The Russian Orthodox Church and Political Party Platforms

In: Journal of church and state: JCS, Volume 49, Issue 1, p. 117-134

Abstract

Assesses the level of influence that the Russian Orthodox Church, ROC, has upon the Russian voters, politicians, and political elite with the question as to how well informed these voting groups themselves are of the ROC's official stance on any given subject, as well as to gain an understanding if outward homage to Orthodoxy has made a true change within the political arena. This train of thought is then applied to 12 different Russian political parties to test levels of influence of the ROC upon them. It is noted that most of the politicians and their respective parties utilize the jargon of the ROC and so examines the differing levels to which each party language attempts to embody the ROC's moral standards. Finds that the four major political parties often give more credence to the influence of the church than actually exists. Lastly looks at the Rodina bloc political parties and how they've assessed the need to incorporate ROC ideals into their jargon and voting, with the surprising twist that, while addressing themselves to the voting populace in terms of ROC standards, over a third of those that voted for them consider themselves to be atheists. Finds that very few of the parties truly utilize or identify with the ROC in practice, but rather couple ROC ideals with basic patriotism due to the church's historical place in Russian society. References. S. Fullmer