{"product_id":"women-of-the-catacombs-9781501753657","title":"Women of the Catacombs","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe memoirs presented in\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWomen of the Catacombs\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003eoffer a rare close-up account of the underground Orthodox community and its priests during some of the most difficult years in Russian history.\u003c\/b\u003e The catacomb church in the Soviet Union came into existence in the 1920s and played a significant part in Russian national life for nearly fifty years. Adherents to the Orthodox faith often referred to the catacomb church as the \"light shining in the dark.\" \u003ci\u003eWomen of the Catacombs\u003c\/i\u003e provides a first-hand portrait of lived religion in its social, familial, and cultural setting during this tragic period.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eUntil now, scholars have had only brief, scattered fragments of information about Russia's illegal church organization that claimed to protect the purity of the Orthodox tradition. Vera Iakovlevna Vasilevskaia and Elena Semenovna Men, who joined the church as young women, offer evidence on how Russian Orthodoxy remained a viable, alternative presence in Soviet society, when all political, educational, and cultural institutions attempted to indoctrinate Soviet citizens with an atheistic perspective. Wallace L. Daniel's translation not only sheds light on Russia's religious and political history, but also shows how two educated women maintained their personal integrity in times when prevailing political and social headwinds moved in an opposite direction.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eWallace L. Daniel is Distinguished University Professor of History at Mercer University. He is author of \u003ci\u003eRussia's Uncommon Prophet\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Orthodox Church and Civil Society in Russia\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Northern Illinois University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50376877146386,"sku":"9781501753657","price":159.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_964dfd97-565f-4bc0-a5d5-d97e30ba000e.jpg?v=1728609567","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/women-of-the-catacombs-9781501753657","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}