THROUGHOUT its existence, the Soviet government, while fighting religion as a bourgeois relic in general, simultaneously sought to limit the manifestations of religiosity to "worship" in specially designated places; therefore, any social activity of believers of all faiths was strictly suppressed.1 Representatives of late Protestant denominations, 2 who were usually referred to as "sectarians" in everyday life, were particularly closely monitored, as they were treated with a traditional view of elements that were particularly alien to Russian/Soviet society. At the same time, the state authorities, by subjecting believers to discrimination or open persecution, contributed to the closure of the religious environment, the formation of a community that was fundamentally (convincingly) alternative (opposed) to the Soviet one. In the late Protestant environment, a subculture was formed during the Soviet period, in which collective practices as a way to formalize the identity of a believer played a significant, if not a key role.

The study was supported by the grant of the President of the Russian Federation for support of young Russian scientists MK-663F2012. 6.

1. This aspiration is clearly reflected in the legislation. See the Decree "On Religious Associations" of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of the RSFSR Council of People's Commissars of April 8, 1929, as amended and supplemented by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR of 23.06.1975 // Vedomosti VS RSFSR. 1975. N 27. St. 572.

2. The concept of "late Protestant denominations" includes various branches of Evangelicals who also call themselves free (i.e., non-hierarchical) Evangelical churches. These are different branches of Evangelical Christians, Christians of the Evangelical faith (Pentecostals), Baptists, etc.

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For the most part, collective actions of believers were perceived as illegal by the State; these practices were monitored and suppressed.

Due to the close attention of the authorities to the activities of representatives of Evangelical Christian Baptist communities (hereinafter referred to as ECB), researchers now have a significant number of sources of state origin that record collective religious practices in the late Soviet period, which served as the basis for conducting the study. The author also drew on a set of interviews taken from believers in different regions of the country, as well as published memoirs of direct participants.

In general, describing the state of research of the stated topic, it is safe to say that a fundamental understanding of the religious subculture formed in the conditions of an authoritarian atheist state, as well as understanding its erosion after the collapse of the Soviet state, has not yet taken place. The proposed study only outlines the outlines for further, larger-scale research into the daily lives of members of Evangelical Christian Baptist communities.

Some practices of the EXB representatives, which had a pronounced protest character, made the relatively few "sectarians" on a national scale iconic figures of political dissent and were able to attract (and retain)them for a long time active attention of the international community to the situation of believers in the USSR.

What is the "typical community" of Evangelical Baptist Christians in the late Soviet period?

The first characteristic of a community is the presence or absence of registration with state bodies

The first characteristic of the community was that it was registered with the state authorities, which gave it the right to gather for joint prayer. According to Soviet legislation, believers could gather for joint worship only after their association was registered by state bodies; groups of believers (less than 20 people) could not receive registration in the union authorities until 1976, and they had to be registered

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local authorities 3. The abrupt termination of registration of religious associations in the USSR in 1948, and then a massive withdrawal from registration in 1959-1964, led to the fact that many late Protestant communities were left without registration and could be classified as "religious underground". The active de-registration of ECB communities in 1958-1963 also contributed to an increase in the number of illegal, unregistered communities. According to the All-Union Council of Evangelical Christians-Baptists (hereinafter-VSEKHB), as of December 1, 1959, there were 2,093 officially registered communities with a total number of 20,2006 members, including 4,24950 Evangelical Christians (CEE) and 1,000 unregistered communities with a total number of about 100,000 members.5
The activity of the religious underground forced the state authorities to look for ways to stabilize the situation, and as a result, a gradual, single registration of communities began in 1969.6 State authorities kept careful records of registered communities; unregistered groups were more difficult to deal with.

The situation with official (i.e. registered) EXB communities in the European republics of the USSR was as follows::

Republic

Number of communities in 1981

Number of communities in 1986

Belarus

171 (+35)*

171 (+5) 195 according to VSEKHB data by 1987.

Latvia

61

60

3. The situation of religious groups before 1975 was extremely uncertain and depended on the mood of the local administration. In 1975, the question was finally clarified: "A religious society or a group of believers may start its activities only after the decision on registration of the society or group of believers by the Council for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers of the USSR" - paragraph 4. The Resolution "On religious associations" of the Central Executive Committee of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR of April 8, 1929, with amended and supplemented by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR of 23.06.1975//Vedomosti VS RSFSR. 1975-N 27. St. 572.

4. CEE Christians of the Evangelical faith, otherwise known as Pentecostals, were incorporated by agreement into the VSEKHB in August 1945.

5. Information on VSEH as of December 1, 1959. RS EXP archive.

6. See the article: Belyakova N. A. From the history of registration of religious associations in Ukraine and Belarus in 1976-1986//Inviolable reserve. 2008. N 3 (59) www.nlobooks.ru/rus/nz-online/619/999/.

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Republic

Number of communities in 1981

Number of communities in 1986

RSFSR

552

552

Ukraine

1140 (+151)

1170 (+5)

Estonia

82 (+3)

82

* Groups or societies of believers registered for further registration are given in parentheses.

Almost all registered communities were part of the VSEKHB7. According to the initiators, 8 by the end of the 1950s, registered communities accounted for only about a third of the total number of EXB communities in the country, while two-thirds operated without registration. 9 In the mid-1970s, a very small but dynamic new category of so-called "autonomous" communities emerged.10
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, many religious communities and groups that remained unregistered continued to operate in the country. Unregistered EXB communities have become

7. VSEKHB - All-Union Council of Evangelical Christians-Baptists, formed in 1944. The Union united various "late Protestant" communities of Evangelical Christians and Baptists; in 1945, a part of Pentecostals (Christians of the Evangelical faith) were joined to the Union, in 1946 - 25 communities of Darbyists (free Christians) Transcarpathia, in 1947 - Pentecostal communities of the Apostolic spirit, in 1963-fraternal Mennonites.

8. Initiators - a movement among Evangelical Baptist Christians, mainly among members of unregistered communities, that emerged in 1961. The name "initiators" originated from the "Initiative Group" headed by G. Kryuchkov, P. Yakimenkov and A. Prokofiev, which demanded the convocation of a congress of Evangelical Christians-Baptists. From February 1962 to 1965, the supporters of this movement were also called "organizing committees" (supporters of the Organizing Committee) in connection with the creation by its leaders of the Organizing Committee for the convocation of the extraordinary All-Union Congress of the ECB Church.

9. For the opinion of the representatives of the ECB Council of Churches (ECB SC), see the study. Лахно О. Церковна опозиція Эвангельских християн-баптистів в Україні (1940 - 1980-ті роки). Poltava, 2009. There is reason to believe that this statement exaggerates the situation, since the representatives of the SC always persistently sought to prove that not they, but the entire SB represents a minority. However, due to the lack of adequate statistics on unregistered companies, it is impossible to establish exact figures.

10. As a result of a powerful protest movement among the ECB, the authorities were forced to compromise and agree to register communities that are not members of the ECB Union, i.e. autonomous from ALL ECBs. For their part, these communities were to end their relations with the leadership of the Council of Churches, that is, to become autonomous from the Council of Churches as well.

