Religious Policy Research Articles

Fertility Regulation and Barriers to Family Planning Utilization among Married Catholics in Ibadan, South-West Nigeria

More than 1 billion of the world population are prohibited to use modern fertility regulation practices due to religious inclination which term it sinful. This has been associated with unintended births. This study explored fertility regulation and barriers to family planning among married Catholics in Ibadan. A cross-sectional mixed-method study using multi-staged sampling to select 358 participants in 8 Catholic churches. Utilizing both quantitative and qualitative method, a valid pre-tested questionnaire, key informant interview guide, and focus group discussion guide was used to elicit information from the respondents. Data were analyzed at p<0.05 level of significance respectively. Respondents' mean age was 37.38±6.75. literacy level was 55.9% for tertiary, 38.5% for secondary, and 7% had primary education. About 71% were aware of the Catholic Church’s policy on child spacing. The desire for children was high (96.9%) among respondents that had not given birth and 50.0% among respondents with children. More than half (51.6%) believed two years interval was best for them to have a child. One-third (29.1%) use contraceptives while 34.7% use natural family planning. However, a further probe revealed that 51.1% do not use the method recommended by the church while 48.9% practice what the church teaches. There was a significant association between family planning utilization and monthly income (p=0.034) and the number of children (p=0.001). The majority indicated that the use of the natural family planning method is the Church’s policy against the use of modern contraceptives. However, 12% of respondents disagree with the church, the majority (75.1%) wanted it maintained even amidst challenges, while 23.7% want it modified. The barriers to family planning utilization were found to be religious policy, lack of proper education, side effects, and health implications. Tailored reproductive health education is needed to improve the knowledge of Catholics to enhance proper utilization.

Религиозная политика на восточных окраинах Российской империи: общественно-политический дискурс второй половины ХIХ – начала ХХ в.

The article reveals the content of public discourse in the second half of the 19th – early 20th centuries in terms of the ideas of various layers of the Russian society about religious policy in the eastern outskirts of the Russian Empire. The positions of national-conservatives and liberals on the role of the state and the church in empire-building are revealed.

Imperial Russian Rule in the Kingdom of Poland 1864–1918 by Malte Rolf

Reviewed by: Imperial Russian Rule in the Kingdom of Poland 1864–1918 by Malte Rolf Theodore R. Weeks (bio) Malte Rolf, Imperial Russian Rule in the Kingdom of Poland 1864–1918, Trans. Cynthia Klohr (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2021). 441 pp., ill. Bibliography. Index. ISBN: 978-0-8229-4701-1. For the Russian Empire, the Poles were always a problem. Catholic, arrogant, with a well-developed historical identity, and living between "Russia" and "Europe," the Poles gave Russian officialdom and the tsars themselves heartburn. For official Russia, the uprisings against Russian rule in 1830–1831 and 1863–1864 corroborated their view of persistent Lechite perfidy and an eternal "hatred for all things Russian" (a phrase that one encounters with Kilroy-like frequency in official documents) among the Polish people. And yet the Russian Empire had to deal with this obstreperous nation and the region it occupied. A generation or two back, Russian policy in this region (and in general in the western regions of the empire) tended to be summed up with the rather murkily understood concept "Russification." Happily, since the pathbreaking works of Edward C. Thaden and in many excellent studies in the past few decades, a more nuanced portrait of the complex give-and-take between local population [End Page 307] (here, the Poles–but also the Jews!) and Russian officialdom has developed. And one significant contributor to this more nuanced understanding of Russian policy in the "Vistula Land"– or Kingdom of Poland–is the Bremer historian Malte Rolf. The publication of his book on Russian officialdom in Warsaw and the Polish provinces of the Russian Empire is thus a cause for celebration among historians of the Russian Empire whose German is not quite up to snuff. Rolf divides his book into four parts. First, he provides an excellent overview of Russian rule there in the final half century of Imperial Russia. In particular his coverage is strong at showing the various ways in which official Russia had an impact on these provinces, including censorship and religious policy. The second part of the book considers the city of Warsaw–one of the largest cities in the Russian Empire at this time and by all accounts a flourishing urban center– and the paradoxical situation of a modern city that was administered in an entirely bureaucratic manner. A separate, though rather short section focuses on Russian Warsaw specifically. The impact of the Revolution of 1905 is then examined and the "calm of the graveyard" period up to 1914. The book concludes with remarks on the peculiar nature and development of the "Vistula Land" as a "kingdom within an empire." The longest part of the book looks at imperial rule, in particular the tsar's servitors in the Polish provinces. As is well known, after 1863 ethnic Poles (and often anyone of Catholic faith or married to a Catholic) were barred from highest administrative positions in these provinces. As Rolf points out, salaries paid to these bureaucrats were considerably higher than to those in similar positions within the empire; as one contemporary remarked, the Polish provinces were a Beamtenkalifornien for Russian bureaucrats.1 In official documents one constant complaint concerns the low quality of these men (all men, I'm afraid) who often left positions in the Russian provinces under pressure because of their lackluster performance. At the same time, Russian officials here complained of high prices, hostility expressed in direct and indirect ways, and the distance from their homes and families back in central Russia. Rolf provides excellent short biographies of the governors-general (and others), showing that while they had much in common (such as previous military careers), their outlook on [End Page 308] the "Polish question" often differed quite significantly. As Rolf makes clear, building on previous studies, Russian administrators quite consistently denied a plan to "Russify" the Polish population. Their main task, rather, was to maintain order and prevent threats to imperial sovereignty. One may ask: "Why should we take their word for it?" Of course we should not–but we should also not ignore how these officials saw their own role and policy. In particular Rolf gives a number of excellent and telling details showing...

