Discover
The identity of the nation
Russia is the largest country in the world by territory, spanning eleven time zones and two continents, from Eastern Europe to the Asian Far East. That vastness shapes everything: more than one hundred seventy ethnic groups live within its borders, speaking dozens of languages, from the Arctic tundra to the steppes of the Caucasus and the forests of Siberia. It is a people accustomed to enormous distances, harsh winters, and a history marked by suffering and endurance.
The Christian faith arrived in the region in the year 988, when the prince of Kyiv adopted Byzantine Orthodox Christianity, laying the foundation for a thousand years of Russian religious identity. The Russian Orthodox Church profoundly shaped the culture, art, music, and even the worldview of the people, even during the seventy years when the Soviet regime tried to erase public faith, closing churches and persecuting believers. After the fall of communism in 1991, there was a significant reopening of religion, but for many, faith remains more cultural and identity based than a living, personal relationship with Jesus.
Today, alongside the vast Orthodox majority, there are historic evangelical minorities, mainly among Baptists, Pentecostals, and Lutherans, as well as significant Muslim communities among Turkic and Caucasian peoples, and Buddhists in regions such as Buryatia, Tuva, and Kalmykia. This diversity of peoples and languages includes many groups still without full access to the gospel, especially among the Muslim ethnic groups of the Caucasus and the Volga and the indigenous peoples of Siberia.
The current context poses real challenges: laws restricting evangelism outside registered religious premises, strong surveillance of non-Orthodox churches, and a social climate of distrust toward expressions of faith seen as “foreign.” Even so, the Russian evangelical church is resilient, marked by generations that endured Soviet persecution without abandoning the faith.
Russia carries a singular calling: a deep, contemplative people, with a rich spiritual tradition and a historic vocation to reach the vastness of Central Asia and Siberia. To pray for this nation is to pray for an awakening that unites its centuries old heritage of faith with a personal, transforming encounter with Christ.
- 988 Prince Vladimir of Kyiv adopts Byzantine Orthodox Christianity, the beginning of the Christian faith in the region.
- 1237-1240 Mongol invasions destroy the main centers of Kyiv, shifting power to Moscow.
- 1547 Ivan IV, the Terrible, becomes the first tsar of Russia.
- 1703 Peter the Great founds Saint Petersburg and positions Russia as a European power.
- 1917 The Russian Revolution overthrows tsarism; beginning of the Soviet regime and persecution of the faith.
- 1922 Formation of the Soviet Union.
- 1991 Dissolution of the Soviet Union; religious reopening and the birth of modern Russia.
- Today A nation with an Orthodox majority, with a minority, resilient evangelical church under legal restrictions on evangelism.
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Russianofficial, spoken by nearly the entire population
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Tatarspoken by millions of Tatars, mainly in the Volga region
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Chechen, Avar, and other Caucasian languagesspoken by peoples of the North Caucasus
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Siberian and Uralic languagesdozens of indigenous languages of Siberia and the Far East, many endangered
Russia stretches from the European plain to the far edges of the Pacific, covering nearly an eighth of the earth's inhabited surface. The territory alternates vast boreal forests (the taiga), steppes, frozen tundra in the north, and mountain ranges such as the Urals, which divide the European part from the Asian, and the Caucasus in the south.
Major cities
- MoscowCapital, largest city, and political and economic center
- Saint PetersburgFormer imperial capital, cultural and historical center
- NovosibirskLargest city in Siberia, scientific and industrial hub
- KazanCapital of Tatarstan, a meeting point of Russian and Muslim Tatar culture
- VladivostokPort in the Far East, gateway to Asia Pacific
Climate and temperature
Borscht
Beet soup with cabbage and meat, served with a spoonful of sour cream.
Pelmeni
Small boiled dumplings filled with meat, created in Siberia as a way to preserve food through the winter.
Blini
Thin pancakes served with caviar, sour cream, or jam, traditional to the Maslenitsa festival, which marks the end of winter.
Shchi
Cabbage soup, a simple homemade dish found on almost every Russian table.
Black bread (rzhanoy khleb)
Dark rye bread, a basic staple of Russian cuisine.
Understand
Culture and spirituality
2a · The culture
Warm hospitality at home
Despite initial reserve, Russians welcome friends into their homes with generosity and abundance.
Depth and melancholy
The culture values reflection, literature, and deep feeling in the face of life and suffering.
The weight of collective history
Wars, famine, and repression of the twentieth century still shape the memory and distrust of many families.
