The central problem of the conference will be theoretical understanding of the content and real dimensions of secularization within the Soviet “modernity project:” What happened to religion: crisis, marginality, preservation in closed subcultures, or transformation and reappearance in other forms? To what extent all these processes were part of a “universal secularization trend” or were they rather results of the repressive policies? To confront this issue, the organizers will explore how social, economic and political settings, in their historical dynamic, impacted everyday religiosity; how the evolution of religion co-related with milestone historical events and processes of the Soviet history. The conference will also explore issues of relevant research methods; creating a set of appropriate theoretical categories; and defining chronological sub-periods within the Soviet history. Here follows a tentative list of issues to be addressed: The movements of religious reform/renovation of the early 20th century and its impact in religious practices of the Soviet period; The impact of repressive government policies on shaping religious practices; religious responses: eschatological reactions; creating new forms of survival, reproducing old traditions, etc.; Conformist, adaptive, protest and other types of responses to “Soviet modernity”; Typology and analysis of religious subcultures and niches emerged in the Soviet Union; exploring “popular”, “elite”, “official”, and “alternative” religiosity; Transformation of the sacred space under repressive policies: temples, sacred places/objects, their worship and their suppression; Urban and rural religious practices; urbanization as a factor of religious change; Practices at the inter-religious borders: preserving identity, growing tensions, and/or inevitable interaction and alliances?; Consequences of the Soviet religious experience in the post-Soviet societies.