The Secret Police and the Religious Underground in Communist and Post-Communist Eastern Europe

355 Pages·2022·7.162 MB·English

by  James A. Kapaló, Kinga Povedák

The Secret Police and the Religious

Underground in Communist and
Post- Communist Eastern Europe
This book addresses the complex intersection of secret police operations
and the formation of the religious underground in communist- era Eastern
Europe. It discusses how religious groups were perceived as dangerous to the
totalitarian state whilst also being extremely vulnerable and yet at the same
time very resourceful. It explores how this particular dynamic created the con-
cept of the “religious underground” and produced an extremely rich secret
police archival record. In a series of studies from across the region, the book
explores the historical and legal context of secret police entanglement with
religious groups, presents case studies on particular anti- religious operations
and groups, offers methodological approaches to the secret police materials
for the study of religions, and engages in contemporary ethical and political
debates on the legacy and meaning of the archives in post- communism.
James A. Kapaló is a Senior Lecturer in the Study of Religions, University
College Cork, Ireland.
Kinga Povedák is a Research Fellow on the MTA-S ZTE ‘Convivence’ Religious
Pluralism Research Group at the University of Szeged, Hungary.
Routledge Religion, Society and Government in Eastern Europe

and the Former Soviet States
Series Editor
Lucian Leustean is Reader in Politics and International Relations at Aston
University, Birmingham, United Kingdom.
This Series seeks to publish high quality monographs and edited volumes on
religion, society and government in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet
States by focusing primarily on three main themes: the history of churches
and religions (including, but not exclusively, Christianity, Islam, Judaism and
Buddhism) in relation to governing structures, social groupings and political
power; the impact of intellectual ideas on religious structures and values; and
the role of religions and faith- based communities in fostering national iden-
tities from the nineteenth century until today.
The Series aims to advance the latest research on these themes by exploring
the multi- facets of religious mobilisation at local, national and supranational
levels. It particularly welcomes studies which offer an interdisciplinary
approach by drawing on the fields of history, politics, international relations,
religious studies, theology, law, sociology and anthropology.
12 The Albanian Orthodox Church
A Political History, 1878–1945
Ardit Bido
13 Orthodox Christianity and the Politics of Transition
Ukraine, Serbia and Georgia
Tornike Metreveli
14 Religion and Politics in Contemporary Russia
Beyond the Binary of Power and Authority
Tobias Köllner
15 The Secret Police and the Religious Underground in Communist and
Post-Communist Eastern Europe
James A. Kapaló and Kinga Povedák
The Secret Police and

the Religious Underground
in Communist and
Post- Communist
Eastern Europe
Edited by
James A. Kapaló and Kinga Povedák
First published 2022
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2022 selection and editorial matter, James A. Kapaló and Kinga Povedák;
individual chapters, the contributors
The right of James A. Kapaló and Kinga Povedák to be identified as the authors of the
editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in
accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised
in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or
hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information
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Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks,
and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing- in- Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
A catalog record has been requested for this book
ISBN: 978- 0- 367- 27999- 8 (hbk)
ISBN: 978- 1- 032- 05588- 6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978- 0- 429- 33146- 6 (ebk)
Typeset in Times New Roman
by Newgen Publishing UK
Contents

List of figures viii

List of contributors x

Acknowledgements xiii

Introduction: reframing the religious underground 1

JAMES A. KAPALÓ AND KINGA POVEDÁK
PART I
Constructing the enemy: historical and legal contexts 37

1 Shifting images of a harmful sect: operations against
Inochentism in Soviet Ukraine, 1920– 23 39

DUMITRU LISNIC
2 Visualizing invisible dissent: Red Dragonists, conspiracy
and the Soviet secret police 60

TATIANA VAGRAMENKO
3 The legal context of religious activities in Hungary
between 1945 and 1989/ 90 83

SZILVIA KÖBEL
4 Turning religious practices into political guilt: Jehovah’s
Witnesses in the narratives of the Securitate files 97

CORNELIU PINTILESCU
5 A coercive political environment as place of testimony:
Jehovah’s Witnesses in the era of state socialism in
Hungary, 1948– 89 112

ÉVA PETRÁS
vi Contents
PART II
Anti- religious operations 129
6 Soviet state security and the Cold War: repression and
agent infi ltration of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in the
Moldavian SSR, 1944 to late 1950s 131
IGOR CAȘ U
7 The secret police and the Marian apparition: actions
of the Polish Security Service against the miracle of
Zabłudów in 1965 148
MACIEJ KRZYWOSZ
8 Acting in the underground: life as a Hare Krishna devotee
in the Soviet Republic of Lithuania (1979– 1989) 176
RASA PRANSKEVIČ IŪ TĖ - AMOSON
9 Between simplifi cation and absurdity: the Czech
protestant milieu, “New Orientation” and the
secret police 192
ONDŘ EJ MATĚ JKA
PART III
Methodological approaches to religions in the secret
police archives 211
10 Secret police informer fi les as sources for the study of
vernacular religion under communism 213
ÁGNES HESZ
11 Photographs of the religious underground: tracing images
between archives and communities 234
KINGA POVEDÁK
12 Feasting and fasting: the evidential character of material
religion in secret police archives 254
JAMES A. KAPALÓ
Contents vii
PART IV
Secret police archives in post- communism: politics,
ethics and communities 273