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the basis for the movement of "initiators" and most of them were then united by the structure of the Council of Churches (ECC ECB)11. Number of unregistered religious communities in the Ukrainian and BSSR as of January 1, 1981: 12

Denominations

Ukraine

Belarus

Pentecostals

266 (15537 members)

47* (1543 members)

Jehovah's Witnesses

230 (12819 members)

6 (334 members)

EXB, supporters

151 (6691 members)

35 (1873 members)

"Council of Churches"

sw (4885 members)

29 (1796 members)

ROC

76

ASD

13 (505 members)

2 (97 members)

Jewish (minions)

13

15 (181 members)

cpi

4

3

RCC

4

6

Adrianovna

19 (729 members)

Small sectarian associations

19

Reformed Church

3

Total

951

109

* This figure is very much underestimated, since in 1977 the Commissioner for the Brest region reported the existence in the Brest region of about 50 unregistered sectarian associations, mostly Pentecostal - GARF. F. 6991-Op. 6. D. 1243. L. 92.

How accurate is the information collected by government agencies about unregistered religious associations? Most likely, the accuracy of this data is low. Amendments to the legislation on religious cults adopted in 1976 began to provide for mandatory registration in state bodies not only of religious associations, but also of religious groups (i.e., less than a thousand people), so all previously existing religious associations should be registered with the state authorities.

11. The Council of Churches of the ECB is an organization of unregistered churches of the ECB, which was created in 1965 in opposition to the ECB recognized by the authorities and still exists today. The ECB is characterized by strict centralization, secrecy, absolute authority of leaders, centralized financing, etc.

12. The table was compiled by the author of the study on the basis of statistical reports of the Commissioners compiled by the Council for Religious Affairs. Unfortunately, the author was not able to enter data for the RSFSR in the table, since the fund of the Council for Religious Affairs did not find consolidated data for the RSFSR, they are given only for certain regions of the republic.

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in the form of religious groups, societies were among the unregistered religious associations, which, consequently, violated Soviet legislation. Since the second half of the 1970s, measures were again taken to "streamline the religious network", which meant reducing the number of unregistered religious associations. In practice, this led to the mass de-registration of unregistered associations under the pretext of breaking up (the most frequent option), joining members of already registered associations (the most convenient option for the commissioner), merging several groups and putting them on registration.

Regular detection by the authorities (for example, after denouncing or calling neighbors about a prayer meeting in the apartment) of a religious association that was not registered demonstrated the inefficiency of the work of the commissioner and his staff. The gradual urbanization of the population and the growth of Protestant associations in cities made it difficult to control the activities of believers.

Annual statistical reports show a steady decline in the number of unregistered associations, which were supposed to demonstrate success in " eliminating the religious underground." The fact that the information about unregistered associations provided by the authorized representatives is far from complete was noted in the newsletter of the Council for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers of the USSR (hereinafter referred to as the SPDR) in 1982: "As the analysis of the reports of the Council's authorized representatives for 1981 shows, the number of religious organizations actually operating without registration has societies and groups of believers. Statistical data provided by the Council's representatives for the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Komi, Bryansk, Voronezh, Gorky, Kemerovo, Omsk, Penza, Ryazan, Saratov, Volyn, Transcarpathian, Lviv, Rivne, Kharkiv, Brest, Gomel, Andijan, Kashkadarya, Namanga, and Surkhandarya regions does not reflect the actual existence of these requirements... The situation with registration of unregistered Muslim and sectarian associations that actually operate is particularly problematic. " 13 As the analytical materials of the SPDR show, all unregistered religious organizations should be registered before the end of the Soviet period.

13. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 2287. L. 24.

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the group failed, because ideological attitudes prevented a real analysis of the existing situation. It is safe to say that the consolidated statistical statements significantly underestimate the real figure for unregistered religious associations.

The question of whether a typical EXB community was registered or unregistered remains open today.

Community composition and structure

Unlike Orthodox, Catholic, and Muslim religious associations, the late Protestant congregations had a fixed membership; each congregation had to keep a corresponding list; and the number of members was carefully monitored by Soviet officials. However, the state archives do not contain summary data on religious associations throughout the USSR; moreover, there are no summary tables for the RSFSR. Reconstruction of the number of communities and their members throughout the RSFSR and then the USSR requires a separate study, so we have to use figures for individual republics.

A fundamental feature was the extremely uneven distribution of communities across the country, related both to the historical features of the spread of the evangelical movement and to the scale of repressive policies against "sectarians" in each individual region. 6o% of the total number of communes in the USSR were located in Ukraine (about 115 thousand members according to official data for 1976). According to the statistics of the All-Soviet Union, the situation in the RSFSR was as follows::

communities / registered communities/ groups

members

552/65 /20

56528/927/292

The number of members in religious communities was also extremely unequal. The largest congregations were located in the capitals of the country and the republics: in Moscow (in 1991-6,300 members), Leningrad, Kiev, Minsk, Riga, Tallinn, Chernivtsi (in two churches-about 2,100 members). But there were still large communities in the villages. Thus, the number of individual rural churches in the Russian Federation is estimated at-

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There were more than five hundred members in the orthodox Ukraine: for example, churches in Maly Tseptsevichi in the Rivne region, Gorokhov in the Volyn region, and Zarechye in the Transcarpathian region14. In general, rural communities of the EXB decreased in size, which was associated with migration flows. These communities were dominated by old women, with no elders or preachers.

In the note of the Commissioner for the Latvian SSR "On certain issues of the activity of religious associations in the Latvian SSR" of 1986, it was reported that the number of Baptist communities was decreasing and the death rate in them exceeded the birth rate (1090 people were baptized and 1,818 people were buried in 10 years); the majority of members of rural communities were retired; communities often did not have their own presbyters and preachers were dominated by older women. The Commissioner argued that the decrease in the number of members would have been even more significant if "the number of Baptists in the republic had not been affected by migration processes" .15 At the same time, the autonomous registered community of EXB Krusta was developing dynamically in Riga, with 130 registered members. In general, in 1980-83 years, 67% of the total number of baptists who were baptized in the country's Baptist communities were baptized in 12 urban communities of Latvia.

The activity of Protestant communities was observed in cities where young people and middle-aged people lived; at the same time, state documents emphasized that control over Baptist activities in cities, factories, and schools was becoming more complicated.

The largest in the country was the Moscow ECB community: it was estimated that in the 1970s - 80s it consisted of about 550 members. The peculiarity of the EXHB Ministry of Defense was that it was the only registered community in the whole of Moscow and the Moscow region with a prayer house in the City center (in Maly Vuzovsky Lane), where the office of the EXHB was located. This community was visited by many outsiders and curious people; the members of the community often did not know each other, and the room was crowded at all services. It was a demonstration community that was shown to foreigners. The community had specially trained members who were allowed to work-

14. Istoriya EKB v SSSR [History of EXHB in the USSR], Moscow: VSEKHB Publishing House, 1989. Электронная версия: http://anabaptist.ru/obmen/hystory/ist2/files/books/book_01/title.html

15. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 3441. L. 61.

