The Evolution of State-church Relationship on the territory of the Orenburg (Chkalov) Diocese in 1943-1958

The author studies the positions of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Orenburg (Chkalovsky) diocese since 1943 till 1958.The article coversthe revival and the stages of a diocese’s establishment, the problems of new parishes and the lack of personnel potential for the professional preparation of clergy. The author explains the economic situation in orthodox congregations, the sources of incomes, the items of expenditure, religious initiatives and the life of orthodox laymen of the diocese. The reasons of the contradictory relationsbetweenthe soviet government and the Russian Orthodox Church were expressed in changinga favorable religious policy andits cooling that caused «Khruschev’s» large-scale persecutions in 1945-1948. The article bases on anunpublished archival materials, periodical press and on the works of the historians, concerning the given problem