Religious Policy Research Articles

Konfessional'naya politika Rossijskoj imperii v Kazahstane

This article examines the religious policy of the Russian Empire on the territory of Kazakhstan in the second half of the 18th - early 20th centuries. If in the last third of the 18th century the Russian Empress supported Islam, in the 19th century there is a gradual process of strengthening the policy of Orthodoxy in the region. So, in 1881, the Kirghiz spiritual mission was established to Christianize the Kazakhs of the Semipalatinsk region, but the goal of Tsarism was not achieved. According to the census of 1897, only 660 Kazakhs were converted to Orthodoxy in six steppe regions. The article is based on archival materials.

Systemic Pressure of the United States on the Russian Orthodox Church in the Ideological and Geopolitical Confrontation

The paper represents the interim results of a study conducted by the Russian Expert School Research Centre and reveals the politics, as well as scientifi c and expert mechanisms, used by the United States when applying the religious factor for geopolitical purposes. It also examines the way the United States exploits the religious agenda to put the direct political pressure on Russia. The purpose of the study is to identify the mechanisms used by the United States to deliver international pressure on world Orthodoxy and the Russian Orthodox Church. In 1998, the USA adopted the Law on International Religious Freedom, which secured the right of the USA to interfere with religious processes occurring in other countries. For the practical implementation of this law, the United States established an extensive network of governmental institutions, as well as non-governmental structures, formally independent from the government but closely related to it, that would provide ideological, political and administrative support in this area. These institutions and structures involved off icials, scientists, experts, journalists, religious leaders and theologians interested in promoting American national interests. In the 2000s, the weakening of the international infl uence of the Russian Orthodox Church and the weakening of Russia’s role as the centre of world Orthodoxy became the key direction for the international religious policy of the United States. The USA used the Patriarchate of Constantinople as the main tool to split the Russian Church and world Orthodoxy. The strongest strike intended to reduce the infl uence of the Russian Church was infl icted by the United States in Ukraine, where, after the coup d’etat 2014, the сanonical Orthodox Church (Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate) found itself in the most vulnerable position. The United States has launched a system struggle against the Russian Orthodox Church, which includes theological, expert and media levels, as well as events of direct (administrative and physical) pressure on the Moscow Patriarchate parishes. The United States aims the global vector of this activity at dividing and weakening world Orthodoxy, and the local one — at destroying historical spiritual ties between Orthodoxy in Russia and Orthodoxy in Ukraine.

Хадж советских мусульман 1966–1967 гг. через призму архивных документов

Introduction. Analysis of Soviet religious policies essentially represented by government-Muslim relations is most important to the history of our motherland. An indicator to characterize the quality of these relations is efforts of authorities in organizing Hajj trips, including multifaceted interaction with leaders of Soviet Muslims. Goals. The article examines archival documents — some to be newly introduced into scientific circulation — and attempts an analysis of the actual conditions, scope of related work, and conclusions articulated by officials who were to arrange comprehensive interaction with Muslims and Hajj participants. The study seeks to answer a number of questions pertaining to Hajj-related activities of the Council for Religious Affairs (under the USSR Council of Ministers) and Muslim spiritual directorates in 1966–1967. Materials and methods. The paper focuses on documents stored at the State Archive of the Russian Federation (coll. Р-6991 ‘Council for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers of the USSR’) covering the period from 1943 to 1991, with special emphasis be laid on analyses of files contained in Catalogue 6 ‘Council for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers of the USSR: 1966–1991’. It is in 1966 that the Soviet government agency created by way of merger (Council for the Russian Orthodox Church and Council for Religious Cults) and established by a decree of the USSR Council of Ministers began its actual work with all registered religious organizations. Methods and tools of analysis, synthesis, and that of historical reconstruction proved most instrumental in investigating efforts of the Council. Results. The work introduces into scientific circulation some archival documents that have remained unknown both to experts and the public at large, provides a historiographic review of the problem on the basis of publications authored by famous foreign and domestic researchers. Conclusions. The study shows certain peculiarities of government-Muslim relations during the period under consideration, namely: the Hajj was being prepared when the key body supposed to facilitate such constructive relations (Council for Religious Cults) had ceased its work, and the new one (Council for Religious Affairs) was not yet completely staffed.