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and who were supposed to keep order at regular services.

Even the President of the United States, R. R. Tolkien, visited this community. Nixon during his visit to Moscow in 1972. " The Moscow Church was included in the program of his stay in Moscow. Security services began to study all entrances and exits in the church in advance. The authorities helped restore the church building-painted, made marble floors, paved roads. In a week, everything was ready. One room was given to the CIA, and a direct connection was established with the White House. [ ... ] When the day of arrival arrived, our believers received passes and entered the building only with passes. " 16
It is even more difficult to study the composition of communities according to official documents than to talk about the exact number of community members, even in registered communities. One thing is clear: the composition of a typical community consisted of three groups according to the degree of active participation in worship: (a) clergy, (b) ordinary members, and (c) so-called close associates. Consider each of the three groups.

(a) Clergymen - presbyters, deacons, preachers. Presbyters in an ideal situation were chosen by the congregation from among its members. According to Soviet legislation, they were subject to mandatory registration with state bodies (with an authorized representative). Presbyters were subject to ordination, which was performed by the senior presbyter in the congregations of ALL churches. 17 In the 1960s and 1970s, ordination was regulated by the Statute of the ECB Union, adopted in 1966, according to which the senior presbyter performs ordination "whenever possible" 18. Rural communities often did not have their own presbyters; they were visited either by the presbyters of neighboring communities or by senior presbyters.

Registration of deacons and preachers was more difficult. State representatives categorically did not welcome the very presence of deacons, which implied their social activity - first of all, catechesis, help

16. Interview with A.M. Bychkov, 07.03.1998, in the framework of the project "Protestantism in the former USSR". p. 20.

17. Circular letter of ALL and B to all senior presbyters and representatives of ALL and B. Explanation on the issue of ordination, May 30, 1945 N2 067. Archive RS EXB 1.1-139.

18. Paragraph 15 of the Charter of the EXB Union, adopted by the Congress of the EXB of the USSR in 1966: Bratsk Bulletin, 1966, N6, p. 52.

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community members. Preachers delivered sermons during the service, and theoretically any trained member of the congregation could do so. But the authorities insisted that they receive mandatory registration, which allowed them to limit the number of active participants in the service.

Special status was given to members of the executive bodies and the headman, who mediated with state bodies, were financially responsible for the property and the prayer building. Usually it was two people (members of the audit commission and the headman). Only they, according to the Regulation on ALLHB of 1959, could preach.

Another category of active participants in the service is choir members who have not registered with government agencies.

b) Ordinary members of the community. In rural communities, the trend was such that up to 70% were women, while older people, who are more "strict in church discipline", "attend worship services more often... they follow religious prohibitions and regulations more consistently."

In 1973, the senior presbyter for the Orel region wrote to VSEKHB that " the request of believers for admission to the ministry of women sisters should be resolved on an All-Union scale." He named five communities in the region where women were elected as Church Council chairs and leaders in five registered groups. For example, in the Verkhovskaya community, Marfa Priyatkova, according to the note of the presbyter, "fulfills the ministry of a presbyter"; she "led liturgical meetings, preached the word of God, has a special gift of words, prayers, conversations, and is successful. Souls, especially women, turn to God.

Spiritual trebs: she did not perform baptism and the breaking of bread. The community has up to 30 members. The service was performed by a visiting presbyter of the Livensk community...

In the Zolotarevsky community, after the death of the presbyter, the leadership of the community was entrusted to sister Olga Minaeva, a maiden who is already more than 60 years old... there are no brothers in the church... As a senior presbyter, I was repeatedly asked by the Lugovskaya group to have a sister break bread with them, whom they all trust, and especially since she is a virgin, although she is already more than 50 years old. " 19
19. The ministry of women sisters. Note of the senior presbyter of the Oryol region Extreme from 29/03. 1973. Archive VSEKHB.

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The predominance of women among informal leaders continued during the perestroika period, but the conservatism of consciousness did not allow for the institutionalization of women's leadership; the only, worst brother in the community had an absolute advantage for performing worship and preaching. "There is a sister who organized a charismatic church, and she consults him:" Well, when will you give a talented brother to lead my church? I, sister, can't be a Bible pastor "" 20.

Speaking about the composition of a typical community, we should focus on intergenerational differences. The dominance of older people in communities often led to conflicts with the younger, more radical generation, and contributed to divisions or young people leaving for the "Council of Churches" communities. The fact is that the older generation was intimidated, and they also valued the registered church very much. They were ready to personally hinder the activity of young people: they banned them from missionary work, did not allow children to attend services, just so as not to aggravate relations with the authorities and not lose the opportunity for a quiet meeting for joint prayer. V. A. Mitskevich, who was a senior presbyter for many years, recalled an episode in the church in Konakovo, when two grandmothers brought their grandchildren to worship. During the service, which was attended mainly by old women, members of the administrative commission of the City Council and teachers entered the House of worship and threatened the trembling old men with a fine and dispersal of the community (I will tell you in my own words, since the speech in the interview is very confused): ""We will impose a fine on you. We will close your meeting." What is it? It's the kind of shock that makes you afraid, and you don't know what to do... Lord, how can we continue to serve? " 21.

In urban communities, where there were more working people and young people, the situation was fundamentally different. The rejuvenation of Protestant communities, mostly urban, in the 1970s-80s was recorded by both believers and officials. In the analytical note for the SDR, co-

20. Interview with Oborovets V. V., April 10, 1996, in the framework of the project "Protestantism in the former USSR". p. 30.

21. Interview with V. A. Mickiewicz, in the framework of the project "Protestantism in the former USSR". p. 8.

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According to a report published in 1982, "In the registered communities of the EXB,40 thousand people have been baptized in the last 5 years (5 thousand more than in the previous five years), and most of the converts are people of Komsomol age... Many of them have secondary and even higher education"22. The growth of youth baptisms in Protestant communities was observed in many regions of Ukraine. In the Rivne region from 1981 to 1984. "the number of sectarian associations has increased by two thousand people" 23.

Baptist youth often joined congregational groups in the 1970s and 1980s. A.V. Semchenko, a direct participant in the events, spoke about the youth groups of the Ministry of Defense of the EXB as follows:: "Groups then formed around the leader. They appeared mainly because there were more and more young people in the church. Too large groups of believers could attract the attention of interested bodies, so we had to share... Interestingly, the very first group was formed around Pyotr Abrashkin. And this separation initially caused hostility and criticism from the rest of the young people who had not yet broken up into groups. Peter gathered around him talented singers and musicians. I remember that some of the sisters in his band played guitars, which was very challenging at the time. The sisters didn't like this frivolous tourist tool. The sisters, according to the ideas of the church community of that time, were much more suitable for the mandolin or accordion. Pyotr Abrashkin called his band "Jazz Band". He wasn't a musician himself, but his band stood out and set the tone for a while. He wanted to be popular among young people. He didn't expect any interest from the older members of the congregation. Most of the older believers were wary of young people. The management, representatives of government structures have always scolded for unruly youth. But Peter's extravagant and unbalanced nature did not allow the group to last long. But after its collapse, other leaders created their own groups. " 24
22. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 2257. L. 40-43. Analytical note "On some issues of the influence of religion and the Church on youth", prepared in 1982 for the Central Committee of the Komsomol.

