Their eyes on Dec. 17 parliamentary elections, candidates and top officials descended upon Moscow's elegant Danilovsky Monastery to show their faith in the increasingly influential Russian Orthodox Church.


The prime minister, Cossack chiefs in tall fur hats, and more than a few former communists were among the crowd that joined church elite Monday to open a conference on "Russia and Russians at the Threshold of the 20th Century."


"Russia is working hard, establishing a normal life, restoring its spiritual links," said Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin, who heads the pro-government party Our Home Is Russia.


Nearby sat Patriarch Alexy II, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, and representatives from 18 political parties running for parliament.


The impressive turnout for Monday's conference is the latest sign of the strengthening relationship -- reminiscent of tsarist times -- between the Orthodox Church and the state.


The church, which officially stays outside of Russian politics, invited party leaders because it is "a moral force uniting millions of Orthodox people," and "cannot remain on the sidelines of the processes happening in society," a church statement said.


Fully robed priests from across the former Soviet Union -- some carrying mobile phones -- rubbed elbows with beefy security guards for Chernomyrdin and other top officials.


Many have accused parliamentary candidates of being too eager to associate themselves with the church, with much of the criticism falling on the Communist Party.


Last week, a government commission released a report on the Communist Party's repression of religion in the Soviet era -- from hanging priests to razing tens of thousands of churches.


The restyled Communists of 1995, who are expected to dominate the Dec. 17 polls, have embraced the Orthodox Church and party leader Gennady Zyuganov calls Jesus Christ "the first real communist."


Ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky, also at Monday's conference, said, "Most of these people shouldn't have been allowed in among the holy men here."


Having never been a member of the Communist Party himself, he said, "I'm the only one who can walk around here with a clean conscience."