Biserica catacombelor
The Catacomb Church

Summary/Abstract: The anti-religious policy of the Soviet state pushed part of society beyond the legal field. As a result, a religious phenomenon arose, which in the specialized literature of the post-Soviet space is known under the general name “catacomb church”. Initially, the “catacomb church” meant movements born within the Orthodox Church, but which rejected Soviet power. During the interwar period, the concept of “catacomb church” referred specifically to these groups. In the post-war period, the situation changed, and the “catacomb church” began to include all religious groups that were openly or secretly in opposition to the Soviet state, as well as to the top leadership of the respective cults. Thus, we can talk about the “catacomb church” in the Moldavian SSR. It included all religious communities that operated secretly or semi-secretly. The main ideology of the catacomb communities was anti-communist with religious overtones. From the very beginning, the idea of Soviet power as the power of the Antichrist, who they considered Lenin, was ingrained among the catacombers. The five-pointed star was seen as the seal of the Antichrist. For this reason, the catacombers avoided registering their religious communities, obtaining Soviet passports, participating in elections, joining collective farms, serving in the Soviet army, and official employment. Another cornerstone of the catacombers’ ideology was an irreconcilable attitude towards the Moscow Patriarchate, which in their mystical vision was interpreted as “the whore of Babylon riding the red beast”.

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