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p In his speech at the 25th Congress of the CPSU, Leonid Brezhnev said that socialism “assures working people freedom, truly democratic rights, well-being, the broadest possible access to knowledge, and a firm sense of security."  [75•1  Socialism has done away forever with the hypocrisy of bourgeois democracy, where men of labour are virtually deprived of the opportunity to enjoy the rights and freedoms which the bourgeoisie takes such pains to publicise. The USSR has real, instead of formal, democracy, ensuring freedom from exploitation and guaranteeing the right to work, to education, to free medical service, to housing and many other benefits. In contrast to bourgeois society where all the freedoms and privileges are only for the ruling classes, socialist democracy guarantees for everyone freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, and of conscience, inviolability of the person and home, freedom to choose one’s trade or profession, and to develop abilities for society’s benefit and in the interests of the individual. These rights and freedoms are recorded in the USSR Constitution, which also defines their specific guarantees.

p Along with other democratic rights and freedoms, the Soviet people enjoy freedom of conscience. This right was formalised by the first Constitution of the RSFSR and by the constitutions of other Union republics adopted in Lenin’s lifetime, as well as 76 by the Fundamental Laws of the USSR enacted in 1924 and 1936 and by the constitutions of the Union republics as an inherent feature of the Soviet way of life. Having proclaimed freedom of conscience, the Soviet state guarantees genuine opportunities to enjoy this right for all its citizens.

p The latest Soviet Constitution preserves continuity from the previous constitutions; it substantiates deeply and thoroughly Lenin’s propositions and behests on matters related to religion and the church. It has proclaimed that the society of developed socialism assures its members freedom of conscience and formalised the equality of rights and freedoms of Soviet citizens irrespective of their attitude to religion and prohibited incitement ot hostility and hatred motivated by religion. “Citizens of the USSR”, states Article 52 of the USSR Constitution, “are guaranteed freedom of conscience, that is, the right to profess or not to profess any religion, and to conduct religious worship or atheist propaganda. Incitement of hostility or hatred on religious grounds is prohibited.

p “In the USSR, the church is separated from the state, and the school from the church.”

p This separation has created the conditions for complete freedom in matters of belief and unbelief. Under the Soviet Constitution, all citizens may profess or not profess any religion. The right to profess any religion is assured by the equality of all religions under the law and the absence of preferential treatment of any creed. No discrimination is permitted against any religion or its believers, nor are any advantages or exceptions provided for any faith or its adherents.

p Legal, national and social equality is a great gain of the Soviet people and it demonstrates to all the oppressed peoples that only a socialist revolution can eliminate national and religious strife and provide equal rights for all citizens regardless of their nationality or religion.

p The equality of religions under the law and the consistent realisation of the freedom of conscience in the USSR made the former national and religious hostility and distrust, stirred up by the exploiting classes for centuries, into things of the past. The prohibition of incitement of hostility and hatred on religious grounds has legally formalised the great accomplishments of the Soviet 77 state in national relations. At the same time, this provision warns against trying to instigate believers to violate socialist law or to foment enmity toward unbelievers or adherents of other creeds under the guise of religion as well as those who are disrespectful toward believers.

p The provisions of Article 52 of the USSR Constitution is permeated with concern for protecting the rights of Soviet people, believers and unbelievers alike. And the exercise of their rights by Soviet citizens is inseparable from their civil duties, because under Article 39 and Article 59 the enjoyment of rights and freedoms must not be to the detriment of other citizens’ interests.

p Some capitalist countries also have laws that formally declare freedom of conscience and even disestablishment of the church. But the declaration of freedom of conscience does not mean that this democratic principle is being put into practice.

p The founders of Marxism-Leninism exposed the bourgeois law stressing that the bourgeois conception of freedom of conscience is formal and declarative. They pointed out that the principle of freedom of conscience proclaimed by the bourgeoisie was, in fact, only tolerance for religious freedom because the church remained a part of the state machinery de facto and sometimes even de jure. Any bourgeois state regards freedom of conscience as freedom of religious worship and thus hinders the spread of atheism and discriminates against unbelievers.

p Having proclaimed freedom of conscience, the Soviet state assures all its citizens of the opportunity of using this right unimpeded. All Soviet citizens enjoy all rights and democratic freedoms regardless of their attitude to religion. Believers and atheists alike are granted the same rights and have the same obligations; they are equal builders of the new society.

