Schuller in Russia, Says Stay Tuned : Religion: Touring televangelist from O.C. urges Muscovites to catch his show "Hour of Power," beginning today.

Schuller in Russia, Says Stay Tuned : Religion: Touring televangelist from O.C. urges Muscovites to catch his show “Hour of Power,” beginning today.

By STEPHANIE SIMON

June 1, 1992 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

MOSCOW — Winking slyly under her purple sun hat, 77-year-old Irina Kuzmina explained the allure of Orange County televangelist Robert H. Schuller, who is touring Russia and preached in Moscow on Sunday.

“He speaks with emotion,” said Kuzmina, a longtime member of Moscow’s Baptist Church. “Our ministers all speak in monotones, and sometimes the old women fall asleep.”

Few in the packed church nodded off during the Rev. Schuller’s 40-minute sermon, during which he presented a message familiar to his Orange County-based, worldwide following. He urged the Russian congregation to think positively, spread Christian faith and tune in to his weekly “Hour of Power” television service from Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove.

That weekly ritual becomes possible this week as Schuller becomes the first Western preacher to appear regularly on television in the former Soviet Union when his “Hour of Power” begins weekly broadcasts today.

“I was sure I could do something that would help make the name of God honored here,” said Schuller, who is signing a one-year contract with Ostankino Broadcasting Co. for rights to “Hour of Power.” An anonymous American donor will finance the weekly broadcasts at a cost of about $260,000, according to Michael Nason, a Schuller aide.

Recognizing a deep craving for religious education, the late Armand Hammer, chairman of Occidental Petroleum Corp., first arranged for Schuller to preach to the Soviet Union in 1989. Schuller’s Christmas Day sermon that year, broadcast on government television, was the first time a foreign religious leader had addressed the Soviet nation.

Since Schuller’s visit in 1989, Billy Graham, Jimmy Swaggart and other American television evangelists have preached here to enthusiastic crowds. Many Russians, tentatively exploring religion after 70 years of official atheism, say they rely on foreign preachers to educate and inspire them.

“We can’t trust many of our own preachers because they were often connected with the KGB,” said Anna Ivanovna, 58, who became a believer only four months ago after a lifetime of accepting government-ordained atheism.

“We were denied access to the word of God for so long that today we need help from the West,” she added. “We just don’t have enough information about Christ or God. Our hearts are with God, but we don’t know how to act.”

Although religious groups ranging from the Hare Krishnas to Campus Crusade for Christ have been preaching in Moscow for nearly five years, many Russians still view visiting foreign clergy with awe. Scores of women circled Schuller after his morning sermon, pressing close to touch his suit and kiss his hands.

Western religious leaders “will help us achieve the rebirth of Russia,” said Vasily Silishev, 31, a thin, intense man who has founded his own ministry--and the first Christian church in seven decades--in a small town in Tartarstan in central Russia.

“We don’t have the means to spread faith to the masses, and we don’t have experience in talking to large crowds,” Silishev added. “It’s wonderful that our American brothers can help us.”

Arkady Bablumov, 83, a World War II veteran whose medals covered the front of his blue suit jacket, agreed. “The whole country should be grateful to hear such smart people speak here,” Bablumov said. “We definitely need foreigners here--we need to know each other and we need to help each other.”

“I have a deep love for the Russian people,” said Schuller, who has coordinated humanitarian-aid shipments to the former Soviet Union through Churches Uniting for Global Mission, an ecumenical group of 150 American ministries.

“Russians . . . have big hearts. They have big souls. They know what hurt is,” Schuller told reporters. “I know how to talk to people about hurt if they have a big heart, if they have a great soul.”

Later, reflecting on the hundreds who attended his addresses and the estimated 10 million who will watch his show, Schuller added, “I love the Russian people, and they love me.”