The Orthodox church to which 70% of the population subscribed had a close bond with the tsarist regime. According to tradition Russia was a holy land that been chosen by God to save the world. The tsar possesed not only a 'divine right' to rule but holiness which made him a saint on earth
By the late 19th century Church administration had been moved to the Holy Synod and the Tsar's position had become more secular.
Nevertheless Imperial Russia remained a strongly Orthodox state and the moral domination of the Orthodox Church over the superstitious and ill-educated peasantry was hugely beneficial to the regime as a means of control.
Religious observance was a significant part of life in the Russian countryside
Priests had close ties with the villages as well as roles assigned by the state. They were expected to read decrees and Imperial manifestos keep statistics root out opposition and inform the police of any suspicious activity.
Priests were even encouraged to pass on statements given in Holy Confessions to the secular authorities even though by Church law these should never be divulged
Alexander III and his ministers were certainly conscious of the power of the Church and under Delyanov the Orthodox Church was given increased control over primary education
The Church also possessed strict censorship controls and the Church courts judged moral and social 'crimes' awarding punishments such as a spell in a monastery to those found guilty
Alexander III's policy of Russification enabled him to promote Orthodoxy throughout the Empire. It became an offence to convert from the Orthodox to another faith or to even publish criticism of it
