Russian courts have banned three more Baptist churches affiliated with the Council of Churches Baptists within the southern region of Krasnodar amid an ongoing crackdown on unregistered congregations across the country.
The churches in Timashyovsk, Armavir and Tuapse were all prohibited from operating unless they formally notify authorities of their activities, which the denomination refuses to do on principle, the Forum 18 News Service reported earlier this month.
The Council of Churches Baptists, formed throughout the Soviet era, maintains that registration constitutes state control over religious life and just isn’t required under Russian law or the Constitution.
The Timashyovsk District Court issued a ruling on Oct. 13 prohibiting the activities of the church there following an inspection in June, during which officials entered the constructing during a worship service and later questioned Pastor Andrey Antonyuk concerning the group’s legal status.
A civil lawsuit filed in July by the local prosecutor requested a ban until the church submitted notification of its existence. The ruling cited no gross or repeated violations that might warrant a prohibition, in keeping with the Intercession Department of the Council.
In Armavir, town court upheld an analogous request by prosecutors on Sept. 30, finding that Pastor Vladimir Popov led religious meetings without proper authorization and that the group constituted an unregistered religious association. The court referred to earlier administrative violations, including fines issued to Popov for leading worship and to a church member for distributing religious newspapers at a key-cutting shop, as justification for the ban.
The Tuapse City Court banned the local Council of Churches Baptist congregation on Sept. 22 following reports from the Federal Security Service that the group held religious events involving minors and visitors from other regions and countries. Prosecutors filed the executive lawsuit in August.
Pastor Anatoly Mukhin had previously been fined for allegedly conducting illegal missionary activities, including sharing religious literature and holding worship services without state notification.
The U.S.-based persecution watchdog International Christian Concern states that when a church is banned by court order, it’s prohibited from meeting not only at its usual location but anywhere throughout the city or district.
“The reason these churches select to not register lies of their foundational purpose,” the ICC stated in a statement this week. “The Council of Churches Baptists was established throughout the Cold War to withstand Soviet control over its congregations, unlike registered churches, which were strictly regulated by the state. Although the Council continued its activities after the autumn of the Soviet Union and now meets openly, they accomplish that only in private homes or on private land.”
The bans bring the overall variety of Council of Churches Baptist congregations prohibited from operating in Russia to 10, all because the starting of 2024.
Most of the court actions have occurred in Krasnodar, though similar rulings have been issued within the Mari El Republic, Ulyanovsk, Amur and Yamalo-Nenets regions.
Prosecutors often construct cases based on accusations of “illegal missionary activity,” which is treated as evidence of a bunch’s de facto existence within the absence of state registration.
The Council of Churches Baptists says the requirement to notify authorities of their existence contradicts their religious convictions and violates their constitutional right to assemble for worship. They insist they’re private residents gathering for religious purposes, not a legal entity.
Lawyers accustomed to the cases say Russian law doesn’t clearly define what constitutes a non secular group or what level of legal violation justifies banning one.
A 2016 Supreme Court resolution states that bans will be applied if violations are gross, repeated or irreparable. However, courts have repeatedly ruled that unregistered churches may resume activity in the event that they submit the required notification, a condition critics argue contradicts the legal standard for bans.
The Russian government has also considered tightening restrictions. Most Russians belong to the Russian Orthodox Church, which has played a dominant role in Russian society since 988 A.D., in keeping with a 2024 country dossier by the watchdog group Open Doors International. However, many Russians are usually not more likely to have read the Bible, and few attend church services. Only about 1.3% of the Russian population is taken into account Protestant.
A bill introduced within the State Duma in June would ban worship and spiritual rites on residential property and in non-residential parts of apartment buildings, potentially affecting many Council of Churches Baptist congregations that meet in homes.
The federal government criticised the proposal in October, saying it contradicted existing law and required major revision.
However, congregations have continued to satisfy for worship. Only one church, in Kurganinsk, has been physically sealed by bailiffs after a court ruling took effect in 2024, Forum 18 notes. Pastor Aleksandr Chmykh’s appeals were rejected at every level, including by the Russian Supreme Court in August 2025.
Other congregations have also exhausted appeals. A church in Rodniki lost its final challenge on Oct. 29, when the 4th Cassational Court upheld the ban issued in December 2024. In Yoshkar-Ola, the regional capital of Mari El, the Supreme Court of the Republic upheld an area court’s ruling in October prohibiting the activities of a church meeting in the house of Viktor and Svetlana Araslanov, together with other members.
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