p These provisions are formalised, in addition to Article 52, by many other articles of the USSR Constitution and the constitutions of the Union republics. “All power in the USSR belongs to the people,” states Article 2. Article 34 emphasises that “citizens of the USSR are equal before the law, without distinction of origin, social or property status, race or nationality, sex, education, language, attitude to religion, type and nature of occupation, domicile, or other status.” The Soviet citizens’ equality in all spheres of economic, cultural and public life, regardless of their 78 nationality, race and attitude to religion is an immutable law. Any restrictions of these rights, whether directly or indirectly, is punishable by law under the Soviet Constitution. One’s attitude to religion cannot be an obstacle to a citizen joining a cooperative or trade-union organisation. All religious and non-religious persons have full socio-economic, political and personal rights and freedoms. “(Art. 39) All citizens of the USSR who have reached the age of 18 shall have the right to vote and to be elected,” Article 96 of the USSR Constitution declares.

p Believers enjoy all civil rights and benefits in the USSR on an equal footing with atheists, and any constraint of these rights due to a person’s religious faith is punishable under existing legislation. Soviet laws provide guarantees for people to satisfy their religious needs quite freely. Soviet legislation stipulate criminal sanctions for any restrictions of religious freedom. Any discrimination against believers or mental coercion is absolutely forbidden. “Prevention of the performance of religious rites, insomuch as they do not disturb public order and are not accompanied with encroachment upon the citizens’ rights, shall be punished by corrective labour for up to 6 months or by public reprimand,” states Article 143 of the RSFSR Criminal Code. Criminal codes of all the other Union republics have similar provisions.

p The USSR legislation also provides for other legal guarantees to ensure freedom in religious matters. For example, denial of employment or of enrolment in an educational institution, dismissal from employment or expulsion from an educational institution, deprivation of any established benefits and advantages, as well as any other discrimination because of a person’s attitude to religion are criminal offences.

p The Soviet state provides believers with exceptionally favourable material conditions for free worship.

p In keeping with the Constitution and existing Soviet laws, believers have the right to associate for public worship, to form religious associations, to open houses of prayer with formal permission from the authorities and to elect, appoint, and employ priests. Religious associations and their religious centres are granted the right to publish religious literature and to produce articles for religious rituals.

p Free to satisfy their religious needs, believers of different 79 denominations in the USSR have set up their religious communities and ecclesiastical centres. The state has placed churches, mosques, synagogues, and houses of prayer at their disposal free of charge and without time-limit, thus providing material guarantees for freedom of worship.

p Existing legislation in the USSR provides for especially great care to be taken when deciding whether activities of a religious association should be terminated or a particular place of worship closed down.

p In order to preclude any misunderstanding or abuse, the law stipulates that the final decision on cancelling registration of a religious society or closing an institution of worship rests with the Council for Religious Affairs under the USSR Council of Ministers. Local authorities can only lodge a well-grounded petition for cancelling registration, closure of a public prayer building or termination of the contract with the religious societies which violate the laws on worship.

p In speaking about material guarantees for freedom of conscience, it is necessary to point out the utter groundlessness of the slanderous fabrications spread abroad that the believers in the USSR are given only small, decrepit churches. It does not take much looking into the real position of the church in the USSR to see the malicious nature of such assertions. Believers have been given for free use, for example, the Cathedral of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in Leningrad and the Cathedral of the Assumption in Vladimir built over 800 years ago, a remarkable example of ancient Russian architecture. They also use another architectural and historical monuments of Russia, the Troitse-Sergiyev Lavra, as well as St. Vladimir Cathedral in Kiev, the Cathedral of the Assumption in Smolensk, the Cathedral of the Resurrection in Elets, Oleviste (Olav) Church in Tallinn, St. Ann Church in Vilnius, Miri Arab Madrasa in Bukhara and many others. The religious societies who have taken over these buildings for worship are only required to observe the regulations established for registration and maintenance of such historical and artistic monuments.

p The religious centres of various denominations have theological academies, seminaries, madrasas and other educational institutions to train ministers and preachers. All in all, there are 18 80 theological schools functioning in the USSR, including 6 Orthodox academies and seminaries, 2 Catholic seminaries, a Moslem academy and madrasa, an ieshibot, courses for Evangelical Christian Baptists, a theological seminary and academy of the Armenian Gregorian Church, a seminary of the Georgian Church, a divinity institute and theological courses for Lutherans.

p Religious organisations are provided with other material guarantees in the USSR. The state provides printing-houses and supplies paper for publication of liturgical literature. All raw materials required to make articles of worship, utensils, candles, and matzos are supplied from state stocks according to plans. The religious associations and clergymen are maintained with money contributed voluntarily by believers. Income of churches and religious societies are not taxed.

p The freedom granted to religious organisations by the socialist state is also made real by the fact that the authorities do not interfere in the interior canonical activities of the church. In keeping with existing church regulations and rules, the believers and their spiritual preceptors themselves establish the procedures for divine service, celebration of rites and other ceremonies of worship. Interpretation of prayer-books and other statutes of faith as well as church management are entirely under the jurisdiction of supreme ecclesiastical centres and hierarchs esteemed by believers. All this attests to the complete freedom enjoyed by believers to worship, and exposes the slanderous fabrications of modern anti-Communists about the alleged absence of freedom of conscience and “persecution” of believers in the USSR.

