DATE: Friday, October 3, 1997               TAG: 9710020013

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B10  EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Editorial 

                                            LENGTH:   51 lines

RELIGION IN RUSSIA A SAD STEP BACKWARD YELTSIN'S APPROVAL OF A NEW RESTRICTIONS IS NOT CAUSE FOR RETALIATION

President Boris N. Yeltsin signed legislation last week that will severely restrict the ability of many religious groups to spread their word to the Russian people. His endorsement of this law is regrettable.

Vice President Al Gore criticized the religion bill in a state visit to Moscow and implored Yeltsin and the Russian parliament to ease its sanctions, as had President Clinton. They were ignored, and now there is a movement in Congress to trim financial aid to Moscow in retaliation.

Much as we deplore state restrictions on the free expression of religious beliefs, to retaliate for the Russian action - ratified overwhelmingly, it should be noted, by a freely elected parliament - would be hypocritical. The list of allies, major trade partners and recipients of United States foreign aid is peppered with states that exhibit far less tolerance for religious diversity than Russia. Saudi Arabia, our strongest Arab ally, is virulent in its opposition to the spread of non-Muslim teachings; China continues to enjoy most-favored-nation trade status despite documented state repression of Christians. Republics as varied as Greece, France, Finland, Italy, Japan and Israel are much farther down the road to a state-endorsed religion than Russia - in practice, if not always in law.

The legislation creates a two-tiered religious hierarchy that gives preference to the Russian Orthodox Church as well as Islam, Judaism, Buddhism and other faiths that have been practiced in Russia for at least 15 years. ``Newcomers'' will face strict limits on publishing, proselytizing, public meetings and ownership of property.

The Orthodox Church, which faced competition from a wide array of denominations whose evangelists flooded the nation after the fall of communism, was the driving force behind this action. The clergy effectively placed Yeltsin in a political box by quietly supporting his presidential campaign last year, while at the same time making a crackdown on competing religions a cause celebre among anti-reform nationalists.

Yeltsin, having been tarred this summer as an appeaser for offering little opposition to a dramatic expansion of NATO, could not afford to hand another victory to the nationalists. His support for the restrictions on new religions keeps the powerful Orthodox Church in his corner and denies the opposition an emotional issue.

Things change quickly in Russia. The wisest course for the United States would be to continue to support Moscow's reformers while hoping that a democratic government in the near future will be strong enough and confident enough to put the question of religious preference back where it belongs - with the conscience of the individual citizen.

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