism. The phenomenon is the same reactionary
new, like nationalism itself.”

National and universal, international
nal - two interconnected sides. Without them
there is no global process of development and rapprochement
peoples and nations that make up one humanity.

Bringing nations closer together and overcoming national
boundaries are a regularity of the historical process. In Ev-
rope, it began to be acutely felt after the first
world war.

“Today every “intellectual” in Germany, in England
lia or in France feels, - wrote the Spanish philosopher
Soph X. Ortega y Gasset, - what are the borders of his state

1 Belinsky V. G. Collection. op. In 3 vols. M., 1948. T. 1. P. 639, 640.

they confine him, the hedgehog suffocates in them; his national
belonging only limits, diminishes it...
For the first time in its political, economic and spiritual
European activity encounters boundaries
your state; for the first time he feels that his life
limited opportunities are disproportionate to the boundaries of that
political entity in which it is included. And here
he makes a discovery: to be English, German, French
Tsuzom means to be a provincial.”

This reasoning dates back to the late 20s
of our century, Ortega sums it up this way: “Europe has risen
Nikla as a complex of small nations. The idea of nation and national
national feeling were her most characteristic achievements
marriages. Now she needs to overcome the most
myself. Here is the outline of the grand drama that must
will play out in the coming years."

The drama happened - the Second World War, dis-
trapping Europe into two opposing parts. In each
Active integration processes were underway in both of them. Western
European countries now face a decisive decision.
hom: economic ties are expected to expand and
complement a certain kind of political unity
Negence. The rapprochement of European socialist and
capitalist countries put on the agenda
the question of creating a single “European home”.

Deepening and expanding processes of integration
tions of European countries in no way compromise
doubt either their national identity or their state
gift sovereignty.

Here we can recall V.S. Solovyov, back in his
ce of the last century, which set out the basic condition for the unity
opinions of peoples and states: “A certain difference,
or the separateness of life spheres, as individual

1 Ortega y Gasset X. Revolt of the masses//Questions of Philosophy. 1989.
No. 4. pp. 135-136.

both collective and collective, there will never be and will not
should be abolished, because such a universal
fusion would lead to indifference and emptiness, not
the fullness of being. True connection presupposes
true separateness of those connected, i.e., such, due to
which they do not exclude, but mutually posit each other
friend, each finding in the other the fullness of his own
life... Every social organism must be for
each of its members is not the external boundary of its activity
vitality, but positive support and replenishment...” 1

Now that dependence has increased many times over
peoples and states from each other and became gloomy
the reality of the threat of the death of humanity in the event of nuclear
war, national and universal with special
battle with its sharpness reveals its inner, indistinguishable
bursting unity.

J. Renan owns the famous formula,
the underlying essence of what connects people into one
nation: “Common glory in the past, common will in the present
standing; remembrance of great deeds and readiness
to them - these are the essential conditions for creating a
kind... Behind is the legacy of glory and repentance,
redi - a general program of action... The life of the nation -
it’s a daily plebiscite.”

A nation is a community of blood, language, centuries
emerging national character. Tied-
respect for one's people is based on respect for their
historical past and inherited from it
traditions Lose your history for the nation everything
is the same as for a person to lose memory.

But the nation is not only "a legacy of glory and repentance"
it is also and above all what “is being done” and “will be.”
This is the main thing in Renan’s formula: a nation is a common pro-
gram of the future produced by the daily holo-

1 Soloviev V. S. Collection. op. T. 7. P. 13.

poking. The past protects and supports the nation,
but the driving and formative force is the future
sche. “If a nation consisted only of the past and
of the present, - writes X. Ortega y Gasset, - no one began
to protect her. Those who argue with this are hypocrites
or thoughtless. But it happens that the past throws you into
future decoys, real or imagined.
We want our nation to exist in the future
Well, we protect it for this purpose, and not in the name of the common
past, not in the name of blood, tongue, etc. Defending our
state, we protect our tomorrow, not ours
yesterday" ".

Love for one's people is not limited to respect
new and respectful attitude towards the common past.
It presupposes, first of all, concern for the future,
on the implementation of the “common cause” program that
is formed every day in the depths of people's life.

Remember the priority of the future over the past in
the existence of a nation is especially important now, when attention
the mania of many is concentrated mainly on
restoration and preservation of the historical past.
Until recently, our true national history
started in October 1917 “Peoples, kingdoms and kings”
were thrown into the dustbin of history, and we found ourselves
cut off from their own past. This is nether-
pimo, historical roots must be restored.
But no matter how important this task is, we must not forget
It is clear that not a single nation, facing the past,
is not capable of existing as a stable, having
whole perspective.

"Ortega y Gasset X. Revolt of the masses//Questions of Philosophy. 1989.
No. 4. P. 147.

Homeland... This word contains so much! Probably everyone can say with confidence that he loves his homeland, but what does this mean? What can be included in the concept of “love for the Motherland”?

Sincere love for one's native land is also called patriotism. This feeling is an integral part of the Personality; the life of a civilized society is based on it. Words about patriotism can be found in the most ancient works of writers and poets from different countries. Russian classics also often emphasized the importance of patriotism in the development of personality and the great role of love for the Motherland: “And the smoke of the Fatherland is sweet and pleasant to us”; “A man without a homeland is a poor man” - we can often find these and other sayings in books. Love for the Motherland is one of the most beautiful varieties of the greatest human feelings.

An inseparable part of patriotism is love for one's nation. After all, the native land and the people are united, it is the inhabitants who make up the spirit of the Motherland. It is impossible to sincerely love the Fatherland without being just as proud of your compatriots.

The homeland is not just the land on which a person was born. We are imbued with the national spirit from birth; even after leaving for another country, we remain children of our Motherland forever. Trying with all their might to get rid of belonging to the Fatherland, from their mentality, people simply lose themselves and their personal individuality.

But not only sincere pride in the Motherland is a sign of patriotism. Let us remember the terrible times of the Great Patriotic War, when the inhabitants of Russia stood in friendly ranks to fight the fascist evil: this was one of the purest manifestations of the most ardent and passionate love, when a person is ready to die, but not surrender his homeland to the enemy. The Motherland we see now came to us through terrible sacrifices; millions of innocent people fell victims of bloody battles so that we could now live peacefully in our native land. Such events in the history of the state should evoke genuine pride for their people in the heart of every citizen; This is also patriotism - to be proud of being one of the great, brave and spiritually strong people.

Only a cowardly person, spiritually poor, can dislike his homeland. After all, patriotism is equivalent to love for a mother: for every child she will be the most wonderful and affectionate. The Motherland is, in a broad sense, the Mother for all its inhabitants, so let us be grateful children of our Fatherland!