23. TsDAVO Ukrainy. F. 4648. Op. 7. D. 311. L. 145.

Semchenko A. 24. Pereulokami pamyati [Memory Lanes], Part 1: Youth of the 70s. http://semchenkoat.livejournal.com/12403.html

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From the memoirs of V. V. Obrovets about the Leningrad Church: "There were several groups, I think, maybe four or five youth groups. Each group had leaders. This part of my youth life-well, it affected me dramatically... For example, young people on Sunday, as a rule, did not attend the morning service. Active people went to visit small churches in the suburbs, somewhere else, in small groups. And everyone was going to the lunch service, which starts at two o'clock. And so, from two to four, there was a service... The young people quickly whispered to each other, because it was still communist time, and the young people ran away. And for the guest who came, say, a young guy, and did not get into any group, he could stay alone for the evening service, where there is not a single young man, only someone random who did not go to the meeting. Under the guise of a birthday party or just socializing, young people gathered in their apartments " 25.

Groups were divided by interests, and sometimes by gender, leaders of youth groups in large congregations had direct access to elders. Young people organized open-air gatherings on public holidays. The faithful held common prayers, preached sermons, and sang prayers. The words of many Christian hymns were set to the music of Soviet songs.

Youth groups often traveled to visit neighboring, small communities or, conversely, to meet with other groups. A member of the youth group of the Ministry of Defense of the EXB in the 1970s, A.V. Semchenko, recalled: "On Sunday mornings, we liked to go to some small local church in the region, where young people were welcomed with pleasure and allowed to participate in divine services, which was not the case in the central church. Here we preached, sang, and recited poetry."

The activity of young people often caused a tense attitude of the older generation. A.V. Semchenko, a representative of the youth group in the Ministry of Defense of the EXHB, spoke about the reaction of young people to criticism of their older brothers for "illegal actions": "Ay-ay-ay, what do you want! You will shut down the church with your actions!" To say that these words caused us regret, so no, this was not the case. Young people, on the contrary, were happy that such

25. Interview with Oborovets V. V., April 10, 1996, in the framework of the project "Protestantism in the former USSR". p. 6.

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In this way, she showed disobedience to the authorities and demonstrated a kind of love of freedom." Semchenko gave a number of examples of open clashes between young people and the official leadership of the community of the Ministry of Defense of the EXB. The main point of difference was the position regarding the restrictions imposed by the authorities on various forms of activity of believers. Semchenko, 1996: "The fact is that in times of confrontation, the presbyter was required to be loyal. And a disloyal presbyter, a presbyter who actively supports the youth, the development of youth movements, he was expelled from the church. Therefore, we will say that the entire youth movement as a whole was in opposition to the leadership of the Union. And the leadership of the church, especially in large churches, in virtually all regions, has always persecuted youth activists, believing that their actions anger the authorities and cause damage to the church as a whole."26 Semchenko reported that the case could reach open clashes. For example, with "young Zhidkov" at meetings: "Brother Zhidkov said at the end of the meeting: "Grace be with you all, depart." And I would stand by the pulpit and say: "No, brothers and sisters, sit down. Now there will be a membership meeting." But Zhidkov would get up again and say: "No, disperse." And I say, " No, stay." And so, in front of the entire Moscow church, there were such arguments. And yet, this was already some kind of relief and something new in the Moscow church. Our confrontation ended with the fact that Zhidkov still left the ministry in the Moscow Church."

By the mid-1970s, the issue of creating a Baptist youth Union, Bapsomol, was seriously discussed. A.V. Semchenko reported that " N. B.'s particularly large-scale activities began somewhere between 1973 and 1974, when a number of foreign organizations helped us with funds quite seriously. And our means were considerable to support everyone, to form this Union. Young people had money for business trips, for the purchase of multiplying equipment, for printing literature, underground, and publishing magazines. I remember when we used typewriters to print a youth magazine. I myself have traveled all over the country, holding a huge number of meetings, meetings, and all sorts of events."27.

26. Interview with A. T. Semchenko in the framework of the project "Protestantism in the former USSR". October 6, 1996

27. Ibid.

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c) Approximate values. This term referred to those who attended divine services but were not baptized. As a rule, they were, first of all, children of religious parents, relatives of believers who were preparing to be baptized.

The main source of replenishment of ECB communities were members of believers ' families, primarily children. For example, 152 associations were registered in the Rivne region, with more than 19,000 believers. "About 500 people receive water baptism every year. The largest number of large religious families is concentrated here, which is the main source of active reproduction of believers, " the Commissioner for the Rivne region reported in 1983.28

Large families were the norm in EXB and Pentecostal congregations, and the congregations were replenished quite intensively in the 1970s and 1980s.

In 1983-1984, work was done in Ukraine to collect socio-demographic characteristics of Evangelical communities and it was noted that the main source of replenishment of Protestant communities was large families of believers. For example, in the Mykolaiv region, the situation with large Protestant families was as follows: 29

Denomination

Number of families

Children in them

Evangelical Baptist Christians (EXB)

40

201

Christians of the Evangelical Faith (CEE)

25

168

Seventh-day Adventists (SDA)

3

17

Jehovah's Witnesses (SI)

2

12

Supporters of the ECB Council of Churches ' Communities

2

15

In the Poltava region, there were 79 large families of "sectarians", in which there were 317 children. 30
28. TsDAVO. F. 4648. Op. 7. D. 311. L. 145.

29. TsDAVO. F. 4648. Op. 7. D. 200. L. 111.

30. TsDAVO. F. 4648. Op. 7. D. 200. L. 124.

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Key community practices

The main collective practice was to participate in a joint divine service. Services were held on Sundays and major Christian holidays. Usually, the faithful gathered on one of the weekdays, and in large communities the service was held 3-4 times a week. The service consists of reading excerpts from the Holy Scriptures, sermons, and singing hymns. Festive and Sunday services usually last about two hours. Choral singing and musical accompaniment with a harmonium, organ, or orchestra must be used during the service. Even the government's most heavily edited Regulation on the All-Orthodox Church of 1959 specifically stipulated the presence of choirs and orchestras as an important feature of Baptist worship: "general and choral singing is an integral part of the service." The tradition of choral singing is an important part of evangelical culture. In addition to the possibility of self-realization, it was also a form of socialization: choirs and orchestras conducted chants and rehearsals. The believers tried to give their children a basic musical education, which was then used to create youth orchestras. In addition, new melodies and texts of prayer hymns were created among the faithful. V. V. Obrovetsky told about how rehearsals were held in Leningrad in 1971: "It was already a time when there were already enough young people in the Leningrad Church on Poklonnaya Gora... Youth meetings were banned, but the presbyter Fadyukhin Sergey Petrovich, he suggested such a method-extended play. It was a youth meeting. That is, an orchestra would gather, and they would invite their friends to listen to them play, listen to reviews, pray, and read the Bible. " 32 The SPD's research note stated the following: "Leaders of sectarian religious societies, in order to involve young people in them, create various vocal and instrumental ensembles along with choirs, organize theatrical religious performances, concerts, youth and children's events

31. Candidate of Technical Sciences. At the moment, he is one of the presbyters of the 2nd Moscow ECB Church. Over the years, he held the positions of Vice-Rector of the Russian-American Christian Institute and Deputy Director of the Bible Center.