13 The Patriarchate, the Presidency and the secret police
archives: studying religions in post- communist Romania 275

CRISTIAN MARIA VASILE
14 The possibility of researching religious minorities in the
secret police archives of the former Yugoslavia 289

ALEKSANDRA DJURIĆ MILOVANOVIĆ
15 If sex were a factor …: the Securitate archives and issues
of morality in documents related to religious life 302

ANCA ȘINCAN
16 Redeeming memory: neo- Protestant churches and the
secret police archives in Romania 316

IULIANA CINDREA- NAGY
Index 335
Figures

2.1 Photo- collage from a model criminal file on the Ioannites and
Samosviatsy (HDASBU, fond. 13- 1- 388, 1). ©State Archive
Branch of the Security Services of Ukraine 73
2.2 Photo- collage of confiscated photographs grouped around
the image of bishop Avgustin (Beliaev) (HDASBU, fond.
13- 1- 391, 6a). ©State Archive Branch of the Security Services
of Ukraine 75
2.3 Network scheme of the True Orthodox Church from the
Samara OGPU (HDASBU, fond. 13- 1- 386, 1). ©State Archive
Branch of the Security Services of Ukraine 76
2.4 Network scheme of the True Orthodox Church signed by
Evgenii Tuchkov, the head of the “Church department” of
the OGPU (HDASBU, fond. 13- 1- 387, 49). ©State Archive
Branch of the Security Services of Ukraine 77
5.1 Jehovah’s Witnesses at a bicycle meeting (MJTEA).
©Hungarian Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Archives 118
5.2 List of confiscated education material (ÁBTL 3.1.9.
V- 149948/ 3/ 2, 116). ©Historical Archives of the Hungarian
State Security 119
5.3 Baptism at Lake Balaton (MJTEA). ©Hungarian Jehovah’s
Witnesses’ Archives 120
5.4 Song from the minepit of Ladánytáró (ÁBTL 3.1.9.
V- 128933/ a). ©Historical Archives of the Hungarian State
Security 122
5.5 Ludwig L. Gerencsér: Bächlein. ©Ludwig L. Gerencsér 124
7.1 The title page of the book serving as a “guide” to combat
miraculous phenomena in communist Poland (AIPN Bi 067/
44, 3). ©Archives of the Institute of National Remembrance
in Białystok 150
7.2 Photos of Jadwiga Jakubowska from a special album
created by the secret police in 1965 (AIPN Bi 012/ 1337, 55).
©Archives of the Institute of National Remembrance in
Białystok 153
List of figures ix
7.3 The site of the Marian apparition with Catholic and
Orthodox religious votive offerings (AIPN Bi 012/ 1336/ 4,
163). ©Archives of the Institute of National Remembrance
in Białystok 157
7.4 A page from the Security Service’s album with surveillance
photographs showing the behaviour of pilgrims at the site
of the Marian apparition: hanging rosaries and collecting
soil (AIPN Bi 012/ 1337, 30). ©Archives of the Institute of
National Remembrance in Białystok 158
7.5 A general view of the miraculous meadow in June 1965
(AIPN Bi 012/ 1336/ 4, 278). ©Archives of the Institute of
National Remembrance in Białystok 159
7.6 Women singing a religious song at the site of the Marian
apparition identified by the Security Service (AIPN Bi
012/ 1337, 64). ©Archives of the Institute of National
Remembrance in Białystok 168
7.7 Religious ceremonies in the meadow on the 50th anniversary
of the miracle of Zabłudów. © Photo by Małgorzata
Kasperowcz 172
11.1 Crime scene photograph of the electric organ (ÁBTL 3.1.9.
V- 160122/ 24). ©Historical Archives of the Hungarian State
Security 235
11.2 Pastor Németh preaching (ÁBTL 3.1.9. V- 160122/ 7).
©Historical Archives of the Hungarian State Security 236
11.3 Baptized congregants in white robes (ÁBTL 3.1.9. V- 160122/
13). ©Historical Archives of the Hungarian State Security 236
11.4 Baptism of Lilla Gere (ÁBTL 3.1.9. V- 160122/ 10).
©Historical Archives of the Hungarian State Security 248
11.5 Moments of the house raid (ÁBTL 3.1.9. V- 160122/ 17).
©Historical Archives of the Hungarian State Security 248
11.6 Searching for samizdat during the raid (ÁBTL 3.1.9.
V- 160122/ 40). ©Historical Archives of the Hungarian
State Security 249