The Role of Entrepreneurs in the Development of Protestant Christianity in East Java in the Nineteenth Century

Abstract Christianity in Indonesia is often stigmatized as a colonial religion, the religion of the Dutch, and the religion of infidels. This was due to the general view prevailing in Indonesia that Christianity, in the process of its spreading, received support from the Dutch East Indies government. This essay argues that the Dutch political religious policies were not favourable for developing Christianity in Java. The development of Christianity, especially in East Java, was not driven by Dutch missionaries; on the contrary, by entrepreneurs, independent people, and then continued by Javanese who had become Christians.

Evaluation of the Influence of Evrengizib’s Religious Policies on the Overthrow of the Mughals

Hindistan, tarihin en kadim medeniyetlerini barındıran ve eski devirlerden bugüne kadar birçok toplumun ilgisini çeken bir yerdir. Özellikle de bu topraklar, Türkler ve Hintlilerin yüzyıllarca ortak yaşam alanı olmuştur. Babürlüler’de, Hindistan’da hüküm sürmüş devletlerden biridir. Bu devlet, siyasi ve dini sahadaki icraatları sebebiyle en güçlü hale ve en geniş sınırlara Evrengzib döneminde ulaşmıştır. Evrengzib, Din-i İlahi isminde yeni bir sistem kuran, Hindu ve diğer gruplara pozitif ayrımcılık yapan ve Müslümanlara mesafeli davranan Ekber Şah gibi bir sultandan sonraki süreçte yönetimi deruhte etmiştir. Müslümanların ellerinden alınan haklarını iade etmeye, Hinduları ve diğer grupları belli ölçülerde kontrol altına almaya çalışmıştır. Evrengzib yaptığı radikal icraatlarından dolayı gerek kendi döneminde ve gerekse de asırlar sonrasında bile tenkit edilmesine ve günümüz Hindistan’ında Müslümanlara yönelik olumsuz politikaların oluşmasına sebep olmuştur. Bir kısım araştırmacılar bu icraatları sebebiyle Babürlüler’in yıkılmasına giden yolda en önemli unsur olarak Evrengzib’i görmektedir. Makalede, bu sorulardan bazılarını incelemeye çalışacak ve bunlar aracılığıyla, bu sultanın yönetimde karşılaştığı sosyo-politik zorlukları ve bunlara nasıl yanıt verdiğini yeniden değerlendirecektir. Araştırmada birincil ve ikincil kaynaklardan faydalanılmıştır. Çalışmanın çerçevesi, çağdaş ve tarihsel literatüre nesnel yaklaşılarak oluşturulmuş ve materyaller Evrengzib’in takip ettiği dini politikasını ve bunun Babürlü iktidarının zayıflamasına ve neticede sona ermesine nasıl tesir ettiği analiz edilmiştir.

THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE STATE AND MUSLIMS IN THE USSR AND FOREIGNERS’ CONCLUSIONS ABOUT THE SOVIET STATE: ANALYSIS OF DOCUMENTS DISCOVERED IN 2022

Recent years have seen the possibility of introducing into scientific circulation declassified documents of the highest state and political bodies, public organizations, and the spiritual directorates of Muslims, which until now were unknown in wide circles. They allow us to examine the forms and methods of activity of the Soviet state in building relationships with Muslims and to identify the directions, principles, and features of the work of state and public organizations in this sphere. A characteristic feature of religious policy in the late 1960s, one of the main conductors of which was the Council for Religious Affairs under the USSR Council of Ministers, established in December 1965, was the creation of a picture of the harmony of religious life and prosperity of religious organizations in the country. The Soviet Union demonstrated to the world that Soviet Muslims, like their coreligionists from other states, could go on Hajj to Saudi Arabia. The quantity of Hajj travelers from the USSR was extremely small and there was a huge disproportion not only between them and the number of Muslims who wanted to perform Hajj but also between the number of applications received by the organizers of the Hajj and the authorities, including the Council for Religious Affairs. At the same time, the heads of Muslim spiritual administrations could travel to Hajj several times. Analysis of archival documents discovered in 2022 showed the attitude to Muslims who made the Hajj from several angles: from the Soviet state, ordinary Muslims of the USSR, the authorities and Muslims of the countries visited by Soviet pilgrims during their journey, such as Sudan and Egypt. Very revealing is the attitude towards the Soviet pilgrims from the inhabitants of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ranging from ordinary people to the authorities, including the king.

The role of Shiite clerics during the Safavid state (1501-1722).

