Zniewoleni wolnomyśliciele? Stowarzyszenie Myśli Wolnej w Gdańsku i Gdyni (1947–1951). Przyczynek do polityki wyznaniowej Polski Ludowej w województwie gdańskim

Abstrakt

The Free Thought Association in Poland founded in 1945 referred to pre-war free-thinking traditions. However, the new socio-political reality quickly verified the original assumptions. It turned out that the reference to pre-1939 formula was a harmful anachronism to the People’s Poland authorities. The FTA ideas were limited to two main strands: the affirmation of the Communist Party and the crackdown on religion and the Catholic Church. Nevertheless, the formula of fighting the Church through FTA was not entirely in line with the expectations of the communist authorities. Free-thinkers entangled in their eclectic, incomprehensible for the rank-and-file members a program, were uncertain and suspicious allies. This was also the case for FTA branches operating in Gdańsk and Gdynia.