Uneasy Lies the Crown: External Threats to Religious Legitimacy and Interstate Dispute Militarization

Although often argued that religion should significantly influence international conflict, the empirical record is mixed. For every recurrent interreligious conflict, there are numerous examples of sustained interreligious cooperation. Conflict also frequently mars the oft-assumed peaceful relations between shared-religion states. We argue that religion is an important intervening factor in interstate dispute militarization, especially between internally threatened rivals. In mixed-religion dyads, conflict often follows oppression of cross-border coreligionists, whereas in shared-religion dyads, conflict occurs as one side disproportionately increases its official support for that religion. In both instances, dispute militarization is primarily an effort to undercut domestic competitors, whose challenge is augmented by external threats to leaders’ religious legitimacy. We test these propositions using new, long-term data on religious demography and state-religion policy, identifying rivalries via antecedent interstate territorial disputes. The findings largely confirm our hypotheses, substantially clarifying the conditions under which religion contributes to international militarized conflict.

(ВОС-)СОЗДАНИЕ РОССИЙСКОЙВЫСШЕЙ ДУХОВНОЙ ШКОЛЫ В КОНТЕКСТЕ РЕАЛИЗАЦИИ ДИПЛОМАТИЧЕСКОЙ МИССИИ МОСКОВСКОЙ ПАТРИАРХИИ ПОСЛЕВОЕННОГО ПЕРИОДА

The article analyzes the mutual influence of the key factor of the “Stalinist turn” in the religious policy of the Soviet government – the vocation of the Moscow Patriarchate to participate in international politics (implementation of a large-scale program of inter-church and church-state contacts in the countries and regions where the influence of the Soviet Union was spread) with the revival of the infrastructure of higher spiritual education in the post-war USSR. Despite its obviousness, this fact, repeatedly mentioned in historiography, has not yet been the object of a special research. At the same time, it is important both for confessional history, especially for the reconstruction of the factors that formed a special model of state-church relations in the post-war USSR, and for the reconstruction of how the Soviet foreign policy line of the Cold War era was forming and what role religious factor played in it. These trends carry a certain universalism and reflect the global trend: in the Soviet foreign policy of the second half of the 1940s, Orthodoxy served as a “façade” for coming to a particular region based on the revival of historical confessional ties. In other cases, the spread of ecclesiastical jurisdiction (the transfer of hierarchs and parishes of one territory or another to the Moscow Patriarchate) acquired the character of a full-fledged springboard for cultural and political consolidation of Soviet presence. During this period, the Church had to overcome the stereotype of the “red church” (dependent on the Soviet government), which was widespread abroad. To do this, church charismatics, bright preachers, negotiators-diplomats were in demand in the international arena. They were to be formed in the institutions of church education due to the almost complete elimination of the church infrastructure in the pre-war USSR.

