February 27, 7534
-By Nina Lukyanova. “Shake off, ye unbelievers, your mental slumber, open the eyes of your mind and behold: the sun of the world is already setting, night will soon come, the fateful hour will strike suddenly, Christ will appear like lightning—for all is ready. And yet, instead of Christ, Whom we must await with fear…
-G. V. Markelov. In the Russian Orthodox Church, the sacrament of repentance as a divinely instituted sacred act acquired its final forms only in the 17th century. The rite of repentance, known as the Order of Confession, was already included in pre-Nikonian printed books and, in this most ancient version with only minor changes and…
“Whoever is persuaded and believes that our teaching and words are true, and promises that he can live in accordance with them, is taught to pray and fast, asking God for the forgiveness of former sins, and we pray and fast together with him. Then we lead him to where there is water, and he…
Preface Even if someone were a king over the entire universe and possessed all earthly riches, he could not redeem his own soul, even if he gave all the wealth of the world. Neither can all worldly nourishments, fine garments, fleeting rest, or comfort bring any relief to the soul when it is eternally tormented….
-by N.A. Prozorov. INTRODUCTION Before proceeding to the study of the history of Old Belief, it is necessary to say a few words about what Old Belief actually is. Having accepted the Christian Orthodox faith from the Greeks in 988 under Prince Vladimir the Saint, the Russians faithfully and inviolably preserved it until the 17th…
K. Kozhurin. (On the 350th anniversary of its beginning) In 1668, the siege of the principal holy shrine of the Russian North—the Solovetsky Monastery—began by tsarist troops. From the very start of Patriarch Nikon’s reforms, the monastery had become one of the chief strongholds of the old faith. “The Solovetsky Monastery was the fourth most…
-K. KOZHURIN, Candidate of Philosophical Sciences (Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia) As has already been noted by a number of researchers, the “zealots of piety” of the mid-17th century and their followers—the Old Believers—in their historiosophical views relied on written monuments of South- and West-Russian origin. Over time these texts acquired unconditional authority, and…
A word of Andrei Denisov, Pomorian coenobiarch “The righteous shall live by faith” (Habakkuk 2:4) Many and ineffable blessings are brought about by the virtues; for the sake of them, those who have acquired them are counted blessed with immortal glory. For every virtue truly embraced crowns its lover with inexpressible beauty and adorns him…
I. M. Kokunin Report delivered at the Second All-Russian Council of the Old-Orthodox Pomor Church (Moscow, 1912) “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (First Epistle General of John, ch. 1, v. 8) As is well known, the ancient Church did not cast sinners…
Report of L. F. Pichugin at the First All-Russian Council of Pomor Christians, 1909 ON THE ESSENCE OF THE CHURCH Conciliar Resolution QUESTION. Who established the Church? ANSWER. Christ the Savior Himself. QUESTION. Which words indicate the establishment of the Church? ANSWER. The righteous confession of the Apostle Peter: “You are the Christ, the Son…