Central Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the RSFSR: From the 1923 Congress to the 1948 Forum

Abstract

Goals. The article attempts an objective analysis, and shows how Soviet authorities would structurally influence the life of Russia’s Muslims. To facilitate these, the work shall examine a variety of previously unknown documents, introduce facts once unavailable to scientific and religious communities illustrating some milestones in the dramatically difficult religious career of Mufti G. Rasulev, and reconstruct an authentic scheme of interaction between public authorities and the Central Muslim Spiritual Directorate: Anti-Religious Commission under the Central Committee of the CPSU(B) — Eastern Department of the Consolidated State Political Directorate of the Soviet Union — Council of People’s Commissars of the USSR / Council of Ministers of the USSR — Council for the Affairs of Religious Cults — Commissioner of the latter Council to Bashkiria — Executive Board of the Central Muslim Spiritual Directorate. Results. The article focuses on the communication between Soviet government agencies and Muslim spiritual executives aimed at settling some key issues pertaining to preparing and holding forums at various levels — meetings, plenums, expanded plenums, and administrative congresses. Meanwhile, special emphasis be placed on how the Charter of the Directorate would transform and reshape the scope of areas to be embraced by legitimate activities of the organization. The work indicates the two main public actors, namely: on behalf of the Council for the Affairs of Religious Cults — its Commissioner to Bashkiria M. Karimov, and on behalf of the CMSD — Mufti G. Rasulev. The analyzed documents secure an understanding of the true nature and foundations of government-religion relations and their prospects in the context of dramatically tightened Communist ideologies.