Postać cesarzowej Teodory w źródłach łacińskich (Chronicon Wiktora z Tunnuny, Breviarium Liberatusa z Kartaginy oraz Liber Pontificalis)

The following article analyzes the presentation of Empress Theodora – the wife of Emperor Justinian and the most popular woman in the history of Byzantium – in contemporary Latin sources. Victor of Tunnuna, Liberatus of Carthage, and the author of selected biographies in Liber Pontificalis focused in their works primarily on the issues of religious policy of the empire and described the person of the ruler throughout this prism. Considerations on the parallel monophysite source tradition allow for a hypothesis about the schematicism of creating the image of Theodora as the main enemy of Chalcedonian orthodoxy.

Anti-church campaign in the 1920s in Kazakhstan (on the materials of the archives of Kazakhstan)

On the basis of archival documents, the anti-church campaign in Kazakhstan in the 1920s was studied on the seizure of church valuables under the pretext of helping the starving population of the Volga region. The purpose of the study is to analyze the regional features of this process, which influenced the further policy of the Bolsheviks in relation to churches and their property. The subject of the study is the activities of district commissions for the seizure of church valuables. Historical events are considered in dynamics, their causal relationships are revealed during the campaign period. The main goals of the anti-religious policy of the state are shown. The relevance of the study is due to the need to introduce into scientific circulation previously unused archival documents that make it possible to objectively highlight the features of the confessional policy of the Soviet state in the 1920s in Kazakhstan. The study of state-confessional relations at the regional level gives a more complete picture of the socio-political history of the designated period. The study of this problem seems to be relevant at the present time, when the role of religion in the public life of the country has noticeably intensified. The methods of scientific knowledge were used, the principles of scientific objectivity and historicism were used in the context of the problem of the relationship between the state and the national outskirts. Statistical research methods and the method of historical comparison were used to identify regional features in state-confessional relations. The retrospective method made it possible to identify the reasons for the transformation of the religious policy of the state, the attitude of the authorities towards believers in the 1920s in Kazakhstan.

Зарождение позднепротестантского движения в Беларуси в конце XIX - начале ХХ в.

The end of the 19th - the beginning of the 20th century is a period of upsurge in the Evangelic movement: the number of supporters is gradually increasing, their activities are becoming more active and becoming institutionalized, at the beginning of the century new Protestant beliefs appear in America. Gradually, the rise of the Evangelic movement more and more covers European countries, and the Belarusian lands participate in the global process of the spread and development of late Protestantism. On the basis of documentary archival sources, the author analyzes the process of the emergence of Baptist, Evangelical Christians, Adventists and others Evangelicals in the context of the religious policy of the Russian Empire, as well as in the conditions of Soviet politics in the BSSR and Polish policy on the territory of Western Belarus. The article notes that the process of the emergence of new Evangelic denominations in the late 19th - early 20th century in the western regions of Belarus takes place later than in the eastern ones. The later development of Baptism and other late Protestant denominations in Western Belarus was primarily associated with the spread of Evangelicals through the Western Ukrainian, Polish and Baltic lands, in contrast to the eastern part of Belarus, which has close ties with Russian lands and experienced a stronger influence of Russian Protestantism at the end of the 19th century. Geopolitical and political changes that took place during the First World War and Russian revolutions, in particular the establishment of the Soviet regime and the conclusion of the Riga Peace Treaty, according to which the territories of Belarus were divided into two parts, became the main trigger and played a decisive role in the development of the Evangelical movement. Firstly, in connection with the division of Belarus into western and eastern parts, the annexation of Western Belarus to Poland, active anti-religious campaigns in Soviet Russia and the creation of the “Iron Curtain” in 1929, the organizational orientation of Western Belarusian communities to the West changed. Secondly, geopolitical transformations and differentiation of the strategy of religious policy in the BSSR and in Western Belarus, the development processes of the movement predetermined the formation of the modern landscape of the evangelical movement - a pronounced religiosity of the western region and the presence of a large number of religious communities and a gradual decrease in these indicators towards the eastern border of Belarus.

