ABSTRACT
Protestant missionary activity among indigenous Nenets communities in the Yamal Peninsula and the Polar Urals reshaped local religious landscapes. Converts faced suspicion and discrimination, shaped by enduring Soviet-style anti-religious narratives and state policies portraying non-Orthodox groups as threats. Regional authorities closely monitored missionary activity, while believers navigated precarious social positions and marginalization. Early post-Soviet legislation privileged Russian Orthodoxy and legitimized anti-cult rhetoric, framing minority and foreign-origin religious movements as dangerous sects. Under the Putin regime, religion became further securitized, with the Russian Orthodox Church aligning with state and nationalist agendas to monitor, restrict, and marginalize nontraditional faiths. These developments illustrate the complex interplay of state power, law, and social dynamics in shaping religious identities and lived religion in Russia's increasingly authoritarian context.
