5 research outputs found
The Traditional and the Non-Traditional in the Religious Life of the Russian Federation
This article discusses a new concept of âtraditional religionsâ and other notions related to âtradition.â How is public opinion being shaped, and how is decision-making and state policy towards the Russian Orthodox Church and Islam being influenced by these concepts? Since 1991, religions (in particular, the Russian Orthodox Church and Islam) have enjoyed a revival; and the Russian administration, under Yeltsin and especially under Putin, has taken a number of steps to incorporate religious establishments into the political framework of the state. We will examine these changes through the example of laws on religious liberty, and by analysing public discourse. On the one hand, the religious revival includes a number of so-called ânon-traditionalâ religions that clearly fall under this policy. In the case of Islam, this is especially important with respect to changing Russian policies towards so-called âWahhabismâ and âreligious extremismâ. On the other hand, official discourse centered around âtraditionalityâ is borrowed by the representatives of different denominations to a degree determined by public status. This phenomenon is worth studying as an incorporation of an official category into religious discourse
Holy Knowledge? The Expertise of Religion in Post-Soviet Russia
La relation entre le savant et le politique constitue une problĂ©matique classique en sociologie. La prĂ©sente Ă©tude y contribue, en examinant la question de lâexpertise du fait religieux dans la Russie contemporaine. Relativement peu Ă©tudiĂ©e, la construction du savoir sur le religieux participe Ă la crĂ©ation des croyances politiques. En Russie contemporaine, ce processus est marquĂ© par les contraintes imposĂ©es aux experts par la prĂ©sence de lâĂglise orthodoxe russe dans lâespace public dont le rĂŽle est prĂ©dominant, et par la lutte contre le terrorisme associĂ©e aux acteurs religieux, essentiellement musulmans. Lâautonomie de lâexpert devient alors problĂ©matique et doit faire lâobjet dâune rĂ©flexion. Ă travers une Ă©tude des archives de la pĂ©riode soviĂ©tique et une enquĂȘte sociologique majoritairement qualitative, nous avons explorĂ© les milieux des experts du religieux, le contenu de leurs productions et lâapplication de leurs expertises dans des situations variĂ©es, comme leur utilisation au sein dâun tribunal, leur diffusion par les mĂ©dias ou leur exploitation par des commissions dâĂtat sur les affaires religieuses. LâenquĂȘte montre que le pouvoir russe, malgrĂ© le contrĂŽle souverain quâil souhaite exercer sur les intellectuels et la production des savoirs, a besoin de lĂ©gitimer ses dĂ©cisions concernant le domaine religieux par le savoir acadĂ©mique.The relationship between science and politics is a classic problem in sociology. The present study contributes to this field by examining the question of expertise on religion in contemporary Russia. Relatively understudied, the construction of knowledge about the religious participates in the creation of political beliefs. In contemporary Russia, this process is characterized by the constraints imposed on experts by the predominant role of the Russian Orthodox Church, and by the fight against terrorism undertaken by public authorities against religious actors, mainly Muslims. The autonomy of the expert thus becomes problematic and calls for critical reflection. Through a study of the archives of the Soviet period and through a mainly qualitative sociological research approach, we explore the circles of religious experts, the contents of their knowledge productions, and the application of their expertise in various situations, such as their use for a trial, their dissemination by the media, or their exploitation by state commissions on religious affairs. This research demonstrates that, despite the control which the Russian state wishes to exert over intellectuals and the production of knowledge, the Russian state still needs to legitimize its decisions concerning the religious field through the use of academic knowledge
Centre spirituel et culturel orthodoxe de Russie : pourquoi exporter la spiritualité ?
Le 10 octobre 2016, le Centre spirituel et culturel orthodoxe de Russie (Rossiiskii dukhovno-kulâturnyi pravoslavnyi tsentr) a ouvert ses portes aux visiteurs. Les premiĂšres nĂ©gociations concernant la construction du Centre commencent en 2007 lors de lâamĂ©lioration significative des relations franco-russes. En 2010, la Direction des affaires du PrĂ©sident de la FĂ©dĂ©ration de Russie gagne le concours en versant la somme la plus importante et devient propriĂ©taire du terrain prĂ©cĂ©demment occupĂ© par lâancien bĂątiment de MĂ©tĂ©o France. Un premier projet sĂ©lectionnĂ© est rejetĂ© par lâancien maire de Paris, Bertrand DelanoĂ«, puis le jury dĂ©signe Jean-Michel Wilmotte pour diriger la construction qui commence en avril 2015. Ă lâautomne 2016, lâensemble est dĂ©jĂ achevĂ©. Il est situĂ© au coin du quai Branly et de lâavenue Rapp et consiste en quatre bĂątiments : la cathĂ©drale de la Sainte-TrinitĂ©, un centre dâexpositions, une Ă©cole franco-russe, la direction du DiocĂšse de ChersonĂšse avec une salle de concert et les logements des prĂȘtres et dâemployĂ©s de lâambassade russe..