Religious Life in the USSR and the Allied Policy of 1943: the Perspective of an American Assumptionist

The article considers one of the aspects of the transformation of the religious policy of the Soviet leaders during the Great Patriotic War. In 1941–1943 one of the main addressees of this policy were the allies of the USSR in the anti-Hitler coalition. The document on which this article is centred reflects the British view of the rapprochement between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Church of England in 1943. It is a report to the Vatican compiled by Fr Leopold Braun AA, Rector of the Catholic parish of St Louis in Moscow. The American priest describes the overall picture of religious and near-religious life in the country from the summer to the autumn of 1943; informs the Holy See of the circumstances of the 1943 Council of the Russian Orthodox Church and the election of Patriarch Sergius; details the visit to Moscow of Archbishop Cyril Garbett of York. Fr Braun emphasises the religious dimension of this visit. He claims that some members of the British diplomatic corps and journalists expected liturgical communion to be established between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Church of England. These assumptions were not confirmed by members of the British delegation, but reflected the sentiments of part of British society.

The Russian Empire Policy on the Formation of Population in the Leased from China Territories (1896—1917)

The leased territories status within Russian Empire in the late XIX – early XX centuries had exclusion zone of CER (concession) and Kwantung Leased Territory (international lease). Despite the differences in the legal status, Russia looked at these territories as part of itself, mastering them in such a way as to create conditions for the consolidation of «Yellow Russia» to political space of the empire. Most important role in this process was played by formation of population and creation of conditions for its life and activities in these territories. A number of factors influenced on formation of population at leased territories. First of all, it was sovereign territory of China, which meant Chinese population continued to live on these territories after Russia leased it. Key problem was that Chinese had a negative attitude to presence of any foreigners in Middle Kingdom, they did not want to obey alien administration. The second factor was presence of foreigners – representatives of European states. Many of them (especially subjects of Great powers of Europe) perceived Russian presence in China as competition and a threat to interests of their states and willingly participated in actions aimed at weakening Russia's position. The third factor was related with remoteness of leased territories from populated (and overpopulated) European center of Russia. In immediate vicinity were territories of Siberia and Russian Far East, where «Russian element» was not enough, the population was small. It was difficult to use demographic resource of nearest Russian territories for settlement of «Yellow Russia». This factor was connected with peculiarities of national and religious policy of the empire, which did not want to see marginal and stigmatized ethnic and religious groups in leased territories. All these factors required special political measures, in which the rational and expedient were intertwined with ideological and political, not always subordinated to pragmatic.

In Word and in Deed: a Religious Issue in the Messages of State Security in the Central Committee of the Communist Party (1950s — the First Half of the 1960s)