This study deals with the political situation in Iran during the Safavid authority and the declaration of Shiism doctrine as the official state religion by Shah Ismael I (1501-1524). It presents how the Shiism was formed and strengthened, and also deals with the appearance of Shia religious men in the political and social fields from the declaration of the Safavid state until the end of their authority. Additionally, the religious changes and the relations of the Safavid rulers with religious men are investigated.The religious policy of Shah Tahmasp I (1524-1577) manifested in bringing a great number of scientists and Shia religious men from the Arab homeland to Iran. The Shah used those religious men in writing and publishing Shia jurisprudence books and expanding the Shiism. The fundamentals of Shiism was written during the reign of this Shah, and the authority of religious men reached the top. Besides, a great number of posts and religious titles were created at the reign of Shah Tahmasp. Another part of this study tackled the arrival of Ismael II (1576-1577) and his policy to weaken the authority of Shia religious men, and pay attention to the Sunni doctrine.Moreover, the study presented the religious policy of Shah Abbas the Great (1587-1622), who was the strongest Safavid Shah, and his attempt to remove the Qizal- Bash Sufis. He also reduced the political role of religious men and tried to establish a strong authority away from religious men. The authority of the religious men increased after Shah Abbas the Great, especially at the final reign of the Safavid authority at the reign of Hussein Al-Safawi (1694-1722). During that period, the Safavid state was completely controlled by religious men. At the reign of Shah Hussien, the Safavid authority became under the control of Mala (Mahmoud Baqir Majlisi) , who practiced a great deal of violence against other religions, especially the Sunni and Zaradashti religions.The degree and posts of religious men, their social position, class and their influence on the Iranian society will be investigated. The study also will discuss the role of religious men in the field of education, and how Sharia courts were managed by religious men, because these two important and influential points were the reason behind strengthening the authority of religious men as it was completely supervised by them.

Burkhanist communities in Altai in 1904–1916: formation and development in the context of state religious policy

Burkhanist communities in Altai in 1904–1916: formation and development in the context of state religious policy

A Study on the Educational System for Clergy According to Religious Policy in Modern China : Focused on Religious Colleges

A Study on the Educational System for Clergy According to Religious Policy in Modern China : Focused on Religious Colleges

Church and State and the Marital Rights of Old Believers in Latvia: From Illegality to Secularization

The paper analyses state religious policy in different historical periods and its impact on the development of religious doctrines about marriage within the Old Believer community of Latvia. Based on published and unpublished historical sources, legislative acts, periodicals, and data from existing Old Believer parishes, it is clear that state policy concerning religious minorities greatly influenced the development of the Old Believer community. Old Believer marriages were not recognized by the Russian Orthodox Church until 1874 when the first possibility of obtaining legal marital status was introduced as registering families in police register books. The Old Believers of Latvia, who originally belonged to the Fedoseevcy denomination and denied any family life as such, registered their families quite rarely. However, during the first decades of the 20th century, the Fedoseevcy of Latvia adopted the teaching and marriage ceremonies of the Pomorians. By the interwar period, Old Believer marriages were legalized by both the community and the state. Soviet secularization further facilitated the development of secular marriage unions with followers of other confessions. In the present day, Old Believer religious marriages are legalized in Latvia, though the number of them has decreased as Old Believers are most likely to choose civil marriage registrations.

Chinese Missionaries in Cross-Cultural Overseas Mission: Emergence of a New Missionary Nation?

This article traces the emergence of Chinese Christians’ participation in cross-cultural overseas mission. It shows how Chinese Christians emerge as a significant new force in world mission and how they navigate their path between China’s growing economic clout and repressive religious policies at home and in most of their targeted destinations. Based on contacts with Chinese missionaries and mission trainers and facilitators, it identifies different groups engaged in mission and analyzes motives in the Chinese missionary endeavors and how the presence of Chinese Christian missionaries adds a different layer to the complexities of Chinese overseas activities.

Positive Function of Social Conflict: Decoding State–Church Interaction in China

Conflict between local state and churches in China has increased both in number and intensity in recent years due to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) tightened regulation and control over religious affairs and religious groups. Drawing on the theoretical insight of the positive function of social conflict proposed by Coser and the empirical findings in China, this paper tries to decode the impact of China’s religious policies on state–church interaction under Xi Jinping’s rule. It finds that the overall impacts of state intensified control over religions are twofold. On the one hand, state intervention paradoxically serves as a facilitating factor to enhance religious group’s internal cohesion, reinforce their group identity and help them reflect on and change their survival and development strategies. On the other hand, increased state control at the same time generates an unpleasant outcome that is not beneficial for a peaceful state–church interaction.