32. Interview with Oborovets V. V., April 10, 1996, in the framework of the project "Protestantism in the former USSR". p. 8.

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evenings, evenings of religious poetry, the program of which includes individual poems of classics of Russian literature, as well as such poets and writers as Yevtushenko, V. Soloukhin, etc. " 33

An important feature of the service was to provide any believer with the opportunity to say an individual prayer, in which the believer could share his troubles, aspirations, and convey to the faithful information about the situation in the brotherhood and the problems of individual members. In many communities, due to the ongoing persecution of believers, prayer was practiced for "prisoners of the faith", that is, for those imprisoned for religious reasons. The presence of this prayer was considered by the authorities to be an indicator of the degree of loyalty of a community (after all, there was no persecution for religious beliefs in the Soviet Union); however, since the mid-1970s, the authorities failed in this matter, since prayers for prisoners in autonomously registered communities could not be stopped.

In unregistered communities, services could be interrupted at any time due to the intervention of government officials, who dispersed these prayer meetings and brought their organizers to administrative responsibility. Since the late 1970s, members of unregistered communities have been subjected to discriminatory and repressive measures most systematically. Local authorities established the location of prayer meetings and constantly prevented them from being held. Thus, only in October-November 1981 " in a number of localities in Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhia, Voroshilovgrad regions, local authorities took measures to prevent and stop illegal mass gatherings of sectarians. Some organizers of these gatherings and those who resisted the authorities were brought to administrative responsibility. There were no violations of the rule of law by local authorities. " 34 In 1982, the telegrams of believers addressed to Leonid Brezhnev reported violent dispersals of prayer meetings of members of the SC in the Kharkiv and Chernivtsi regions: "February 21, 2014, the Russian Orthodox Church was held in Kiev.-

33. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 2257. Analytical note "On some issues of the influence of religion and the Church on youth", prepared in 1982 for the Central Committee of the Komsomol.

34. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1998. L. 167.

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la overclocking... It was accompanied by the use of brute physical force, believers were beaten with their hands in the back and head, strangled, bitten, a young man was beaten in the courtyard of the village Council and thrown unconscious into a police car. 16 believers were arrested and taken away. Dispersals of meetings, unauthorized inspections of the homes of believers mostly in the evening... instructor of the city executive committee... and a lieutenant... they broke into the homes of believers, ignoring the screams and cries of terrified children. Shouts and threats push away adult believers, go through all the rooms and take everything they need. " 35
Sometimes special services were held, for example, to call converts to repentance, or for young people or women. One meeting could flow smoothly into another. A.V. Semchenko, a member of the ECB Ministry of Defense, recalls: "Young people rarely follow the rules and regulations. We were no exception. We met after work, almost every day. We spent Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday evenings, as well as Sunday evenings, in the Central Church in Maly Vuzovsky Lane. The young people were in no hurry to start the evening meetings. This was called "gathering under 'grace'", that is, when a preacher from the pulpit said " the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit..."We met near the organ, and since we were not allowed to stay in the church after meetings, we usually went to someone's house or walked to the Kursky railway station (the nearest metro station to the church), where we said goodbye to each other for a long time. Later, when the Ploshchad Nogina metro station opened (today Kitay-Gorod metro station), we started going to it. In the summer, young people liked to take a river tram to get to the Leninsky Mountains, climb one of the mountains and arrange a prayer meeting there, of course, with singing hymns. Often the singing ended with the arrival of the police, dispersal, and then reprimand the older brothers for not educating their youth properly. " 36
In parallel with the service, often in a small room of the prayer house, classes were held for children, which was strictly prohibited by law. If Sunday schools were discovered, a big scandal broke out. "In Kiev, in March 1980, in a house of worship registered-

35. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 2257. L. 48.

Semchenko A. 36. Pereulokami pamyati [Memory Lanes], Part 1. Molodezh 70-kh.

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An underground school for teaching religious children was found in the EXB research Society, including 2 groups of 15-18 children aged 12-12, a group of 18 teenagers aged 14-16, and a group of 9 people aged 17-18. Each group was located in a separate room, they were led by adult cultists. The children had religious literature and notebooks"37. Religious teachers for children and organizers of Christian children's camps were regularly subjected to criminal penalties in all republics of the USSR. Thus, on August 1, 1976, E. N. Barin was convicted in the village of Chuvashia. Zdolbunovo, Rivne region, Ukrainian SSR, for organizing a Sunday school for teaching children religion 38. In 1980, N. Mashitsky was convicted in Vinnytsia. "As leaders of special illegal youth courses in Dnepropetrovsk, N. Kabysh and K. Smirsky were brought to criminal responsibility" In the same year, "one of the leaders of the Council of Churches" Pavel Rytikov was brought to justice for organizing a children's camp in the Carpathians. "At the railway station (in Lviv), the police detained Rytikov, his son and < Halyna > Vilchinskaya. During the search, material evidence of their criminal activities was seized from them... a tape recorder with slanderous content and a camera with photographic films were seized, from which it is clear that Rytikov taught religion to children in the Carpathians. Rytikov, his son and Vilchinskaya were brought to criminal responsibility. " 39
However, in most Protestant communities, Sunday schools in one form or another were the norm. For example, in the Narva community, according to the current presbyter of the community Pavel Vezikov, Sunday schools operated throughout the Soviet period.

A. M. Bychkov, a presbyter of the registered MO EXB, a member of VSEKHB, recalled: "I remember in the 60s and 70s, Sister Vera did a lot of work with children and young people... She carried out her work with talent and never complained, did not spare her strength and health. She was doing great. God kept her safe. The detachments also worked with young people and children. At that time, I was acquainted with Vilchinskaya (she was the daughter of one of the li-

37. From the reference about SCEHB 1980-GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1759. L. 98.

38. KHTS. N42. Persecution of believers.

39. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1891. L. 48.

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derov SC EXB, from Brest). She has been bound more than once for her work with children. " 40
In the congregations, there was a circle of people responsible for the deaconal ministry: for organizing material assistance to community members in need, for raising funds for families of prisoners, and for visiting the sick and elderly. This area of activity was strictly prohibited by law and was not disclosed. Nevertheless, both registered and unregistered communities have been so active since the Soviet era.

