M o s c o w – The Baptists of Russia hope to overcome the split within their ranks. 78.000 Baptists belong to the state-recognised Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists (RUECB). 30.000 more belong to an unregistered union; 20.000 belong to state-registered, independent Baptist unions. A declaration stemming from a recent Moscow meeting of the “Public Council” states: “We do not want the tragic separation caused by our fathers to determine the fate of our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.”

This event was attended by 150 delegates from 12 different Baptist federations and associations. The session lamented the fact that after 100 years of joint work, Baptists have been going their separate ways since the 1960s. Church leaders had then not been able to agree on the extent to which local churches should fulfil the registration demands of the government. The declaration gives those a voice who had then opted for separation; “We request pardon from all those who have been injured through our deeds and words.” Yevgeni Kravzov (Rybinsk) from the “Brotherhood of Independent ECB Churches” described the church leadership of the time as “totalitarian” and included the remark that some Baptist fathers had succumbed to the temptation of Adam and Eve to be as gods. Victor Abramov (Riga), second-in-command among Latvia’s ethnic-Russian Baptists, complained that many Baptists still suffer from the “disease of unforgivness”.

RUECB-Vice-President Peter Mitskevich (Moscow) called it a goal of these efforts to achieve “unity in spirit and understanding”, not the creation of new structures. He stated: “The letter kills, but the Spirit enlivens. It is important to comprehend that we truly are brothers and sisters.” Some participants applauded the attempted spiritual unity among Baptists, warned though against including any Pentecostals or charismatics in the unity process.