MILITANT ATHEISM IN THE LATE 1940S – EARLY 1950S IN THE KEMEROVO REGION

Abstract

The article features the policy of militant atheism during the period of late Stalinism in the late 1940s – early 1950s. The research is based on various studies on relations between the state and religious institutions. The authors used unpublished materials from regional and federal archives to investigate foreign and domestic affairs that triggered the change in the state religious policy in 1948. The paper describes the main prohibitive and restrictive measures against the Russian Orthodox Church at the state level. In the case of the Kemerovo region, the authorities attempted to close five Christian communities within one year. They did not recognize property rights on the place of worship and claimed that the churches were in unsatisfactory technical condition. The authors established that the claims of the authorities were merely formal, and the gross administrative measures to restrict religious life contradicted Soviet legislation.

Keywords

• russian orthodox church
• state church relations
• ban on orthodox communities
• militant atheism methods