A. M. Bychkov told about his wife's activities: "Zoya Vasilyevna was a chorister in the Moscow Central Church of the ECB for many years, actively participated in the ministry of the deaconess, helping people in need and suffering."41
Social work was systematically organized in the communities of the Council of Churches of the ECB: believers were required to pay tithes, these contributions from the communities were collected to the central cash register, and then funds were distributed from the central cash register of the Council of Churches. In the SC communities, families of prisoners of faith, mostly belonging only to the Council of Churches, were supported, but sometimes assistance was also provided to families of prisoners from registered communities. In addition, the Council of Churches took on the maintenance of the families of people who were in an illegal situation, did not work in state work, but only engaged in the affairs of the Union. D. M. Vinogradsky said: "In the Union, the question was that both the families of prisoners and the families of workers should not suffer from a lack of anything, and therefore their content had to be complete. And there were no such questions, the church understood and responded. By the way, then all this content was on the shoulders of our own believers. This is now, please, overseas missions contain everything. " 42
Important collective practices included participation in baptisms, weddings, and funerals. Baptism by faith was a key event in the life of a believer, including a sign of entry into the community. Baptists traditionally practiced baptism in open water when the congregation met. However, the authorities are all Xi-

40. Interview with A.M. Bychkov, March 07, 1998, in the framework of the project "Protestantism in the former USSR". p. 15.

41. Ibid., p. 1.

42. Daniel M. Vinogradsky, born in 1930, an active member of the Organizing Committee and ECB, one of the organizers and leaders of the Brotherhood of Independent Churches in Ukraine in 1984; had 9 children, was imprisoned several times.

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lamas tried to stop the mass nature of this ceremony, insistently demanded preliminary approval of candidates for baptists and minimal attendance of believers; at large churches, at the insistence of the authorities, small baptisteries were built. Nevertheless, mass baptisms on the banks of lakes and rivers were organized quite regularly.43
Religious relatives and friends from different regions gathered for Baptist weddings. Holding mass weddings is reflected in many documents of state origin. "Despite all the cautionary conversations of representatives of local authorities with Bytin to limit the presence of only close relatives and friends at the wedding, sectarians from different regions came to the city. Some of them behaved defiantly, made hooligan antics, insulted officials, called on other sectarians to disobey, for which 2 people were sentenced to 10 days of arrest, and several people were fined. " 44
Weddings for supporters of the Council of Churches were particularly popular; they allowed representatives of illegal fraternities from different parts of the country to meet. This trend was recorded by SPDR officials: "It has become especially" fashionable " for supporters of the so-called SCEHB to hold their gatherings under the guise of weddings, which are attended by hundreds of extremists from different regions of the country. Moreover, they tend to hold these gatherings ostentatiously, in the open air, using radio equipment, especially amplifiers, with the participation of choirs and orchestras. Weddings are Becoming More than Just Prayer Meetings

43. According to the ECB's creed, water baptism is performed on those who believe in Jesus as their personal Savior and have experienced a new birth (a personal mystical experience), publicly announced this at a community meeting, and passed a probationary period. Baptism is performed by ministers (usually the presbyter of the congregation) through a single immersion in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The baptism of a believer symbolizes his death, burial, and resurrection with Christ. When performing baptism, the minister asks the person being baptized: "Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God? Do you promise to serve God with a good conscience?" After the baptised person answers in the affirmative, the minister says: "According to your faith I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." The baptised person pronounces the word "Amen" together with the minister. After baptism, the ministers perform a prayer over the baptized and the breaking of bread (communion).

44. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1759. L. 99.

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in the open air, but also with a demonstration of force, inflammatory and provocative actions of extremists. " 45
Here is a description by the SPDR representative of the wedding of one of the prominent leaders of the initiators (Iosif Bondarenko and Maria Pinkevich), which took place on September 28, 1969 in Brest 46: "By 9 o'clock on September 28, guests began to arrive in the courtyard of citizen Pinkevich. By 11 o'clock, they already numbered up to 700 people. Brest sectarians were attended by up to 250 people. The cultists arrived by various means of transport. There were up to 600 people from Ukraine, and some sectarians from Moscow, Smolensk, Minsk and other places.

For the reception of guests, Pinkevich built 15 tables of 15 meters each in his garden. The tables were under a stretched tarp.

The wedding was performed by the presbyter of a group of schismatics from Sukhumi. His last name has not been established. The presence of Vince or Kryuchkov at the wedding has not been established. Congratulations were delivered from various venues and gifts were presented. Congratulations were also delivered by the Czech. A brass band was playing. A microphone and loudspeaker were installed. After the intervention of the City Council, the loudspeaker was removed. A tape recording of the speakers was conducted, and two movie cameras were used to shoot the wedding procedure.

After 4 o'clock, guests from distant places began to leave. By 22 o'clock, the wedding ceremony was over. On Monday, there are several dozen relatives left."47.

Funeral ("seeing off the last journey") they also became widespread, especially if it was a violent death (Nikolai Khmara, 1964; Ivan Moiseev, 1972; Ivan Ostapenko, 1972; Nikolai Khrapov, 1982; Boris Artyushchenko, 1984) .48

Among the forms of community activity that have taken on the meaning of religious practice in the broader sense of the word, the following are:-

45. Information about statements and letters from supporters of the so-called "council of Churches of the ECB". GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1759. L. 99.

46. Information of the Commissioner for the Brest Region addressed to the President. SPDR and the Commissioner for the BSSR about the wedding of I. Bondarenko and M. Pinkevich. September 29, 1969-GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 226. L. 23-24.

47. Ibid.

48. Biographies of these people and their forcibly deceased co-religionists, photos of funerals are published in: Imitate their faith. 40 years of the awakened brotherhood, Moscow: Izdanie Soveta tserkov EKB, 2001.

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It is necessary to name the printing, transportation and distribution of religious literature - the Holy Scriptures, collections of texts of prayer hymns, and Christian periodicals. This was due to the lack of official publication of religious literature (the scope and range of religious literature allowed by the authorities categorically did not meet the religious needs of believers), and reading the Holy Scriptures daily is an indispensable condition for the life of an evangelical believer. The importance and scale of the distribution of religious literature by Evangelical Christians were such that representatives of other faiths (for example, Orthodox) used Bibles and Gospels (although usually tamizdat) received from "Baptists".

The process of printing and distributing religious literature was absolutely dominated by members of the" Council of Churches", which had its own underground publishing house" Christian " with many illegal printing houses, which ensured the distribution of religious literature throughout the USSR. The hectograph (or" blue print") appeared in 1961. In 1962, the first magazine "Evangelical Call" was published on 70 pages, printed on a hectograph. In 1965, Bratsky Listok and Vestnik Spasvaniye magazine, first published on the hectograph, began to be published regularly. Vinogradsky, one of the participants in this process, said: "Printing was organized initially on a hectograph, and we had no other means of printing. The hectograph is a blue print that has been constantly improved, so that in the end, we were able to shoot more than a hundred copies from the matrix. We had one of the blue printing points in our association, but not in Zhytomyr, and we made it in Berdichev, at a brother's house... You write with special blue ink, you draw, and, therefore, you needed a person who writes beautifully. Then the technical part of the work. Yes, this was done by those who were in an illegal position, who were generally free."

