This study analyzes the religious situation in the Kaliningrad region throughout the Soviet period. The post-war attitude of the local authorities towards the formation of a non-religious region, that is, the refusal of any registration of religious organizations of Soviet citizens, is evaluated. Widespread atheistic propaganda, disciplinary, administrative and criminal prosecution of believers did not give the proper result for the authorities. The departure from the religion of individual believers did not seem entirely sincere. Most likely, it was the result of pressure on them from the direct leadership and the censure of others. As a result, in the public consciousness of Soviet citizens, there was a persistent doublethink regarding religion, which also applied to representatives of government structures. Believers showed active self-organization, fulfilled their spiritual needs privately. The registration of the first religious community of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in 1967 by order from Moscow did not change the overall picture in the region. It was only in the second half of the 1980s, when the local government's policy towards believers began to move into the legal plane. In 1985, the first Orthodox community was registered. In addition to the Orthodox, Catholics and Lutherans began to conduct active missionary activities in the region.
Key words: Orthodox, Catholics, Lutherans, Evangelical Christians-Baptists, Pentecostals
DOI: 10.22250/20728662_2023_4_43
About the author
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Nikolay N. Yarygin – Doctor of Science (Philosophy), Professor at the Department of Philosophy and Cultural Studies, Kaliningrad State Technical University; 1 Sovetsky ave., Kaliningrad, 232022, Russia; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |