Dioceses
Russian Orthodox Church according to its current state, excluding vicariates. In addition to dioceses, special supra-diocesan (autonomous and self-governing Churches, exarchates, metropolitan districts, metropolises) and sub-diocesan (ecclesiastical missions, patriarchal parishes and deaneries) entities are also indicated.
For a complete list of dioceses that have ever belonged to the Russian Orthodox Church, see Art. Historical dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church.
| Establishment of the canonical territory of the Russian Orthodox Church from April 13, 2021 |
Canonical territory
Russia
- Metropolises:
- Moscow
- Altai
- Arkhangelskaya
- Astrakhan
- Bashkortostan
- Belgorodskaya
- Bryansk
- Buryat
- Vladimirskaya
- Volgogradskaya
- Vologda
- Voronezh
- Vyatskaya
- Donskaya
- Ekaterinburgskaya
- Zabaikalskaya
- Ivanovskaya
- Irkutsk
- Kaliningradskaya
- Kaluzhskaya
- Karelian
- Kostromskaya
- Krasnoyarsk
- Kubanskaya
- Kuzbass
- Kurganskaya
- Kursk
- Lipetskaya
- Mari
- Mordovian
- Murmansk
- Nizhny Novgorod
- Novgorodskaya
- Novosibirsk
- Omsk
- Orenburgskaya
- Orlovskaya
- Penza
- Perm
- Priamurskaya
- Primorskaya
- Pskovskaya
- Ryazan
- Samara
- St. Petersburg
- Saratovskaya
- Simbirskaya
- Smolenskaya
- Stavropolskaya
- Tambovskaya
- Tatarstan
- Tverskaya
- Tomsk
- Tobolskaya
- Tula
- Udmurt
- Khanty-Mansiysk
- Chelyabinsk
- Chuvash
- Yaroslavskaya
Map of dioceses in Russia according to decisions of December 27, 2011. From the website of the Synodal Department for Monasteries and Monasticism monasterium.ru Dioceses:
- Moscow
- Abakanskaya
- Alapaevskaya
- Alatyrskaya
- Alexandrovskaya
- Almetyevskaya
- Amurskaya
- Anadyrskaya
- Ardatovskaya
- Armavir
- Arsenyevskaya
- Arkhangelskaya
- Astrakhan
- Akhtubinskaya
- Balashikhinskaya
- Balashovskaya
- Barnaul
- Baryshskaya
- Bezhetskaya
- Belgorodskaya
- Belevskaya
- Biyskaya
- Birobidzhanskaya
- Birskaya
- Blagoveshchenskaya
- Borisoglebskaya
- Borovichskaya
- Bratskaya
- Bryansk
- Buzulukskaya
- Valuyskaya
- Vaninskaya
- Velikolukskaya
- Veliky Ustyug
- Vladivostok
- Vladikavkazskaya
- Vladimirskaya
- Volgogradskaya
- Volgodonskaya
- Volzhskaya
- Vologda
- Vorkutinskaya
- Voronezh
- Vyborgskaya
- Vyksa
- Vyazemskaya
- Vyatskaya
- Galichskaya
- Gatchina
- Georgievskaya
- Glazovskaya
- Gornoaltaiskaya
- Gorodetskaya
- Gubkinskaya
- Yeiskaya
- Yeletskaya
- Ekaterinburgskaya
- Ekaterinodar
- Yeniseiskaya
- Zheleznogorsk
- Zlatoustovskaya
- Ivanovo-Voznesenskaya
- Izhevskaya
- Irkutsk
- Isilkulskaya
- Iskitimskaya
- Ishimskaya
- Yoshkar-Olinskaya
- Kazanskaya
- Kainskaya
- Kalachevskaya
- Kalachinskaya
- Kaliningradskaya
- Kaluzhskaya
- Kamensk-Uralskaya
- Kanashskaya
- Kanskaya
- Karasukskaya
- Kasimovskaya
- Kemerovo
- Kinelskaya
- Kineshma
- Klintsovskaya
- Kozelskaya
- Kolomenskaya
- Kolpashevskaya
- Kostomuksha
- Kostromskaya
- Kotlasskaya
- