Confrontation with anti-church policy: work by bishop Nikolay (Kutepov) at the cathedra of Rostov and Novocherkassk in 1969-1970

The article analyses the work by Bishop Nikolay (Kutepov) at the Cathedra of Rostov and Novocherkassk in 1969-1970, in the period of active anti-church policy. The goal of the research is to study the anti-religious policy and the main measures for strengthening atheistic activities in the Rostov Oblast and the confrontation with anti-church policy of Bishop Nikolay (Kutepov) during his service at the Cathedra of Rostov and Novocherkassk in 1969-1970. The article presents a consolidated plan of the main measures for strengthening atheistic activities in the Rostov Oblast, and a description of the religious situation in the Rostov Oblast at the moment of the appointment of Bishop Nikolay (Kutepov) to the Cathedra of Rostov and Novocherkassk, as well as a description of his personality. Based on the materials of the State Archive of the Rostov Oblast, also presented are dynamic statistic data on the religious rites performed in the Rostov Oblast in 1962-1969, before the bishop’s appointment to the Cathedra, and statistic data on the results of the activities accomplished by Bishop Nikolay (Kutepov) at the Cathedra of Rostov and Novocherkassk. To understand more deeply the essence of the bishop’s relations with the church council, the commissioner and believers, and to reveal the peculiar features of those relations, the article introduces an objective picture of them. An objective picture of the bishop’s relationship with the church council, the commissioner and believers is presented in order to reveal the peculiar features of those relations. Some measures undertaken by Bishop Nikolay (Kutepov) to stop the attempts of the church council to interfere with his rights as the head of the diocese are analyzed. Also studied his parochial reforms, which are very likely to have positively affected the confrontation with anti-church policy. The research made it possible to determine the role of Bichop Nikolay (Kutepov) at the Cathedra of Rostov and Novocherkassk in his confrontation with the commissioner and the entire system campaign aimed at the strengthening of anti-church policy in Rostov Oblast.