Stalin's Hollow Cross-the Russian Orthodox Church as a Tool of Soviet Foreign Policy

Authors

  • Jordan Hupka

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29173/cons10492

Abstract

It has been said that the Second World War saved the Russian Orthodox Church from extermination. Ever since the Revolution of 1917, the religious peoples of Russia were constantly persecuted by Soviet ideologists and politicians. Prior to Operation Barbarossa, in 1941, it seemed that the days of the Russian Orthodox Church, the largest religious institution in the Soviet Union, were numbered. However, the unique climate of the Second World War forced the Soviet government to end its war against the church. The Kremlin soon saw the Church as a useful tool to help aid in the re- occupation of Eastern Europe.

Author Biography

Jordan Hupka

Jordan Hupka is a second-year arts student pursuing an honours degree in history with a minor in human geography. He is interested in twentieth-century Canadian and Soviet military, political, and diplomatic history. He is also interested in urban history and the history of technology. Upon graduation he hopes to attend law school.

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Published

2011-06-07

How to Cite

Hupka, J. (2011). Stalin’s Hollow Cross-the Russian Orthodox Church as a Tool of Soviet Foreign Policy. Constellations, 2(2), 31–40. https://doi.org/10.29173/cons10492

Issue

Section

Religious History