Religion and state in communist countries:

between legal control and the accusation of religious persecution

Authors

  • Clemildo Anacleto da Silva Aposentado

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22478/ufpb.1982-6605.2025v22n1.75469

Abstract

This text aims to discuss whether, nowadays, it is still appropriate to assert that there is persecution of religion in communist countries. The defended thesis holds that, although such persecution occurred in the past, currently these states impose limits on religious freedom, especially when religion is perceived as a threat to political stability or as an instrument of ideological support. To support this analysis, the adopted methodology was based on two international reports that monitor religious freedom in more than 190 countries, considering governmental restrictions and social hostility. The analysis revealed that the majority of the world’s population lives in contexts of high governmental restriction on religion, and that most of these countries are not communist. Even so, in the countries analyzed, there are rules that limit religious practices, which is not an exclusive characteristic of these regimes.

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Published

2025-12-04

How to Cite

DA SILVA, Clemildo Anacleto. Religion and state in communist countries: : between legal control and the accusation of religious persecution. Religare, [S. l.], v. 22, n. 1, 2025. DOI: 10.22478/ufpb.1982-6605.2025v22n1.75469. Disponível em: https://periodicos.ufpb.br/index.php/religare/article/view/75469. Acesso em: 26 jun. 2026.