The First Signs of Religious Freedom

Abstract

The policy of glasnost’ (openness) launched by a young and energetic new Soviet leader took the world, including his own country, by surprise. Initially it affected believers in the same way as other members of Soviet society: that is to say, they were as uncertain as anyone else where the new boundaries lay, and were suspicious as to how long the new policy would last. However, they did begin realise that there were some opportunities to be seized in terms of making the church a more visible presence in society. What was not evident, though, was any change in policy on religion specifically.¹ Rumours had been circulating for some time that the basic legislation on religion was under review, but there was no hint by the end of the year as to whether the changes would be substantial, meeting demands which believers had been reiterating in samizdat (unofficially circulated writings) for 25 years, or whether they would be merely cosmetic. It was not until 1987 that there was some good news for religious believers. It was limited in extent compared with what they had been praying and hoping for for many years, but still the prospect was brighter than for a decade or more; since the collapse of détente in the late 1970s in fact.