ANTI-RELIGIOUS PROPAGANDA IN THE USSR IN THE 1920s AND 1930s. BASIC FORMS AND METHODS

DOI: 10.47026/1810-1909-2024-3-243-253

УДК 93/94(32.019.51)

ББК 63.3(2)6-3

Aleksey A. SHMAKOV, Alim A. ABIDULIN

Key words: anti-religious propaganda, propaganda in the USSR, anti-religious holidays, anti-religious press in the USSR.

The article is devoted to the anti-religious propaganda deployed in the USSR in the 1920s and 1930s. The relevance of this research is obvious in modern multinational Russian society, in which religious beliefs and values not only have a noticeable impact on the social and cultural spheres of public life, but also find their reflection in the political activities of the state. The history of anti-religious propaganda in the USSR reminds us of the danger of using ideology to suppress the faith and the need to protect and respect religious freedom, and studying it will allow us to avoid repeating mistakes and to approach consciously the issues of building and coexistence of a multi-confessional society.

The purpose of the study is to reveal the state approach to solving issues of fight against religion and systematizing the main methods and forms of anti-religious propaganda.

Materials and methods. The main materials for the study were collections of works and scientific papers, presently topical scientific articles, collections of documents, books and brochures on the problems under study of the designated period. In the course of the study, the principle of historicism was applied using historical-systemic and chronological methods of historical research.

Research results. As a result of the study, key practices of anti-religious propaganda were identified, including legislative activities, the educational system, mass culture, and periodicals. The authors note the diversity of propaganda solutions, their ability to adapt in accordance with changes in the social and political life of the country.

Conclusions. The study revealed the leading role of the state apparatus and the centralized management of anti-religious propaganda in the country. It should be noted that anti-religious propaganda had an impact on the development of domestic politics, culture, public sentiments, and the worldview of Soviet citizens. Nevertheless, all the anti-religious activities of the state, planned and carried out according to a single plan, could not completely eliminate the religious component in the life of the country, and if the state achieved certain results at the legislative level, then at the local, everyday level, the religious identity of the country was preserved and was able to revive in the near future.

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Information about the authors

Aleksey A. Shmakov – Associate Professor, Military Training Center, National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, Nizhny Novgorod (Shmakov@vuc.unn.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-3795-496X).

Alim A. Abidulin – Candidate of Historical Science, Associate Professor, Department of Oriental Languages and Linguoculturology, National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, Nizhny Novgorod (abidulin@imomi.unn.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/ 0000-0002-3322-0240).

For citations

Shmakov A.A., Abidulin A.A. ANTI-RELIGIOUS PROPAGANDA IN THE USSR IN THE 1920s AND 1930s. BASIC FORMS AND METHODS. Vestnik Chuvashskogo universiteta, 2024, no. 3, pp. 243–253. DOI: 10.47026/1810-1909-2024-3-243-253 (in Russian).

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