Protestants in Russia face Moscow's antipathy

Here's a pretty interesting article about religion in Russia. I can see both sides here. It's frustrating to see Catholics and Protestants treated unfairly by the government and it's official (Russian Orthodox) religion, but I also think that Catholic and Protestant missionaries need to show respect for the Orthodox faith which was persecuted for a hundred years in the region. I think the attempts at "sheep stealing" need to stop immediately as well.

While church attendance in Russia is very low, polls show that Russians are embracing Russian Orthodoxy as part of their identity. In one recent poll, 71 percent of respondents described themselves as Russian Orthodox, up from 59 percent in 2003.

There are a few hundred thousand Roman Catholics in Russia, and the Russian Orthodox Church has had tense relations with the Vatican, accusing Catholic missionaries of trying to convert Russians. The Vatican says it seeks only to reach out to existing Catholics.

The Russian government has often refused visas for foreign Catholic priests, whom the Vatican has sent because there are few Russian ones.

There have been considerable numbers of Protestants in Russia since the second half of the 18th century. After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, Protestant faiths in the West saw Russia as fertile territory and spent heavily to send missionaries to help the existing worshipers and to convert others.

But the Russian Orthodox Church, which was widely persecuted under Communism, was rebuilding and worried about losing adherents.

Protestants in Russia face Moscow's antipathy - International Herald Tribune