Exploring the Diversity of Russia’s Religions

Russia is a culturally diverse and historically rich nation with a deep-seated tradition of religious practices and beliefs. Just as the Russian landscape is varied, so too is the spiritual landscape, with orthodox and folk religions representing the bulk of historic Russian religious activity. But does this still hold true in modern Russia? How much has religion changed over the last century, and what role does it play in the lives of citizens today?

To begin to answer this question, it is first important to gain an understanding of the contentious relationship between the Russian state and religion. During Soviet rule, the government sought to control the population in part through control of religious outgrowths. This control included strict repression of public expressions of religion, including the destruction of churches and monasteries, and jailing or exile to those opposed to the regime. While in more recent decades the Russian government has relaxed regulations and allowed Russians more freedom to practice their faith, this shift has largely been to satisfy international obligation and has had no effect on the actual levels of religious observance.
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What has instead had the greatest impact on Russia’s religious landscape is the proliferation of other faiths, particularly Islam and Judaism. Most of those new to the faith do not identify themselves with a single religion, instead opting to practice their own distinct forms. This growing religious diversity has helped to create an environment where some formerly-unseen religions have become accepted in Russian society. Some have become organized, with the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS) and Jehovah’s Witnesses forming congregations in the country.
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At the same time, traditional religions have largely maintained their position in Russian religious life. Orthodox Christianity is still the dominant faith, representing about 30% of religious people, followed by folk religion and Islam, both of which represent somewhere near 20%. Despite these figures, only between 5% and 10% of Russians report attending religious services regularly.

A major contributor to this decline in religious observance is unquestionably the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. During the Soviet era, most places of worship were closed or destroyed, and religious holidays were not celebrated. After the fall of the Soviet government, many of the restrictions on religious expression were lifted and many places of worship were reconstructed. Even so, it is generally considered that attendance at religious services was far lower than before the revolution and has yet to restore itself to pre-Communist levels.

This lack of religious observance suggests a larger, perhaps more pertinent question: what is the role of religion in the life of the average Russian today? The data is mixed here. On the one hand, fewer than a tenth of Russian respondents to the 2016 Ecclesiological Survey reported belonging to an organized religious community, and just over a third reported that they had attended religious services at least once in the prior year. On the other hand, nearly half of those surveyed reported belief in God, and over two thirds indicated that they felt religious faith was important to them.

What does this mean then for the future of religion in Russia? While the data suggests ongoing declines in religious observance, particular amongst younger generations, there is also evidence that many people still possess a strong, if not orthodox, faith in some Higher Being. Whether this faith will result in resurgence in organized religion and traditional practice, or will remain a more personal or cultural expression of faith, is yet to be seen.