Socialist churches : radical secularization and the preservation of the past in Petrograd and Leningrad, 1918-1988 / Catriona Kelly.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kelly, Catriona, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Atheism--Soviet Union.

Atheism.

Church buildings--Soviet Union.

Church buildings.

Historic buildings--Conservation and restoration--Soviet Union.

Historic buildings.

Historic buildings--Conservation and restoration.

Soviet Union.

Physical Description:

xx, 413 pages ; 24 cm

Other Title:

Radical secularization and the preservation of the past in Petrograd and Leningrad, 1918-1988Socialist churches : radical secularization and the preservation of the past in Petrograd and Leningrad, 1918-1988

Place of Publication:

DeKalb, IL : N I U Press, [2016]

Summary:

In Russia, legislation on the separation of church and state in early 1918 marginalized religious faith and raised pressing questions about what was to be done with church buildings. While associated with suspect beliefs, they were also regarded as structures with potential practical uses, and some were considered works of art. This engaging study draws on religious anthropology, sociology, cultural studies, and history to explore the fate of these "socialist churches," showing how attitudes and practices related to them were shaped both by laws on the preservation of monuments and anti-religious measures. 0Based on abundant archival documentation, Catriona Kelly's powerful narrative portrays the human tragedies and compromises, but also the remarkable achievements, of those who fought to preserve these important buildings over the course of seven decades of state atheism. Socialist Churches will appeal to specialists, students, and general readers interested in church history, the history of architecture, and Russian art, history, and cultural studies.

Contents:

"October has caught up with the church": the separation of church and state, 1918-1923

Monuments to the golden age: the canons of preservation, 1924-1928

Churches in the Socialist city: crash industrialization, rational Atheism, and city planning, 1929-1940

The great patriotic church war destruction, post-war reconstruction, 1941-1953

The scientific assault on God: church-monuments in the Khrushchev era, 1953-1964

Cynosures of the city: church buildings as national heritage, 1965-1988.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Kelly, Catriona, author. Socialist churches

ISBN:

9780875807430

0875807437

OCLC:

951158221