ANTI-RELIGIOUS CAMPAIGN IN THE WEST UKRAINIAN RURAL SCHOOL UNDER THE CONDITIONS OF SOCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS OF 1944–1953

Abstract

The purpose of the study is a systematic analysis of the forms, methods and means of anti-religious education in rural schools of Western Ukraine during 1944–1953. The methodology of the research is based on the fundamental principles of scientific knowledge: historicism, systemicity and objectivity. Methods of research are related to the purpose, object, subject and research tasks of the study. The scientific novelty consists in the fact that on the basis of working out a wide array of special literature, involving and comprehensive analysis of a wide range of sources in the publication, a comprehensive and comprehensive study of the atheistic campaign by the Soviet authorities in the West Ukrainian rural school was carried out. Conclusions Thus, the return of Soviet power to the territory of Western Ukraine, among other things, continued the policy of atheistic propaganda in the village school started in 1939–1941. Based on the recommendations of A. Lunacharsky and with the prior experience of the atheistic campaign of the 1920-s and 1930-s, the Soviet authorities in the region began a rather active campaign of anti-religious education of youth. The main leaders of this policy were newly arrived teachers from the eastern regions of the USSR and UkrSSR. Local educators tried to sabotage in such events in various ways. A Ukrainian nationalist underground acted as a factor inhibiting the active dissemination of anti-religious propaganda in rural schools. In general, if, at the end of the 1940-s, rural youth were exposed to the anti-religious call of the Soviet regime, then in the early 1950-s, the participation of rural youth in active religious life was increasing. An important factor in this was played by the family factor, where the religious beliefs of older relatives had a greater impact on the consciousness of young people than artificial school antireligious slogans. In general, the publication of the Soviet experience of an atheistic campaign is important for understanding the essence of the complex and contradictory transformational processes of the spiritual life of rural youth under conditions of a totalitarian regime. Studying such an experience will avoid a lot of prayer during the implementation of the spiritual policy of modern Ukraine.