The Religious Policy of the Soviet State and the Repression of Religious Scholars

This article discusses the policy of repression carried out by the Soviet Union, including the repression of representatives of the religious sphere, Muslim scholars, and the fate of priests, mosques, and madrassas who became victims of the authoritarian regime.

Theory of religious markets and secularism: An analysis on muslim-majority countries

Theory of religious markets is a field of study that employs the rational choice methodology to examine the effects of religious policies and regulations on religious beliefs and organizations. Theory of religious markets attributes the secularization trend in Western societies not to modernization but rather to the monopolization of religion and the eradication of competitive religious markets. In contrast to contemporary secularism theory, which excluded political analysis from sociology of religion, the theory of religious markets has reintroduced political analysis into sociology of religion and sparked a fruitful academic debate. By employing a supply-side approach instead of a demand-side approach, theory of religious markets has reintroduced secularization to the forefront of political science's principal topics. Specifically, it has reconnected it with the evolution of the impartial government and the notion of religious pluralism. This paper investigates how the debate between these two theories can contribute to the policies necessary for the institutionalization of pluralistic and liberal politics in Muslim-majority countries today. Due to its rational choice approach, the theory of religious markets makes significant contributions to the study of liberalization issues in Muslim-majority countries in the context of freedom of religion and conscience, apart from theological debates.

RELIGIOUS POLICY OF JAPAN IN THE XV-XVII CENTURIES IN THE CONTEXT OF CENTRALIZATION OF AUTHORITY AND THE EMERGENCE OF REALISTIC AUTHORITARIANISM

This publication attempts to study the religious policy of Japan from the time of the unification of the country through the efforts of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi to the consolidation of the Tokugawa shogunate in close connection with the ongoing political processes - the centralization of authority and the formation of the Tokugawa military oligarchy based on realistic authoritarianism. The significance of the ideological postulates of the religions common in pre-Edo and Edo Japan is established in the context of overcoming feudal fragmentation and the consistent construction of the Tokugawa shogunate. The main directions of the state religious policy of the period under review are singled out and the nature and political reasons for the positive or negative attitude towards common religions on the part of the ruling class are revealed. The understanding of realistic authoritarianism as a set of methods for retaining Tokugawa power by harsh, manipulative, but excluding direct violence methods is being consolidated. The thesis is substantiated that the Confucian doctrine became the ideological basis for the centralization of authority and the emergence of realistic authoritarianism of the first Tokugawa shoguns, the implementation of which made it possible to establish the regime of the Tokugawa military oligarchy through the policy of “soft power”, blocking the emergence of centrifugal and separatist tendencies among influential daimyo. It is proved that the state during the period under review pursued a conservative religious policy which was expressed in the patronage of traditional beliefs (Shintoism, Buddhism and Zen Buddhism) and the prohibition of Christianity, which was perceived, on the one hand, as a belief alien to the Japanese and, on the other hand, as a worldview that encroaches on the foundations of Japanese statehood. In the context of the study of religious policy towards Christians, it is concluded that the Confucian idea of achieving state order by unifying social life and consistently getting rid of political and axiological factors that could bring disorganization into normal and habitual functioning of social matter played a significant role in the prohibition of Christianity and Catholic missionary work.

Din-I-Ilahi and Akbar's Religious Policy in Social Context

Din-I-Ilahi and Akbar's Religious Policy in Social Context

The Issue of Women in Adjara in the Prism of Soviet Antireligious Policy (1920s)

