ORTHODOX RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS OF THE CITY OF TOLYATTI IN SAMARA REGION IN 2010–2018: RELATIONS WITH GOVERNMENT AND SOCIETY

DOI: 10.47026/2712-9454-2025-6-2-58-70

УДК 281.9(470.43)

ББК 63.3(2)64-22

Vadim N. YAKUNIN

Key words

Samara diocese, deanery, bishop, the clergy, believers, community, organization, parish.

Abstract

2010–2018 is a special stage for the Orthodox religious organizations of the Russian Orthodox Church of Tolyatti. Over these years, they grew by almost one and a half times, respectively, the number of Orthodox churches increased. During this period, Orthodox religious organizations of the Russian Orthodox Church began to influence the daily life of Tolyatti residents more actively, ranging from the architecture of urban spaces to regulating the most important events of everyday life. At that time, the issue of financing the construction of church facilities and religious events at the expense of budgetary funds arose with particular urgency. Significant funds were allocated from the regional budget to construct the Volga Orthodox Institute in Tolyatti at that time – 1 100 000 000 rubles. Beginning with 2010, there appeared records of contradictions between religious organizations of the Russian Orthodox Church and residents of those districts where temples of the Russian Orthodox Church were planned to be built as inner-bloc site development. While not opposing the construction of temples in principle, residents protested against densification of the inner-bloc development.

The purpose of the study is to analyze the situation, activities, and number of religious organizations of the Russian Orthodox Church in 2010–2018.

Materials and methods. To solve the research tasks, internal documents of Samara region Government, Tolyatti mayor’s office, documents from the funds of the author’s personal archive and the current archive of Samara Diocesan Administration of the Russian Orthodox Church were used. The research methodology includes a document analysis method and a statistical method, which is necessary to analyze data related to the increase in the number of religious organizations. When working with periodical materials, the method of synchronous comparison with the documentary material was applied.

Results. The article examines the conflicts between the government and the church, on the one hand, and the public, on the other, due to construction of temples inside residential areas. Another aspect of the article concerns the use of the confessional factor in the political struggle for the post of Tolyatti’s mayor. The relations between the Russian Orthodox Church of Tolyatti and Tolyatti mayor’s office in 2010–2018 were analysed as well as the position, activities and number of religious organizations of the Russian Orthodox Church. It is noted that, despite being separated from the state, the Russian Orthodox Church was granted preferences in the form of direct budget financing of the Volga Orthodox Institute for 1,100,000,000 rubles. In those years, the Orthodox clergy in Tolyatti, as well as the clergy throughout Russia, faced the issue of strengthening the church’s extra-liturgical activities: opening Sunday schools and children’s clubs at churches, organizing charity canteens, and providing targeted assistance to the needy and sick. However, instead, the number of Orthodox churches increased, sometimes contrary to the opinion of residents.

Conclusions. In 2010–2018 the Russian Orthodox Church became more active in influencing the daily life of Tolyatti residents, regulating the main moments of life, such as birth, marriage and death, through Orthodox baptisms, weddings, and funeral services. The Tolyatti public was divided in opinion: some, supported by the state and the emerging ideology, believed that the Orthodox Church should take a dominant place everywhere, including in urban public spaces, while others believed that religion was a private matter for everyone, and expansion of any religious denomination should not be allowed. In 2010–2018, the number of parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church of Moscow Patriarchate increased significantly in Tolyatti (from 20 to 29). In 2012, the confessional factor was used in the political struggle for the post of mayor of Tolyatti. The 2012 Tolyatti mayoral election was the first in Russia when the candidates’ religious affiliation became the focus of attention. Two main candidates participated in the election, one was Orthodox by religion, the other was a Protestant. And the election headquarters of the Orthodox candidate actively used the religious factor in their campaigning.

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Information about the author

Vadim N. Yakunin – Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor, Department of Humanities and Socio-Economic Disciplines, Moscow Institute of Art and Industry, Russia, Moscow (vadyak@mail.ru; ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0464-2938).

For citations

Yakunin V.N. Orthodox religious organizations of the city of Tolyatti in samara region in 2010–2018: relations with government and society. Historical Search, 2025, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 58–70. DOI: 10.47026/2712-9454-2025-6-2-58-70 (in Russian).

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