Dissent on the Margins: How Soviet Jehovah's Witnesses Defied Communism and Lived to Preach About It

Synopsis

Baran Offers A Compelling History Of How A Small, American-based Religious Community, The Jehovah's Witnesses, Found Its Way Into The Soviet Union After World War Ii, Survived Decades Of Fierce Persecution, And Emerged As One Of The Region's Fastest Growing Religions After The Soviet Union's Collapse In 1991. Through The Story Of This Marginal, Often Misunderstood Faith, This Book Explores The Shifting Boundaries Of Religious Dissent, Non-conformity, And Human Rights In The Soviet Union And The Successor States Of Russia, Ukraine, And Moldova. 1 Jehovah's Servants In Soviet Lands: A Prehistory 14 -- 2 I Will Be His Witness Until Death 31 -- 3 Divide And Conquer 70 -- 4 The Lives Of Soviet Witnesses 109 -- 5 Preaching Atheism 141 -- 6 The Path To Legalization 173 -- 7 The Post-soviet Harvest 197 -- 8 Freedom And Opposition 222. Emily B. Baran. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 347-367) And Index.