p Bourgeois religious scholars, such as Walter Kolarz, Nikita Struve and Michael Bourdeaux, spread falsehoods about the position of church and believers in the USSR, but deliberately keep silence about the gross abuse of freedom of conscience in the capitalist countries and the state’s unceremonious interference in church affairs. Kolarz and Bourdeaux are well aware, of course, that in their own country—Great Britain—even the Church of England, which is under the patronage of the ruling classes and monarchy, has no right to settle purely internal matters and to introduce any changes into worship and liturgy on its own authority. All the decisions of its General Synod have to be endorsed by Parliament and the Queen. The canons of the 81 Church of England are based on prescriptions contained in the Book of Common Prayer, which has not been changed since 1662. The Church authorities attempted somewhat to change the content of their prayer-book before the War. A draft of a. new prayer-book was approved by a majority at the Church Assembly, but was rejected in Parliament by a majority vote when it was presented for endorsement in compliance with English law. Thus, the secular Parliament decided the fate of a purely ceremonial matter of the Church of England. What is the point of talking about guarantees for freedom of conscience, freedom of worship and celebration of rituals after this?

p In contrast to the false declarations of bourgeois democracy, Soviet democracy guarantees both religious freedom and the right not to profess any religion. The real democracy of the socialist system is also manifested by the fact that the authorities everywhere see to it that Soviet legislation is strictly observed and require that ordinary people, as well as local and central officials obey the law to a letter. The arrangements made to supervise observance of the legislation on public worship in practice are a convincing example of the guarantees provided for freedom of conscience in the USSR.

p But one thing is worth noting before dwelling on how this supervision is carried out. The constitutional guarantees for freedom of conscience in the USSR do not mean that religious societies or groups and their leaders can do whatever they like. The Communist Party and Soviet government treat believers with patience, meet them halfway and create the conditions necessary for worship. At the same time, the Soviet law establishes certain limits ’to the activities of religious associations. These must be restricted to satisfying the religious needs of the believers. No church activities, other than those directly connected with worship, is permitted in ’the Soviet Union.

p Supervision of observance of laws on religion and the church is a responsibility of central as well as local state authorities. In order to carry out the Leninist policy towards religion and the church and to ensure that the state is in control of enforcement of the legislation on religious worship, the Decrees of the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet, and decisions and orders of the Soviet government concerning protection of 82 peopie’s constitutional rights to freedom of conscience, there is a government body functioning now for the whole of the Soviet Union—the Council for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers of the USSR. This Council sees to it that legislation on worship is observed by religious associations and priests and takes measures to correct any violations. The Council makes sure that the religious associations and priests conduct divine services and perform rites within the limits of the law and do not encroach on citizens’ rights or disturb public order. It protects both ’the atheistic convictions of the majority of Soviet people, who have broken with religion, and the constitutional rights of those persons who still believe in God.

p The Council for Religious Affairs introduces drafts of new laws and of other statutes, which become necessary due to changes in the position or activities of religious organisations, to the Soviet government. Proceeding from and obeying Soviet laws, Decrees of the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet, decisions and orders of the USSR Council of Ministers, the Council for Religious Affairs deals with the application and execution of laws and decisions on religion throughout the Soviet Union. The Council helps religious centres and associations in maintaining international contacts, in their participation in the peace movement and in strengthening friendship among nations.

p The Council has its representatives in the Union and Autonomous republics and in the territories and regions. Their function is to strengthen socialist legality so that the laws on worship are strictly observed. The representatives check whether the legislation is correctly enforced and observed locally and take measures to correct violations, acting together with local officials.

p An important part in supervising the accurate, strict and timely execution of laws on worship is played by the governments of Union and Autonomous republics. They direct the work of local Soviets to assure citizens’ constitutional right to freedom of conscience. The importance of the local authorities in supervising execution of legislation on worship has grown considerably over the last few years. Important legal instruments adopted by the governments of Union republics and All-Union statutes 83 intended to increase efficient supervision of the laws on religion and the church contributed greatly to this.

p The Standard Regulations of the Rural (Settlement) Soviet of Working People’s Deputies approved by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR in 1968, the Standard Regulations of the District Soviet of Working People’s Deputies (1971) and the Standard Regulations of the City and City’s District Soviet of Working People’s Deputies (1971) all contain special clauses obliging the local authorities to implement Article 52 of the Soviet Constitution and to see to it that the right of believers to practise their religion and the right of atheists to conduct atheistic propaganda without hindrance are realised.

p Under existing legislation, the executive committees of local Soviets record all religious organisations in their respective Soviets. They keep an inventory of the church buildings and other property used for public worship and owned by the state, check that they are in good condition, see to it that the communities of believers and the clergy observe Soviet laws on religion and the church, and explain Soviet legislation on religious worship to the public.

