Russia: The Path to Secularism or the Clericalization of Society and the State?

Modern Russia shows an increasing interest in religion not just as an individual psychological phenomenon, but as a social institution that occupies a prominent place and actively participates in the life of the state and society. Against the background of the spiritual revival of the country, anticlerical trends appear, speculating on the constitutional principle of secularism and seeing its violation in almost any contacts of the state with religious associations. The main thesis of the paper is that the secular model of the state does not accept the interference of religious associations and authorities in each other’s affairs, but at the same time assumes their interaction, which should be outlined by the legislative framework.

The author examines the semantics of the term “clericalization” and concludes that it means not just the rapprochement of the state with the most influential confessions in society, but also the process of promoting the church’s interests with the help of state power. Based on an analysis of the current legislation, the historical experience of Russia’s development, the current state of state-confessional relations, it is concluded that it is premature to talk about clericalization in our country. This is supported by the existence of strict legal prohibitions and restrictions on the direct participation of religious associations and their representatives in politics, as well as the formal distancing of the church and the state from each other in solving political issues. The state and church interaction in the field of education is quite clearly regulated. However, in other areas of public life, the boundaries of such interaction are conditional, so the author believes that certain prerequisites are emerging for the development of clerical tendencies. Legal, historical and ideological prerequisites are highlighted. The author proposes to improve the legal regulation of some problematic aspects of state-confessional relations.

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