The symbolic role of the Orthodox Church
Even those who do not practice the faith identify Orthodoxy as part of Russian national identity.
Ethnic diversity rarely seen from outside
Within Russia, Slavic Russians, Turkic, Caucasian, and Siberian peoples live side by side with their own distinct cultures.
- Smiling excessively at strangers Among Russians, constant smiling at strangers can seem artificial or insincere.
- Treating the whole country as "just Russian" Ignoring the diversity of Tatar, Caucasian, and Siberian peoples erases real identities.
- Discussing politics or the war without sensitivity The topic is delicate and can put a person at risk; listen more than you offer opinions.
- Openly praising the West in comparison This can come across as contempt for the other person's own culture and history.
2b · The field
Areas of spiritual battle and cultural captivity to cover in prayer. Tap each point to understand:
Many call themselves Orthodox out of national identity, without a personal, living faith in Christ.
Centuries of invasion and war fuel suspicion toward anything from outside, including the gospel.
Excessive alcohol consumption devastates families and is one of the leading causes of premature death in the country.
The identification of "being Russian" with "being Orthodox" makes it harder to accept other Christian expressions.
Decades of historical suffering create a mindset that nothing changes and nothing is worth trying.
Beliefs in fortune telling, amulets, and folk healing persist alongside official religion.
Distrust in public institutions erodes hope and social cohesion.
Indigenous peoples of Siberia remain distant from the gospel, caught between shamanism and neglect.
After decades of scarcity, consumption and status have become new idols for many.
Christians who belong to the Russian Orthodox Church live in freedom and enjoy a historic closeness to the State. But for evangelicals, Baptists, Pentecostals, and other Protestant churches, the reality is much harsher. A law passed in 2016 prohibits any evangelistic activity outside formally registered religious buildings and addresses, including invitations made at home or online.
In practice, this means that sharing the faith with a neighbor, handing out a Bible on the street, or gathering a small prayer group at home can result in a fine, confiscation of materials, and even legal prosecution. Evangelical churches report constant surveillance, police searches during services, and recurring fines, making them the group most penalized by this legislation.
Beyond legal pressure, many evangelical Christians face social and family rejection, seen as part of a “foreign cult” even when their churches have existed in the country for more than a century. Muslim communities from the Caucasus and the Volga region who convert to Christ face even more intense pressure from their own family and community.
Despite this, the Russian evangelical church carries a resilience forged through decades of Soviet repression. Many congregations continue to gather, disciple, and raise up leaders, sustained by a faith that has already proven it can survive even harder times.
The persecution score runs from 0 to 100: the higher it is, the greater the pressure on Christians.
Russia is home to one hundred seventy three distinct ethnic groups, from the Caucasus to Siberia. More than one hundred nineteen of these peoples are still considered unreached by the gospel, most of them Muslim ethnic groups from the Caucasus and the Volga and indigenous Siberian peoples with a strong presence of shamanism. Although the majority of the population identifies as Christian, generally in a nominal way tied to Orthodox tradition, a genuine evangelical presence remains small, and dozens of languages still lack full access to the Scriptures in their own tongue.
- 18.7M Unreached 13,1%
- 119 Unreached 68,8%
Source of people group data: Joshua Project (joshuaproject.net). Estimates, may vary.
Chuvan
Chirag / Amuq Frontier
Yazidi
Ginukh hinux Frontier
Yukagir
Tatar, Tomsk Siberian Frontier
Pashtun Frontier
Source: Joshua Project. Estimates, may vary.
Pray
Intercede for this nation
Every nation carries a redemptive purpose. Marks that seem woven into the identity God desires to restore:
Go
Practical details for those who want to go
Local time
Cost of living
cheaper than Western Europe, Moscow is the most expensive exception
Cost by city
Reference values (source: Numbeo). Confirm before traveling.
Practical points for those who go
- Learn basic Russian: English is rarely spoken outside major urban centers.
- Have patience with bureaucracy: administrative processes tend to be slow and formal.
- Dress for extreme cold in winter, especially outside the big cities.
- Respect the place of the Orthodox Church in conversations about faith; it is central to cultural identity.
- Avoid discussing religion or politics with strangers in public; prefer conversations built on trust.
Send and sustain
Not everyone goes, everyone takes part
Not everyone goes. Everyone takes part.
Behind every worker among these peoples stands a network of people who pray without ceasing, care for the family left behind, and faithfully sustain the work. Sending is mission too.
Start with your church: introduce this nation, adopt it in ongoing prayer, and walk alongside those God is raising up to go.