If initially the printing houses of the Council of Churches used the "blue" technology created by the leaders of the movement, then by the 1980s offset printing machines were mainly used, which made it possible to print thousands of copies of religious literature. In the early 1980s, several clandestine printing houses of the SC were discovered: in Ukraine, in the village of Starye Kodaki, Dnipropetrovsk region, in the spring of 1980, an underground printing press was discovered.-

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a full-scale printing house with "2 printing points of offset and blue printing. A lot of them were seized... religious and slanderous literature... tape recordings with illegal recordings. At the same time, 5 people were detained. from various regions of the country"; then, in June 1980, a similar printing house was found in Novorossiysk. During the arrest of one of the activists of the SEC EXB P. V. Rumachik in Dneprodzerzhinsk in the spring of 1980, "printing equipment, goo boxes with dye, 2oo packs of wax, goo packages with offset plates (50 pcs each) were seized. in a package), 349 packs of religious cards (100 pcs each). in a bundle) - all foreign production... a lot of foreign anti-Soviet literature has been seized." According to Rumachik, Deputy Chairman of the EC, by the end of the 1970s, 35 underground printing houses of the EC EXB were operating in the USSR, equipped with equipment for "black printing" (offset printing), which were directly controlled by the chairman of the EC EXB G. K. Kryuchkov49.

Writing and distributing "protest letters" about the harassment of believers to the highest Soviet authorities was a specific phenomenon of religious life in the Soviet period, a common form of struggle of believers in the 1970s-80s against the arbitrariness of local authorities. Representatives of all faiths wrote letters to the highest Soviet authorities: the Central Committee of the CPSU, the Prosecutor General's Office, the Council of Ministers, and the Council for Religious Affairs. However, the greatest scope of the petition campaign was gained in the ranks of Baptists-representatives of the Council of Churches, who were able to establish a systematic collection and dissemination of information about the persecution of their co-religionists. The Bulletin of the Council of Relatives of Prisoners for the Word of God of the ECB has become the longest-running human rights samizdat body in the USSR. Protection of the rights of co-religionists in the Soviet state, worked out by the Council of Relatives of EXB prisoners, was at the origin of human rights activities in the USSR. Representatives of the Council of Churches were able to establish systematic channels for transmitting their periodicals and letters abroad (the only ones in the USSR, the rest managed only sporadically), which made it possible to widely and promptly inform the international community through the Internet.

49. The path is not decorated with flowers. Peter, Pavel and Lyuba Rumachik. The inspiring story of Pastor Peter Rumachik, who spent eighteen years in a Soviet GULAG for preaching the Gospel. Baptist International Evangelistic Ministries: 2005.

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western Baptists and human rights organizations on the scale and nature of persecution of believers in the USSR. Thus, the policy of the Soviet authorities towards unregistered sectarians acquired an international resonance.

Representatives of the Council of Relatives of EXB Prisoners created a network to collect information about cases of harassment of EXB believers throughout the Soviet Union, and then compiled letters or telegrams addressed to the country's top leadership. In 1980, the SPDR noted that the preparation of letters from members of the SCEXB is systematic: in 1978, the SPDR received 132 letters, and in 1979 - 106. "In 9 months of 1980, the SPDR received 59 collective letters and applications from supporters of the SCEXB operating in 38 localities 32 oblasts, territories, and autonomous republics " 50. In 1980, most of the letters were received from separate locations in the Bryansk, Rostov, Sverdlovsk, Tula, Voroshilovgrad, Donetsk, and Mogilev oblasts. As the officials noted, the believers of the SC send " various petitions and applications to the central authorities demanding unlimited freedom of religious activity and an end to the alleged infringement of the rights of "true Christians" and "persecution of co-religionists"in our country." For example, in 1981, a telegram was sent to Brezhnev and General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Ukrainian SSR of Ukraine Shcherbitsky from the Council of relatives of EXB prisoners:

"We report on lawlessness widespread dispersals of religious services of the ECB believers with subsequent arrests short term convictions fines and criminal proceedings the rampant atheism is especially rampant under the explicit leadership of party workers in Ukraine... the 25th of October... a religious service was violently dispersed and 8 Christians were arrested and convicted on false and fictitious charges 5 - 10 - 15 these dispersals are accompanied by the use of physical force beatings of believers by the militia vigilantes after the dispersals the injured Christians are shamelessly blamed the witnesses of lawlessness are the same police officers who should be involved as criminals you are comrade brezhnev comrade shcherbitsky God has entrusted power in the republic to you great responsibility for the plight of the people of God in the country ... because you reject God, His existence does not stop, so stop the unfolding one-

50. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1759. L. 96.

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the course of extermination of Christians in the country do not unsubscribe with meaningless pieces of paper sent to us by local authorities these responses will be superfluous accusers of the eternal court of God council of relatives of exb prisoners our address krasnodon podgornaya rytikova " 51.

The Council of Relatives of EXB prisoners organized large-scale actions with demands to stop the persecution of Christians. Thus, in 1977, a letter from Christian mothers about the oppression of believers in the Soviet Union, which called for the abolition of all restrictions on the religious education of minors, was signed by 4,030 Baptists from more than 150 localities (there were 420 signatures from Ukraine).52.

By the 1980s, SPDR officials claimed that protest petitioning activities of evangelical Christians were coordinated from a single center: "An analysis of these letters shows that they are all inspired by the leaders of a sectarian group and in their content repeat slanderous fabrications and illegal demands set out in the illegally published bulletins of the so-called "council of relatives of prisoners". The scope of these letters differs, but the content is the same: they deal with the alleged "ongoing persecution of believers", "persecution" of them, etc.; list the names of arrested or fined extremists, distort other actions of local authorities to stop the illegal activities of supporters of the so-called SCEHB, and finally express ultimatum demands for release so-called "prisoners", the return of everything "seized", the abolition of legislation on cults, the granting of the right to freely distribute and produce religious literature, etc. " 53

Summing up the observations on the nature of collective religious practices in ECB communities in the late Soviet period, it should be noted that both the forms of practices and the degree of activity of members depended on the gender and age composition of communities and on the availability of community registration with state bodies. Membership in communities registered or unregistered by the authorities depended not only on state policy, but also on the characteristics of the ha-

51. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1998. L. 171-172.

52. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1121. L. 37-38. The message text . L. 44-54.

53. GARF. F. 6991. Op. 6. D. 1759. L. 95-96.

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the character of each individual member. What was new in the EXB environment was the dynamic development of so-called "autonomous" communities with very high social activity of its members. The most important characteristic of the study period was the growth of youth and youth activity in all types of communities. Collective youth practices gave its members, in addition to socialization, the opportunity to challenge the authoritarian system, outwit, circumvent the prohibitions on teaching religion, distributing religious literature, free baptisms, delivering sermons, etc. Youth practices sought to ignore state prohibitions, remove the boundaries between what is permissible and intolerant, and maintain communication between the registered and unregistered part of the brotherhood. The most" intolerant "from the point of view of the state were the following collective practices: organization of Sunday schools and summer camps; prayers for "prisoners for the faith", especially in prayer meetings; meetings in groups for the study of the Holy Spirit. Writing; creating groups of believers based on their interests; visiting other congregations for joint prayers and preaching. During this period, a number of protest practices caused by the specific situation of believers in the USSR became widespread. Thanks to the protest actions of the ECB believers, the issue of state discrimination of believers in the USSR was constantly on the agenda in international relations.

