ABSTRACT
The country that pioneered and maintained a policy of state-imposed secularization and official atheism over nearly seven decades is bound to catch the attention of those involved in the secularization debate. It is not surprising that both proponents and opponents of the secularization thesis have used evidence from the post-Soviet situation to support their conflicting views. In particular, in post-Soviet Russia the informal church-state relations have been very much at odds with the stipulations of Russia's Constitution and laws. The affinity between the Church and state agencies manifests itself particularly powerfully in the relationships with the military and law enforcement agencies. Thus, in post-Soviet Russia the secularization vs. de-secularization debate is not confined to academic journals and conferences but entangled in a highly politicized and contentious controversy over secularism in the public arena. By most conventional measures, such as church attendance or organizational participation, post-Soviet Russia is not a religiously committed society.
