The paper is written by order of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, project № 33.2177.2017/PCh, and under a grant of the Russian Science Foundation of the Humanities and the Ministry of Education,

Culture and Science of Mongolia, project № 16-21-03001 a(m)

The article deals with the features of the situation of religious communities of the Altai territory in the mid-1960s – mid-1970s in the context of state-confessional policy of the Soviet Union. On the basis of archival materials the authors analyze the attitude of the state towards religious communities in the region. In the analyzed period there is a departure from the previous policy of N.S. Khrushchev, a feature of which was a certain pressure on religious associations and even their close. During the governance of L.I. Brezhnev, the process of state registration of religious associations began to resume, although most of the closed ones in the preceding period, including those in the Altai region, was not reinstated. In addition, Protestants, being under special control of the public authorities, still were in the most trying situation. At that time, the state continued to lead an active atheistic propaganda aimed at the eradication of religious remnants from the minds of Soviet citizens. Such work in most cases did not be of an offensive nature, but was based on certain scientific knowledge. The Council of Religious Affairs developed a provision on the commissions of assistance the Executive Committees of the Council of Worker’s Deputies on the observance of cult legislation. Such commissions were assigned the duty of assisting local authorities and authorized agents of the Council in republics, territories, and regions of the USSR in the religious sphere. In different localities of Altai Krai by the end of 1967 31 commissions had operated, providing the authorities with assistance in statutory compliance in the freedom of conscience sphere.

Key words: Church-state relations, Christian community, Altai Krai, atheistic propaganda.

DOI: 1022250/2072-8662.2017.1.31-40

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About the author

Petr K. Dashkovskiy – DSc (History), Associate Professor, Head of the Department of Political History, National, State, and Confessional Relations, Head of the Laboratory of the Ethnocultural and Religious Studies of the Faculty of Mass Communications, Philology and Political Science, The Altai State University; 61 Lenin prosp., ASU, Barnaul, Russia, 656049; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Natalia S. Dvorianchikova – Research Assistant at the Laboratory of  Ethnocultural and Religious Studies of the Faculty of Mass Communications, Philology and Political Science, The Altai State University; 61 Lenin prosp., ASU, Barnaul, Russia, 65604; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.