The article based on the analysis of documents of Central Committee of the Communist Party from the funds of the Russian State Archive of Modern History (RGANI) describes the normative and institutional foundations of the activities of Soviet state security regarding church-religious activities in the USSR, and also describes the peculiarities of the interaction of special services with the country's top party leadership on this issue in the 1950s — mid-1960s. Based on a large number of examples, which were taken from documentary sources, the authors conclude that in the post-war decades, the antagonistic policy of “militant atheism” (with the exception of a short surge associated with the Khrushchev anti-religious campaign) gradually transformed into a more loyal attitude of the authorities (including the KGB) to manifestations of religiosity, as a result of which repression towards believers was gradually supplanted by a system of preventive measures. The basis for the intervention of special services in religious issues was now only the active activities of unregistered religious organizations, the clear denial of a relatively small part of believers of the basic Soviet norms and values, as well as the precedents of church-confessional problems reaching the international level with the image of the Soviet side in the global confrontation of the Cold War. As for the nature of the relationship between the highest party authority and the KGB, there was a fairly flexible model of interaction, when the state security provided the party's Central Committee with limited information about their activities in this direction, adapting it to their own ideas about the current trends of Soviet religious policy.

Transformation of Religious Policy and Monk Training for Inner Mongolia in China: The Founding Period as a Turning Point

Transformation of Religious Policy and Monk Training for Inner Mongolia in China: The Founding Period as a Turning Point

Afghani crisis and the threat of Islamist extremism in Tajikistan

This article examines terrorist organizations that pose a threat to Tajikistan and analyzes their activities, media products and recruitment campaigns within the context of the Afghan crisis. Particular attention is paid to the rise to power of the Taliban in Afghanistan and the transformations that occurred during their year in power. It considers not only transformations in Afghanistan itself, but in the global jihadist movement as a whole. Expert interviews gathered during field research are also analyzed. The data collected during the field study are analyzed in addition to databases and academic papers already available in the public domain. Based on the data mentioned above, this article assesses the level of threat posed by various terrorist organizations and the possible prospects for the situation. It also examines the existing laws in the sphere of religious policy in the Republic of Tajikistan and their application. It examines how extremists adjust their recruitment campaigns and how it is reflected in their discourse. The article also reveals the peculiarities of relations between various extremist organizations that are active in Tajikistan or are composed of Tajik citizens and are involved in fighting in other countries. In addition, it investigates which organizations Tajik citizens are more likely to join and what determines their choice. The results of the article contain conclusions for each organization considered in accordance with the results of the study that has been conducted. These findings contribute to existing studies on extremism in general and on extremist activity in Tajikistan in particular against the background of the Afghan crisis. Therefore, it brings new arguments and perspectives to the existing academic debate on this topic.

ИСТОРИЯ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННО-КОНФЕССИОНАЛЬНЫХ ОТНОШЕНИЙ В РОССИИ

The program of the course “History of state-confessional relations in Russia” is devoted to the consideration of the most important aspect of the internal policy of the state – the relationship with religious organizations. Based on the historical and present-day material, the authors consider the essence and evolution of state-religious relations, the principles and content of the religious policy of the state, the stages of formation and development of relations between state institutions and confessional organizations.

СУСПІЛЬНО-РЕЛІГІЙНА РЕАКЦІЯ НА ОБРАННЯ У 1943 р. МИТРОПОЛИТА СЕРГІЯ (СТРАГОРОДСЬКОГО) ПАТРІАРХОМ РОСІЙСЬКОЇ ПРАВОСЛАВНОЇ ЦЕРКВИ

The article analyses the reaction of Orthodox churches and churches of the Anglican Commonwealth, as well as secular society to the election of Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky) as Patriarch of Moscow. This event was the first vivid fact of changing the course of the religious policy of Soviet power and caused a certain resonance in the world community, both religious and secular. The study of the spectrum of points of view about the mentioned local fact in their systematic presentation will allow to establish general trends of contemporaries in their attitude to the election of a new Moscow Patriarch in 1943. The dramatic circumstances preceding the patriarchal election of Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky) did not prevent the world community, primarily religious, from receiving him as the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church. This event was the initial step in the general process of renewal of state and religious relations in the USSR and the use of church resources in the international interests of Soviet power. The foreign policy effect of the election of Patriarch Sergius was significant and perceived as a certain indicator of religious freedom in the USSR, and therefore influenced the position of the Allies preparing to meet in Tehran to discuss the opening of the Second Front.

