Soviet Evangelicals Since World War II, Walter Sawatsky, 1981

he Nazis: Crude propaganda soon strained the . credulity of the population in. general, and, shortly before the end of Khrushchev’s term, another major strategy session was held, which resulted in the announcement of ‘intensified vospitanie-that involved a more systematic and scientific.approach to propaganda. In 1959, the educational system was forced to introduce an atheist world-view into all the subjects taught, and; soon after, all university students were required to take exams in scientific atheism." The intensified program. also included ‘carefully planned coordinated pure research on scientific atheism. Probably most significant, a series of specialist schools— one might say seminaries for-atheists—were established, so that these could then conduct the increased educational program anticipated. One other educational method introduced more systematically in 1968 was a new law calling upon parents to educate their children in the spirit of cornmunism. It was, in a sense, the ultimate weapon at ‘the level. of vospitanie since. it reached right into the family itself. 5 136 Soviet Evangelicals Since.World War Il Simultaneous with the major propaganda onslaught came the administrirovanie. In October 1958 a secret instruction from the Council of Ministers ordered the Council for Russian Orthodox Church. Affairs to prepare recommendations within the space of six months on how to reduce the number of monasteries.'* Before Khrushchev was ousted, over 40 monasteries had been closed, some of them with the use of physical force.!7 When the campaign itself got underway. in 1959, the major adminis- trative theme was “Leninist legality.” This meant that from now on state officials would adhere very closely to the restrictions of the legislation on re- ligion, especially the restrictive features of the 1929 law on cults. At a bishops’ conference in July 1961, Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexei reported that in April the Council for Russian Orthodox Church Affairs had informed them that the Council of Ministers of the USSR had again drawn attention to the numerous instances where Soviet legislation on religion was being violated. The council ordered the church to take measures to bring its. church statutes in line with state legislation on religion.'* The AUCECB had apparently been forced to bring its statutes into line with existing law in the summer of 1960. By this means the state was able to use the church leaders in carrying out its antireligious measures. oe tes Soon thereafter the legislation itself was changed. More restrictive measures were introduced but these were kept secret, which had the addi- tional advantage of allowing local officials to demand even greater restric- tions than specified in the new law. Already in 1960, Article 142 was in- troduced into the Criminal Code to provide up.to three years’ imprison- ment for violation of the law on religion. In Jul