Abstract:

February 25, 1921, is the beginning of a very difficult period in the history of Georgia. The era started with the invasion of the democratic Republic of the Independent Georgia and with the violation of Georgian statehood by the Bolsheviks, which lasted less than decade and heavily affected the Georgian consciousness. The country began a “new life.” The Bolshevik government was actively engaged in the management of the country. In this period, the terror carried out by Soviet Russia in Georgia against representatives of various religious faiths has not been properly studied and evaluated yet. The Georgian history is taught in educational institutions in general as well as in institutions of higher education, where some space is devoted to the establishment of Soviet power in Georgia. Also, church history and cultural studies are taught as separate subjects at universities where a large section is devoted to the teaching of various religious denominations existing in Georgia.
This period is not properly represented and implemented in teaching programs on the secondary and higher educational levels. One of the main reasons of this fact is the importance of displaying still unpublished factual materials which still exist in the archives, and a necessity their implementation in the modern educational programs will greatly help the comprehensive study of the era.

The main objective of the research is to discuss and analyze the materials about the “Red Terror” against the various religious groups in Georgia and the importance of their consideration in teaching programs. The value of the work is determined by its educational aspect, which is important for students and researchers who are interested in studying this era.

The main research tasks are:
1. The brutality of the government against the Orthodox Church: The Church without any rights, and to eliminate the prospect of obtaining legal status to religious societies;
2. To analyze the facts of deprivation of property from the population and the Church;
3. To develop the specific strategy against the Church;
4.Creation “Atheists Union" and its activities;
5. Oppression of minorities (Catholics, Jews, Armenians);
6. Revealing the historical facts of destruction of the historical monuments.

Keywords:

History, confessions, red terror, Bolshevism, religion, Orthodox Church, oppression of minorities, education.