Marian Literary Culture: Lydgate, his Heirs, and the End of Tragedy

Marian Literary Culture: Lydgate, his Heirs, and the End of Tragedy

Muslim clergy of the Steppe region in the religious policy of the Russian Empire in the last quarter of the XVIII century - first half of the XIX century

Muslim clergy of the Steppe region in the religious policy of the Russian Empire in the last quarter of the XVIII century - first half of the XIX century

The religious policy of the russian empire in turkestan

The religious policy of the russian empire in turkestan

Боротьба за скликання Помісного собору Автокефальної Православної Церкви у Польщі в другій половині 20-х – 30-х роках ХХ століття

Метою статті є дослідження особливостей процесу боротьби за скликання Помісного собору Автокефальної Православної Церкви в Польщі (АПЦП) у другій половині 20-х – 30-х роках ХХ століття, метою якого було врегулювання її правового статусу і майнового положення. Авторкою проаналізовано архівні документи, матеріали тогочасної періодичної преси та видань, в яких висвітлювалися проблеми щодо скликання Помісного собору АПЦП. Методологія дослідження. Методологічну основу статті склали принципи історизму, об’єктивності, системності, міждисциплінарного підходу. Застосовано загальнонаукові, спеціально-історичні та міждисциплінарні методи. Кожен із них у конкретній ситуації був результативним і дозволив об’єктивно реконструювати процеси щодо скликання Помісного собору Автокефальної Православної Церкви у Польщі. Наукова новизна роботи полягає у тому, що авторка на основі архівних документів та матеріалів періодичної преси досліджуваного періоду з’ясувала особливості процесу боротьби за скликання Помісного собору АПЦП. Дослідження ґрунтується на новому джерельному матеріалі, який вперше вводиться до наукового вжитку. На відміну від попередніх робіт, присвячених цій темі, у статті більш рельєфно виявлена динаміка змін у релігійній політиці як Польської держави, так і Римо-католицького костелу щодо Православної церкви. Висновки. Після проголошення автокефалії Православна церква у Польщі потребувала врегулювання свого правового статусу та внутрішньої реорганізації. Вирішення цих питань було дуже важливим для забезпечення церковно-релігійних потреб православної громади. Перед православ’ям стояла ціла низка проблем. Їх вирішення залежало від польського уряду, православної ієрархії і вірян. Переплетення інтересів цих трьох основних чинників спрямовувало процес організаційного та правового становлення АПЦП. Наприкінці 20-х і 30-х роках ХХ ст. на захист інтересів АПЦП активно стали українські посли і сенатори. Вони домагалися задоволення потреб українського православного населення з трибун сейму і сенату, перед церковною та світською владою. Створене у 1931 році Волинське українське об’єднання (ВУО) та Товариство імені митрополита Петра Могили домагалися скликання Помісного собору АПЦП, який мав врегулювати її правовий статус і майнове становище. Однак на шляху скликання Собору зустрічалися перепони з боку православної ієрархії та польського уряду. Він так і не відбувся. Але постійні передсоборні приготування стали імпульсом до активізації православних вірян, які відстоювали права своєї Церкви.

Re-public Policy: Religious Freedom and Religiously Motivated Persecutions in Donbas (2014–2019)

The Russian interference in Eastern Ukraine followed by the appearance of unrecognized states such as the so-called “Donetsk People’s Republic” and “Luhansk People’s Republic” has distinctly shaped local religious landscapes, thus making policy on religion a very sensitive issue. Policies by the occupation authorities aimed to persecute certain religious communities and believers have transformed the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine into a space of religious non-freedom where religious rights are violated. The latest legislative initiatives in Donetsk and Luhansk cities raised serious concerns in the general public. Given the unsatisfactory state of religious freedom in the temporarily occupied territories of Eastern Ukraine and the need to respond appropriately to flagrant cases of persecution of many denominations, this study provides not only an analysis of religious policy in those territories, but also a comprehensive explanation of the specific outcome in the case of Donbas.