The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-07-12


be that of the Orthodox Greek Church.
under the banner OF which Buddhists,
Brahmins, Moslems and heathens alike
would be united. according to Pobiedonost-
| zefrs dream.
1t will be seen that Pobiedonostzeff is a
man of extraordinarily vivid Imagination
a Russian Cecil Rhodes-but unlike most
imaginative men. he is narrow minded to
excess, so that he regards all those who do
not share his political and religious concep-
lions as dangerous lements in society, and
a great deal OF his time and energy have
been spent I'm a vain attempt to crush all
| dlssenters from the Orthodox Greek Church
in Russia, as well as oil adherents of pro-
gressive political parties.
BIG RELIGIOUS BOYCOTT.
His accession to the procuratorship of the
Holy Synod was followed Immediately by
a revival of the persecution of the Stun
dists, Baptists, Methodists and other Prot
| estant sects in Russia. The first step taken
in this direction was a circular TO every
priest of the Orthodox Greek Church In
| Russia containing instructions TO organize
local boycotts against the adherents of all
other sects. The priests were told to work
| ON the minds of the people to such an ex-
tent that all sectarians would be regarded
as persons living under the curse or God
and would be cut off from all social and
/ commercial intercourse with their neigh
| bors. Pobiedonostzeff urged the priests TO
| teach their congregations that it was a sin
TO do business with a sectarian, TO meet him
in society or even to speak to him.
The result was that in many parts of
Russia, where priestly influence still reigns
supreme, the adherents of all the Protestant
sects were stunned by their fellow-citizens
in a way that drove thousands of them to
despair and ruin. Happy homes were
broken up, husbands were torn from their
wives and children from their parents
through this persecution; but the cries of
the innocent sufferers fell on deaf ears. and
Pobiedonostzeff continued relentlessly to
promote the determination of the unbe-
LEVERS"
Finding that social boycott and religious
excommunication failed to bring about the
total destruction of the Protestant sects,
PObiedOnostzeff persuaded the Car to sign
a decree which he himself had drawn up
authorizing the arrest and deportation of
Protestant sectarians, and directing the
local police officials to take action against
them with great promptitude and severity.
Russian oficialdom is always prompt in
executing such commands as these, and the
decree had not been long issued before hum
dreds of Protestants who refused to re-
nounce their faith were on their way east
ward to expiate the sin OF dissenting from
Pobiedonostzeff's religious opinions by suf-
fering the u~nspeakable horrors OF long
terms of penal servitude in the mines Of
Siberia. The possession of a Bible, absence
from the services of the nearest Ortho-
dox Church., neglect of open protestations
of loyal devotion TO the Greek Orthodox
Church were some of the causes that suf-
feed to plunge men and women into life
long misery.
HATES CATHOLIC AND JEW.
Roman Catholics in Russia. too. have felt
P-obiedonostzeff's iron hand, for all the nu-
:nerous measures of severe oppression
taken against the Poles during the last
twenty years have been due directly to his
influence. To be a Pole and a Roman Cath
Ollie is in the procurator's eyes to be an
enemy of God and the Car, and he has
done his utmost to crush the 100000 of
Polish Catholics under foot. Roman Cath
Ollie priests have been arrested and thrown
into prison on the slenderest of pretexts,
Roman Catholic schools have been broken up
and all sorts of obstacles put in the way of
Roman Catholic worshipers.
Just recently Pobiedonostzeff has elabo-
rated a scheme which has already been
sanctioned by the Car, and will be put into
force shortly, to persecute Roman Catholics
more effectively. This scheme consists
briefly of the formation of "A kind of lin
fected area" made UP of the western part
of the province of Volbynla and of the five
Polish provinces in which the most Roman
Catholics reside. In this area every single
Roman Catholic school is TO be closed, the
use of the Polish language is TO be strictly
prohibited in all the state schools and Ro-
man Catholics are to be prohibited from
inheriting or from purchasing land. These
measures will be followed in due course by
further coercive legislation. so that the
Polish Catholics are preparing to undergo
another period of extreme persecution.
Pobiedonostzeff has spared no effort to
stimulate anti-Semitism and he was the in