p The executive committees of City and District Soviets of Working People’s Deputies consider petitions of believers requesting permission to open a public prayer building, adopt resolutions on the petitions, and forward their decisions to superior authorities. After the superior authorities and the Council for Religious Affairs have agreed to register the religious association in question, the executive committee of the local Soviet concludes an agreement with the founders of that religious association on placing the building of worship and church-plate at the disposal of the believers free of charge or an agreement with an authorised representative of the believers granting the right to rent a place for public prayers.

p In accordance with the established procedure, the Soviet of a village, settlement, district, city, region or territory may come forward with a proposal that a particular religious association be withdrawn from the registration list and its public prayer building be closed down if that association violates laws on religious worship and does not fulfil the agreement on the safety of the 84 building and other property given by the state to believers for free use.

p For a more profound study of the observance of the state laws on religion and the church and to exercise day-to-day control over execution of the laws on public worship, the executive committees of district, city and some rural Soviets set up voluntary commissions to assist in supervising observance of legislation on worship. Deputies of the local Soviets with knowledge in this area, officials of finance bodies, lawyers, representatives of public education authorities and other activists of the local Soviets are usually invited to participate in such a commission. The commissions are set up on a voluntary basis and are guided in their work by Soviet laws and the laws of the appropriate Union republic. The commissions help the executive committees of local Soviets to realise the constitutional right of citizens to freedom of worship and freedom of atheistic propaganda. Their main concern is to ensure freedom of conscience, guaranteed by the USSR Constitution, for all citizens. They exercise regular control to make sure that nobody interferes in the liturgical activities of the religious associations and houses of prayer of all the denominations registered by the authorities in accordance with the laws and that the believers can gather for divine services, celebrate rites and perform other religious ceremonies without hindrance. The commissions see to it that religious associations’ activities do not go beyond the limits set by Soviet legislature, and that the clergy, active members of the church and leaders of the sectarian communities do not conduct religious propaganda outside the prayer houses. The commissions make sure that both parents agree, as required by law, to baptise their children. Relying on the commissions, local authorities can supervise observance of the laws on worship without permitting any highhanded actions and without offending believers’ religious sensibilities.

p When instructed by the appropriate executive committees of the district (city) Soviets, the commissions inspect the buildings and property used for worship to see if they are in good condition, check on how the legislation on worship is observed and assist the executive committees of Soviets in taking timely and correct action on complaints about violations of the 85 legislation on worship. The commissions have no administrative authority and act in accordance with regulations approved by the executive committees of Soviets in administrative regions and territories.

p The voluntary commissions can submit proposals to the executive committees of Soviets in villages, settlements, districts or cities on how to deal with any violations of the laws on religious worship and the persons responsible for them.

p Sometimes such voluntary commissions are set up by regional Soviets of People’s Deputies, as is the case in Moscow, Saratov and some other regions. The Executive Committee of the Bryansk Regional Soviet set up a voluntary council to coordinate supervisory activities carried out by various offices, agencies and public organisations.

p Many voluntary commissions have accumulated a great deal of valuable experience in their everyday work for the last few years; the executive committees of the territorial and regional Soviets of People’s Deputies and the Councils of Ministers of Autonomous and Union republics give increasingly close attention to promoting the activities of these commissions.

p The supervisory commission on observance of religious legislation under the Zyryanovsk City Soviet in Eastern Kazakhstan Region is especially interesting. Its members regularly meet with religious leaders, discuss the laws on public worship with them, and see to it that the believers and local officials do not violate the law on the separation of church from state and school from church. The commission focuses on ensuring that freedom of conscience is observed everywhere and that Soviet laws on worship are observed by religious associations and clergy, as well as by local authorities. Activists deliver lectures at meetings of the staff of local Soviets and at workers’ meetings, explaining basic provisions of the Soviet legislation on worship, and publish articles on the subject in the local press.

p Much has been done by (he executive committees of local Soviets in Azerbaijan. Together with the local supervisory commissions, they updated the lists of functioning religious organisations in all districts and found preachers of unregistered religious groups. Many of them have long deceived believers and violated Soviet law with impunity. As a result, measures were taken to 86 stop the activities of such religious groups and of the unregistered preachers. Supervision of observance of the legislation on religious worship by registered religious associations was increased and illegal levies on believers were ended.

The supervisory commissions on observance of religious legislation set up under the auspices of the executive committees of the city and district Soviets in the Ukraine, Moldavia, Byelorussia, Uzbekistan and Estonia, and in the regions of Smolensk, Novosibirsk, Yaroslavl and other cities of the RSFSR carry on a great deal of explanatory work, meeting priests and believers as well as officials of factories, institutions and educational establishments. The activities of the commissions are an important guarantee of freedom of conscience in the Soviet Union.