# Religion in Russia

Religion in Russia is diverse with Christianity, especially Russian Orthodoxy being the most widely professed faith, but with significant minorities of non-religious people and adherents of other faiths.

## Quotes

* Russians should realize that they are Orthodox in the first place; Russians in the second place; and only in the third place, people.
** Aleksandr Dugin, The Foundations of Geopolitics: The Geopolitical Future of Russia (1997), Russia: Arktogeja, p. 255, as quoted in "Aleksandr Dugin's Foundations of Geopolitics" (31 January 2004), by John B. Dunlop, Demokratizatsiya, Chapter: The Gorbachev Debacle
* Many Russian and Western scholars have studied Soviet efforts to destroy organized religion and spread atheism in the Soviet population, but far fewer have focused on the steps Soviet officials took to wipe out shamanism, the traditional faith of many peoples in Siberia and the Russian Far East. But Moscow’s efforts in that regard are instructive both to the extent that they paralleled what the communists did to more conventionally structured faiths and even more to the extent they failed because the Soviets did not understand what they were up against and could not deal with a religious practice lacking the kind of organization they could take over and subvert.
** Paul A. Goble, "The Soviets Fought Shamanism – and Lost", Window on Eurasia (June 21, 2019)
* The Mari, a Finno-Ugric nation in the Middle Volga most of whose members are followers animism, are now engaged in the establishment of new structures that will help them ensure the survival not only of their religion but their nationality and democratic traditions as well.
** Paul A. Goble, "Mari Followers of Traditional Religion Expanding Their Formal Organizations -- and Promoting Both Nationalism and Democracy", Window on Eurasia (February 8, 2025)
* [The Putin regime] is serving notice to the world that not only the practice[s] of religious liberty, but even the possibility of discussing about freedom of religion or belief have been abrogated in the [Russian Federation].
** Massimo Introvigne, "Liquidating the SOVA Center: The Official End of Religious Freedom in Russia", Bitter Winter (May 4, 2023)
* The [Falun Gong] movement poses no threats to Russia, and for years it has been depicted with benevolence by most Russian media, which even praised its Qigong practices as beneficial for the practitioners’ health. Even after, under Chinese [Communist Party] pressure, key Falun Gong texts were declared “extremist” in 2008, activities in Russia continued. In 2020, seven Falun-Gong-related organizations were declared “undesirable” in Russia, but until the 2022 war in Ukraine the label “undesirable,” unlike “extremist,” did not totally prevent organizations from operating in the country.
** Massimo Introvigne, "How Putin Humors Xi Jinping: Crackdown on Moscow’s Falun Gong", Bitter Winter (May 6, 2024)
* On May 22, the Greek Catholic Parish of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary was “liquidated” by the Regional Court of Omsk. But this may not be the end [of] the crackdown on [the] Greek Catholics in Russia. The FSB Directorate for the Omsk Region told the media that “further investigations will have to resolve the question of on whose initiative the priest acted. It is possible that the fate of the Uniate [i.e., Greek Catholic] Church in Russia will depend on the answer to this question.”
** Massimo Introvigne, "Russia: Towards a Liquidation of the Greek Catholic Church?", Bitter Winter (June 4, 2024)
* You know, as I already mentioned, in 988 Prince Vladimir himself was baptized following the example of his grandmother, Princess Olga, and then he baptized his retinue, and then gradually, over the course of several years, he baptized all Rus. It was a lengthy process – from pagans to Christians, it took many years. But in the end, this Orthodoxy, Eastern Christianity, deeply rooted itself in the consciousness of the Russian people. When Russia expanded and absorbed other nations who profess Islam, Buddhism and Judaism, Russia has always been very loyal to those people who profess other religions. This is its strength. This is absolutely clear. And the fact is that the main postulates, main values are very similar, not to say the same, in all world religions I’ve just mentioned and which are the traditional religions of the Russian Federation, Russia. By the way, Russian authorities were always very careful about the culture and religion of those peoples who came to join the Russian Empire. This, in my opinion, forms the basis of both security and stability of the Russian statehood – all the peoples inhabiting Russia basically consider it their Motherland.
** Vladimir Putin, Interview to Tucker Carlson, 9 February 2024

## External links

* Encyclopedic article on Religion in Russia on Wikipedia