No 4 (33) (2025)

The article is devoted to the theology of Archimandrite (later Archbishop and Holy Martyr) Hilarion (Troitsky), which is contained in his articles of 1913‑1917. His theological views are examined in those aspects that were criticized in the 20th century. A review of contemporary publications shows that this criticism is open to controversy, which could be very fruitful for a more complete and thorough study of his ecclesiology and soteriology. In the author’s opinion, in this case it is especially important that the holy martyr Hilarion in the 1920s became a companion of St. Patriarch Tikhon and by his very life testified to his theological convictions. The material contained in the article can serve as an integral part of a systematic analysis of these convictions. In the existing criticism, the author of the article highlights two points related to Archimandrite Hilarion’s interpretation of the significance of the event of the Incarnation (1) and the properties of the human nature assumed by the Savior (2). To these two points, the author adds a third one (3), in which one can discern Archimandrite Hilarion’s confidence in the unconditional primacy of spiritual experience in the Church over the rational formulations of church dogma. The article presents arguments that, in the author’s opinion, indicate that, in all three points, criticism of Archimandrite Hilarion’s theology is based either on the incompleteness of the sources examined or on inaccuracies he allowed in expressing his thoughts. The study revealed that Archimandrite Hilarion was influenced by the “moral theory” of Archbishop Anthony (Khrapovitsky) (later Metropolitan). However, having experienced the grace-filled transformation of man taking place in the Church, he recognized the shortcomings of this theory and, therefore, in his writings, overcame its biases, which could lead to distortions of Orthodox doctrine.

This article analyzes the genesis of the Farewell to Winter festival based on Soviet-era methodological literature. It examines the evolution of the holiday from the 1920s, from the all-out campaign against Christian Maslenitsa as a hostile phenomenon, to the 1960s attempt to replace it with a socialist holiday incorporating elements of traditional rituals. The methodological basis of the work is a comparative historical analysis used to compare traditional Russian Maslenitsa (based on ethnographic sources from the 19th and 20th centuries) and the Soviet Farewell to Winter holiday (based on methodological and journalistic materials from the 1950s and 1960s). It also utilizes a conceptual analysis based on the theory of civil religion, allowing for the interpretation of the Soviet Farewell to Winter holiday not simply as a cultural or ideological phenomenon, but as a form of quasi-religious practice in which the political system is imbued with sacred meaning. A comparison of traditional Maslenitsa as depicted in ethnographic descriptions and the Soviet Farewell to Winter celebrations reveals fundamental differences behind the similar external images. These include the abundance of communist slogans, the active participation of party functionaries, and the strict regulation of the celebration. But most revealing is the analysis of the demonstrative erasure and oblivion of previous meanings, such as Maslenitsa’s focus on honoring newlyweds, visiting relatives, and so on. This highlights important features of the Soviet civil religion, for which there is no personal past, no “person-to-person” relationships, only “person-to-society,” not to mention the Christian desire for reconciliation on Forgiveness Sunday. The article concludes by arguing that the new Farewell to Winter festival became a tool for the imposition of Soviet civil religion, with its focus on the future, the idea of social control, and the unchanging and sole purpose of Soviet existence, labor. The experience of constructing a Soviet civil religion, given its failure, is all the more valuable, given that similar attempts are being made in contemporary Russia to construct a new civil pseudoreligion with elements of national holidays and pan-Russian values, underscoring the relevance of this research.

This article examines the practice of regulating regular public worship by the Holy Governing Synod from 1901 to 1917, on the eve of the election of His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon. The relevance of this study stems from the insufficient study of the Synod’s activities as the highest body of ecclesiastical authority in the sphere of liturgical regulation, as well as the interest of church historians in the pre-council period, which saw a growing need for a profound renewal of the liturgical life of the Russian Church. At the beginning of the 20th century, ecclesiastical regulation of liturgical practice in the Russian Church was carried out both by synodal decrees of the preceding period, which were systematized in private subject indexes widely used during this period, and by decrees of the Holy Synod published in the Church Gazette from 1901 to 1917. The author employs methods of historical and canonical analysis, classification of church legal norms, and contextual interpretation of sources. A review of the Holy Synod’s decisions on liturgical matters allowed for their thematic classification. The largest group consisted of resolutions devoted to regulating the commemoration of the reigning house during divine services. The second group consisted of decisions related to the approval of new liturgical texts and the establishment of liturgical memorials. The third group of Synodal decisions was devoted to curbing various abuses in liturgical practice. Overall, despite numerous private orders regulating regular public worship, the Holy Synod’s resolutions did not address significant aspects of liturgical practice in the context of its development, which only strengthened the ecclesiastical and public demand for the preparation and holding of the Local Council of 1917-1918.