The purpose of the article to present the problem of women in the prism of the Soviet atheistic policy in Ajara in 1920s. Soviet religious policy from the very beginning was characterized by heterogeneity, bias, and one-sidedness, with communism and atheism considered as the mainstays of ideology. The Bolsheviks seemed to preach the inviolability of the religious feelings of the believers, but in fact fought with fire and sword against any manifestation of religiosity. The Soviet government encouraged controversy among believers. A clear confirmation of this was the so-called ‘The chador taking’ campaign, which has been met with serious controversy in the region. Examining the problems related to the wearing of the chador, presenting the issue of women in the context of anti-religious policies is the main task of our research.
 The scientific novelty of the research is the discussion of the factors that collectively led to the 1929 mass protests in mountainous Adjara (Georgia). At the same time, a number of unpublished archival documents, which are kept in the Adjara State Archive, enter the scientific circulation. The factual materials presented in the article and the analysis of the documents kept in the Adjara Archives Division clearly show the Soviet policy of neglecting and insulting the religious feelings of believers, which led to the 1929 large-scale anti-Soviet protests in mountainous Adjara.
 The methodological basis of the research is the universal scientific principles of objectivity, comprehensiveness and systematics, historical-comparative and historical-typological methods.
 Conclusions. As a result of the research, the determining factors of the mass demonstrations of 1929 were identified, in particular: the anti-religious policy of the Soviet government, which included the implementation of various measures by the government, in particular: The formation of the League of Militant Atheists and other anti-religious bodies, the mass destruction of religious institutions, theatrics against religion, the introduction of various awards to reward activists who fight against religion, the creation of women’s committees and ‘Muslim women’s sections’ to separate women from the religion. Added to this was the rudeness and arbitrariness of the party officials in all spheres of public and social life, the imposition of various restrictions on religious services and other factors, the combination of which led to the mass uprising of 1929. The results of the research proved once again that despite the various methods used to intimidate the believers, the government was powerless to suppress the religious feelings of the people.

Особливості впровадження нової унії в східних воєводствах Польщі (1923-1937 рр.)

The purpose of the article is to study the peculiarities of the process of introducing the “Union of the Eastern Rite” in the eastern voivodeships of Poland in 1923-1937, the purpose of which was the religious assimilation of Orthodoxy and strengthening the infl uence of the Vatican. Th e author has analyzed archival documents, materials of the periodical press, and publications of the time, which highlight the problems related to the introduction of neo-union in the eastern voivodeships of Poland. Th e research methodology. Th e methodological basis of the article consists of the principles of historicism, objectivity, systematicity, and interdisciplinary approach. Th e general scientifi c, special-historical, and interdisciplinary methods are applied. Each of them has come to be eff ective in a specifi c situation and made it possible to objectively reconstruct the process of introducing the Eastern Rite. Th e scientifi c novelty of the work lies in the fact that the author, on the basis of archival documents and periodical press materials of the studied period, has identifi ed the peculiarities of the process of introducing the new union. Th e study is based on new source material, which is being introduced into scientifi c use for the fi rst time. In contrast to previous works devoted to this topic, the article more clearly reveals the dynamics of changes in the religious policy of the Polish state and the Roman Catholic Church in relation to the Orthodox Church. Conclusions. In the interwar period, the Orthodox Church faced a number of problems. One of them was the onslaught of Catholicism and the West’s at- tempt to subordinate Orthodoxy. Such was the so-called non-union action. One of the main reasons for the spread of the neo-Union movement in the eastern provinces of Poland was the decline in the authority of Orthodox priests, some of whom neglected their duties. Even the bodies of the dead could lie for a long time without a memorial service. Such priests viewed religion only as a source of enrichment and demanded high payment for priestly services. Such an attitude towards their pastoral duties undermined the authority not only of priests but also of the Orthodox Church itself. As a result, the population began to look for new ways to satisfy their spiritual needs. However, the neo-union movement still needed to gain mass distribution.

Текстовые средства распространения реформационных идей в обществе Англии середины XVI века

The death of Henry VIII in January 1547 entailed a departure from a rather rigid line in religious policy, which, in turn, led to a freer dissemination of ideas in the field of religion. This spread was characterized not only by the increased number of published texts, but also by the boldness of the authors' statements, the brightness of the images they used. The article is devoted to the study of textual means of spreading of reformation ideas in the society of England in the middle of the 16th century. The object of the study is genrediverse works: the sermon “About the plow”, written by Hugh Latimer, one of the leaders of the promotion of religious transformations in England, and the satirical work “Doctor Double Ale”, published by the London doctor Luke Shepherd. Sermons and satirical works of the middle of the 16th century, given the rather large literacy of the population of the foggy Albion, should have found a warm response from those to whom the writings were addressed. However, despite the fact that these works were created in line with the official policy of religious transformations, it is quite difficult to talk about the degree of their direct influence on its implementation.

파벨 I세의 종교정책

파벨 I세의 종교정책