Soviet Evangelicals Since World War II, Walter Sawatsky, 1981

t and the churches are continually growing. The reason for this is certainly to be found in the personal decision of all evangelicals to follow Jesus and to commit their lives completely to the things of the Lord! Every ‘individual member is a witness to Jesus Christ and committed to lead others to the Lord and His fellowship. Every indi- vidual is a “priest of God” pledged to walk with God and, by reading of the Bible and prayer, to make progress in personal sanctification and to become a model for others. Believers see themselves as members of the body of Christ, endeavoring by love, care, and prayer “‘to be there for the other.” Those who read this study book will be personally enriched and will thank God for the evangelicals in the Soviet Union, “for their work of faith, and labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 1:3). Gerhard Claas, General Secretary Baptist World Alliance We need complete, truthful information. And the truth should not depend on whom it is to serve. —V. 1. Lenin Introduction: Who Are the Soviet Evangelicals? The popular notion about religion in the Soviet Union follows one of two simple arguments. One is that there is a battle going on in the Soviet Union—a life-and-death struggle between the forces of evil and the forces of good. The evil forces are personified in the communist leadership which is capable of the most perfidious action to attain its ends. The good is person- ified in a church of heroic martyrs who refuse to submit to state demands. “Since it is a life-and-death struggle,” as one proponent of this line of argu- ment once told me, “there are no grey areas. The struggle must be viewed in sharp, clear, black and white terms.” That has meant that the good Christians are sorted out from the bad Christians and the latter are linked with the forces of evil as being either weaklings, compromised Christians, apostates, or outright state agents. Books presenting the alternative thesis are usually written to counter the first. Where the first thesis argues that there is no freedom, the second claims there is adequate freedom. Proponents will list the publication of Bi- bles, open churches in Moscow, and the claims of Soviet propaganda as evi- dence. Many religious leaders have been given official tours of the Soviet Union and have returned highly impressed with what they saw. The crowded churches, the overpowering piety of the believers, the fervent preaching of their hosts, all convinced them they had seen a strong church. The evidence of a life-and-death struggle for faith in the Soviet Union is overpowering. The evidence for state persecution of religion is indisput- 12 Soviet Evangelicals Since World War II able. At the same time, the evangelical church in the Soviet Union is a strong one. At present a large section of it is enjoying considerable freedoms. These believers provide clear evidence of gr