Translated material
Olga Kvirkvelia about the criteria of religious affiliation
The author, head of the "Faith and Thought" center, candidate of historical sciences, argues with the provisions of the article by sociologist Yulia Sinelina, according to which, the main criterion for confessional affiliation in sociological research should be the self-identification of respondents. O. Kvirkvelia believes that such an approach is far from impartial and does not allow obtaining an objective picture.
The main thesis of Y. Sinelina - "no one can be considered non-Orthodox if he himself defines himself as such" - O. Kvirkvelia compares "with the equivalent "no one can be considered not a musician if he himself defines himself as such", or "no one can be considered not an alien…” or “…not a Napoleon…” Self-identification is an insufficient criterion: “Religions and denominations differ primarily in the object of faith and the dogmatic component. However, from 18 to 42% of Orthodox believe in the basic tenets of Orthodoxy. And if only 15% of those who call themselves Orthodox believe in God as the person of Christ, then either they are still not Orthodox, or Orthodoxy is not a Christian denomination."
It is possible, of course, to investigate exactly how many people call themselves Orthodox, "but then the range of corrective questions should be aimed at identifying what the respondent considers Orthodoxy and why he considers himself Orthodoxy. And then it would be possible to correlate subjective ideas about Orthodoxy with the official position of the Orthodox Church. I'm afraid the result would be very interesting, but it would also not please the people concerned." The discrepancy between the number of those who call themselves Orthodox and the number of those actually churched and belonging to the MP is absolutely normal. According to O. Kvirkveliy, this kind of research among adherents of other confessions will give the same picture, "with the only difference being that it is "fashionable" to be Orthodox today. To call oneself a Catholic, Protestant or atheist requires a certain courage."
The author believes that the sharply increased interest in “traditional values” in the conditions of the “ideological vacuum” also affects the impartiality of sociologists: “Yes, there were times when not only respondents were forced to answer in a certain way, but sociologists were also forced to pretend that they these answers are trusted.
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