Russian Harbin and Dallag in the fate of orthodox believers in the Soviet Far East in the 1920s-1930s

The purpose of this article is to analyze the daily life of Orthodox believers in the Soviet Far East in the 1920s-1930s and the religious policy of the Far Eastern authorities in this period. Particular attention is paid to the process of formation of new religious and secular practices among the Far Eastern Orthodox believers. The methodology chosen by the author for this study includes a comparative analysis of the activities of Orthodox believers in the Soviet Far East in the 1920s-1930s; the emergence and spread of new religious and secular practices among believers; the attitude of society and the authorities to these practices. The work is based on a complex, system-historical approach to the study of the past. The research methodology is based on the method of scientific description. In the context of the struggle against religion launched by the authorities in the 1920s-1930s, new religious practices arose among Orthodox believers (both supporters of Patriarch Tikhon and Old Believers): holding prayer meetings in the homes of believers, creating illegal monasteries, making candles and peace at home, establishing informal contacts with the remaining clergy, and involving unordained priests and even women in conducting services. The secular practices of Orthodox believers include agitation directed against participation in renovationist parishes, the collection of donations to provide material assistance to exiled or imprisoned clergymen, conversations on religious topics in shops, institutions, etc., conversations with neighbors about the New Constitution, and the preparation of various appeals to the Soviet Union with a demand to stop the anti-religious campaign carried out by the Soviet government. The article concludes that the daily life of Far Eastern believers was significantly influenced by their contacts with believers living in the exclusion zone of the Chinese Eastern Railway and Russian Harbin; as well as believers from the Far Eastern camps, who played a significant role in preserving old religious traditions and forming new ones.