This study examines the relationship between the biblical narrative of the Babylonian captivity (based on the letter of the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 29:4-23)) and recent archaeological data. The primary focus is on examining the extent to which cuneiform sources, which contain historical data, complement or clarify the content of the sacred text. The relevance of this work stems from the recent discovery and publication of documents from Al-Yahudu, a settlement founded for Jewish captives during the Babylonian captivity. These materials significantly expand existing knowledge on this historical period and open up new possibilities for interpreting the corresponding sacred text. Despite the significant progress achieved in the study of Mesopotamia in the sixth century BCE thanks to these discoveries, foreign researchers focus primarily on the socioeconomic analysis of cuneiform materials. Within this approach, the biblical narrative is often viewed as a secondary source or even completely rejected as inconsistent with historical reality. At the same time, the methodological experience of Russian biblical studies, which involves textual and exegetical analysis of Holy Scripture in light of cuneiform evidence, is underrepresented in contemporary scholarly discussion. In the context of this problem, the author of this study compared the biblical text of the prophet Jeremiah, as well as selected fragments from the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, with the documents of Al-Yahud. The following conclusion was reached: Babylonian cuneiform inscriptions allow us not only to clarify the historical biblical context but also to reveal certain aspects of the religious and social life of the Jewish community in Babylon. Particular attention is paid to identifying fragments of the Book of Jeremiah that reflect the authentic realities of the exile, and are not, as some critics believe, later theological interpretations. The following methods were used in the study: narrative, historical-comparative, and also method of historical reconstruction.

This article examines the origins of the Typicon of the Valaam Skete of All Saints, founded by St. Nazarius (Kondratiev) in the late 18th century and serving as a model for other sketes both on Valaam and at other monasteries of the Russian Church in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Despite the scientific interest in the typicons of the Valaam sketes in recent years, their origins and the sources St. Nazarius relied on when founding the first Valaam Skete have not yet been fully examined. Using analysis and synthesis, problem-chronological, and statistical research methods, it was established that the Typicon of the Valaam Skete of All Saints combined the traditions of the Nilo-Sorsky Skete and the Sarov Hermitage. Moreover, among the manuscripts of the New Valaam Monastery (evacuated from Old Valaam in 1939-1940), a typicon for the skete was discovered. According to preliminary conclusions, it is a version of the Skete Typicon, well-known in scholarly circles, and in Russian manuscript tradition, is tacitly attributed to St. Nilus of Sora. In the discovered typicon, unlike the Skete Typicon (believed to have been adopted at the Nilus-Sorskaya Hermitage by its founder), the cathedral service is scheduled not from Wednesday to Thursday (the all-night vigil), but on Saturday (the memorial service and the Liturgy). This version is closer not only to the charter of the first Valaam Skete, but also to the charter of the Anzersk Holy Trinity Skete, which directly inherited the traditions of the Skete of St. Nilus of Sora. For future research, a working hypothesis is proposed that St. Nilus modified the liturgical portion of the Skete Typicon when introducing it to the hermitage he founded. Thus, the determination of the origin of the Typicon of the Valaam Skete of All Saints has opened up prospects for further study of the Skete Typicon, the liturgical tradition of the Nilo-Sorskaya Hermitage, and the legacy of St. Nilus of Sora, the founder of skete life in Russsia.

This article analyzes the perception of military events in the spiritual legacy of the Optina elders. Consistently framing their discussions of military conflicts within a socio-political context, the Optina elders viewed them through the prism of repentance within a spiritual and ascetic discourse, which distinguished their perspective from that of some other clergy of the time. Methodologically, the article relies on a contextual interpretation of the elders’ personal letters, as well as a historical and theological analysis that allows them to relate their views to the historical context of imperial autocracy. The Optina elders characterized armed conflict primarily as punishment for a sinful lifestyle, and they interpreted it not as an external cause, but as a consequence of internal sinful passions (anger, vanity, and avarice) and a test of faith. This article analyzes in detail the position of the Optina elders, which is seen in the clear delineation of the responsibilities of the state authorities, which are engaged in military operations, and the Church, which is fulfilling its sacramental mission. The Optina elders pointed out that war, which is a consequence of human passions, can be prevented by eliminating its root cause, which is the passion of anger. Therefore, the New Testament instruction to refrain from anger toward “one’s brother” should be viewed as a reference to the eradication of this passion, rather than to the legal regulation of external actions. The article concludes that the elders’ pastoral mission was focused on developing personal moral responsibility in their flock, oriented toward the spiritual struggle with passions, which was seen as a path to the transformation of both individuals and society.

The relevance of this study stems from the need to distinguish between religious and pseudo-religious discourse in Russia’s contemporary information and communication space. Given the active dissemination of various content, identifying destructive elements that distort the true understanding of religious teachings is particularly important. The aim of this study is to define the concept of pseudo-religious discourse and develop a methodology for its differentiation. This study utilizes an interdisciplinary theolinguistic approach. Research methods include discourse analysis, content analysis of online resources, and a comparative method. The research material includes publications from social media, Zen channels, and other digital platforms. The study defines the concept of “pseudo-religious discourse” and identifies key features of pseudo-religious content: contamination of vocabulary from several semantic fields (Orthodox, neo-pagan, occult-mystical). The study examines the absence of a direct connection with authentic sacred texts (Sacred Scripture, liturgical, and hagiographic texts), the presence of factual and lexical-stylistic errors in the use of religious terms, and the presence of errors in the use of religious terms. Criteria for differentiating between religious and pseudo-religious discourses have been developed. The practical significance of this work lies in the applicability of the developed criteria to identify destructive content in the digital environment. This study contributes to our understanding of the mechanisms of manipulation in pseudo-religious discourse and can be used to improve methods for monitoring the information space. The results obtained are relevant for specialists in the fields of religious studies, linguistics, and information security.