Bibliography

Archive materials

State Archive of the Russian Federation (GARF) F. 6991 (Council for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers of the USSR). Archive of the Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists (RS EXB) 1.1-139.

Central State Archive of the Highest Authorities and Administration of Ukraine (TsDAVO of Ukraine)

F. 4648 (Council for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR and its predecessors: authorized representatives of the Council for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers of the USSR for the Ukrainian SSR).

Chronicle of Current Events (HTS)

N42. Persecution of believers.

Interview

Bychkov A.M. (07.03.1998)

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Oborovets V. V. (10.04.1996)

Semchenko A. T. (06.10.1996)

Vesikov P. (08.2008)

Literature

Belyakova N. A. From the history of registration of religious associations in Ukraine and Belarus in 1976-1986//Inviolable reserve. 2008. N 3 (59).

Electronic version: www.nlobooks.ru/rus/nz-online/619/999/

Bratsk Vestnik, 1966, No. 6.

Istoriya EKB v SSSR. M.: Izdatelstvo VSEKHB, 1989. Electronic version: http://anabaptist.ru/obmen/hystory/ist2/files/books/book_01/title.html

Лахно О. Церковна опозиція Эвангельских християн-баптистів в Україні (1940 - 1980-ті роки). Poltava, 2009 54.

Imitate their faith. 40 years of the awakened brotherhood, Moscow: Izdanie Soveta tserkov EKB, 2001.

Resolution "On Religious Associations" of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of the RSFSR Council of People's Commissars of April 8, 1929, as amended and supplemented by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR of 23.06.1975//Vedomosti VS RSFSR. 1975-N 27. St. 572.

The path is not decorated with flowers. Peter, Pavel and Lyuba Rumachik. The inspiring story of Pastor Peter Rumachik, who spent eighteen years in a Soviet GULAG for preaching the Gospel. Published by: Baptist International Evangelistic Ministries. 2005.

Semchenko A. Pereulokami pamyati [Memory Lanes], Part 1. Molodezh 70-kh. Electronic version: http://semchenkoat.livejournal.com/12403.html

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Appendix 1

Fragments of an interview with Pavel Vesikov, a presbyter of the registered community in Narva (in the 1970s - 80s a member of the registered community in Narva), taken by N. A. Belyakova in August 2008.

PV: In general, our church is very interesting. About 30% of the church's members supported the Council of Churches. First of all, they had some contacts, helped them, prayed for them, worried about them, and read magazines. In addition, the church here was as if in the shadow of the KGB, in general, the authorities sought to ensure that there were no "separated"people in the Baltic States. In principle, about half of the people living here supported the Council of Churches.

NB: How did the authorities prevent the appearance of "separated" people here?

PV: We gave them a little more freedom on purpose. Why do people leave? Because they are forbidden something. And we had a youth church. We've always had a lot of young people. There were always Sunday schools. There were almost no breaks in the work of Sunday schools. Once there was a break, but this was not due to persecution, but to the fact that there was no one to teach.

NB: Were there many SC sympathizers in Estonia? I know that in 1977 several people from Narva and Valga signed the "letter of Christian mothers".

PV: I think it was Kosachevskaya, her husband and son were sitting. The Vysotskys could have signed it - they were very close to the Council of Churches. There was a Council of Churches church in Valga. When Minyakov arrived from Barnaul, he founded a community there. The community in Valga was large, and we were very friendly with them. At my wedding in 1979, there were a lot of young people from the SC communities. Even Minyakov and Mikhail Petrov, who were wanted, were in my house at the wedding, in the next room, did not want to go out into the hall - "to spoil the whole wedding."

During the period of aggravation of the all - Union aggravation of the struggle with the supporters of the SS in 1982-1984, the Baptists of Estonia also came under attack. Pavel Vezikov told me:

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PV: In general, I do not know why exactly in 1983 they started shaking our community. I think it was an accident. In 1975, the publishing house ("Christian") is shaken, several people are tried. A few years later, they found a printing house in Ukraine, where two members of our Church are located. Then 1981, suddenly my brother is being tried. He was arrested, he was here distributing "Christian" to people. And that was enough to get him arrested, a trial, and a case opened. And he was a young guy. There was a trial, and they were ordered to pay a fine of 20% of the salary for six months in favor of the state. Then, about six months later, we had a wedding, went with the young people to nature, to Ust-Narva, there were a lot of people, they sang songs. People came up to us and we started talking. One of the young men was the most memorable. All. Court. Allegedly, we were engaged in preaching activities on purpose, under the guise of a wedding. Well, of course, they blamed everyone. Everyone, including the young ones, was fined 20% each for six months.

NB: How could the authorities know that your brother was distributing a "Christian"in the house of worship?

PV: We were known, we were always watched, we were always under the gun. Some of the people passed. Who! Is unknown. A year and a half ago, a member of the congregation confessed this to me. He was working against me. Broke a young guy, just broke. Now he is already an old man, a solid man, still can not forgive himself-his whole life is upside down. I think there were a lot of them. They kept going, and then they called and knocked.

NB: And what did you "light up" in 1983?

PV: After the wedding story, we started shaking consistently. Nine houses were searched. I had already known for a week that there would be searches, but for some reason I was calm. So everyone who wanted to hide something brought their bags to me. I had nine other people's bags. In addition, I myself had a huge library at that time. For some reason, I was sure that they would not come to me, I was calm. Probably because I didn't show my face anywhere, even though I attended several meetings of the Council of Churches. When they finally came to me, they forgot about everyone. The one-room apartment was searched for five hours by about six people. The search was conducted not only by local residents, but also by the captain. By the way, he came to believe later, and I baptized him. He later said that the others were from Tal-

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the Lynn KGB. I found a lot of literature, and some of the books were just discarded, smelled of fresh paint, ready to be taken out. The whole apartment was shaken up, everything was taken away. Even the wad of blank paper was taken away.

NB: How did you end up with freshly printed literature in your house?

PV: Our community was somewhat in the shadows, so we could do publishing here. The publishing house was in a private house. There were offset machines. There were two looms in Narva and one in Kohtla-Jarva. There is an American film about underground Baptist publishing houses. And there is a nuance: there is a gutter from the window, along which a pack of printed literature is allowed, it rolls and rolls, and there it is taken away somewhere below. In the film, of course, a collective image, but in Narva there was just such a gutter. The fact is that all sorts of movements in the garden could be traced. So the pack went down a chute with high sides - and there it was already caught, at the fence, packed, put in the car and taken away. There were all sorts of tricks on how to take it out. And I organized the bookbinding work.

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