Authorities in central Russia move to eliminate minority religious groups

21 February 2000 (Newsroom) — Authorities in central Russia are trying to shut down 13 religious communities in accord with the country’s new law on religion, the Keston News Service reports.

Attempts have been made to close individual churches, but this is the broadest application of the law by local justice authorities since the expiration of a December 31 deadline by which all religious groups in Russia were required to reregister, Keston says.

The Voronezh regional department of justice initiated suits in local courts, demanding liquidation of the groups, which include Baptist, Pentecostal, and Lutheran churches, and a Jewish community. The first hearing, against a Pentecostal church in Ertil, is scheduled for Tuesday.

Last Friday Russia’s lower house of parliament, the State Duma, voted to extend the reregistration deadline, but Keston says that the impact of that vote on the Vorenzh lawsuits remains to be seen.

Keston, noting that no Russian Orthodox communities in Vorenzh have be sued, says that “it seems clear that minority religious communities — mostly Protestant Christian — are being targeted by the justice department.” In an interview with Keston, the head of the section that registers religious organizations in the region, Vyacheslav Kryuchkov, would not reveal how many communities of the Moscow Patriarchate in Vorenzh had not reregistered.

Kryuchov said that other regions in Russia have not taken such action in compliance with the law because they have some 200 organizations to handle while Vorenzh has only 13.

Minority religious leaders in Russia have complained that the controversial new law on religion is used to preserve the Orthodox Church’s preeminent place in society by restricting or eliminating groups that evangelize aggressively and attract converts from among its members.

A local evangelical Protestant activist who wished to remain anonymous, told Keston, however, that he doubted whether the Vorenzh justice department would succeed in court. “If it were discovered that even one entity of the Voronezh Orthodox diocese had not undergone re-registration, but was not being liquidated as the Protestants were, then all thirteen cases would burst like soap bubbles,” he said.

Copyright © 2000 Newsroom.
Used with permission.

Lift this up in Prayer

7

people are currently praying.

Latest Worthy News

Fair Use Notice:This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Books by George Whitten

Identity in Messiah Revealed https://identityinmessiah.com

A devotional journey calling believers out of self-doubt and into confident, Kingdom-rooted identity in the Messiah.

Buy on Amazon

The Biblical Fall Feasts Revealed https://biblicalfallfeasts.com

An in-depth look at the Biblical fall feasts and their prophetic significance for believers today.

Buy on Amazon

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.