Russian Woman and Religion
Before 1917 (the October revolution that proclaimed the dictatorship of the working class) all Russian women believed, more or less, in God, they went to the church regularly. They were, like it or not, tied up with the church: the rites of baptizing, marriage, burial were performed under the holy laws only. Before the Revolution people in Russia austerely observed fasts, each settlement had its own strictly revered saint and celebrated a holiday in his honor.
When the Bolsheviks came to power in 1917 the situation was abruptly changed. The state home policy was directed against the church. The church was removed from the state affairs. The slogan of those years was “Religion is opium for people”. Many priests and their families were persecuted. Orthodox churches were closed down everywhere, monasteries were dismissed. The destruction of the Temple of Christ the Savior in Moscow that was erected in 1812 on public money to commemorate the victory of the Russian army over Napoleon, may serve a symbol of those years.
Communist ideology replaced Christianity for many years. Believers were persecuted, those who were not members of Komsomol (young communists) found it impossible to enter an institution of higher education.
The collapse o f the USSR and failure of communist ideology were accompanied by the revival of Christianity. Orthodox churches were opened everywhere at the end of the 1990s. Missionaries from the USA and West Europe extend their sphere of activity. Alongside with the Orthodox church, various protestant confessions - Baptists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists and others are legalized and start their propaganda.
Nowadays almost every Russian woman goes to the church at least once a year to fire a candle to honor the memory of the dead or to prey for the health of the living. Many couples sanctify their marriage by going through the church rite. But modern Russian women observe only the exterior of the rites without knowing the meaning if them: they go through the rite of christening and get their children christened, they go to the church on Easter and Christmas, some observe church fasts. But this is a tribute to the tradition, religious fanatics are not numerous. Russian Orthodox church did not manage to restore its former impact on the hearts and souls of its followers. But the link between the woman and the church is inherent in all Russian hearts, for they have always sought help from God in difficult situations.
An ordinary Russian woman is not a real believer, her faith is rooted in the subconscious. Her intuition drives her to follow Christian commandments and observe Christian rites. Not many would tell you the difference between the Orthodox church and the Roman Catholic church, but the Russian woman trusts in only one God to help her cope with her life that is far from being straight and easy.
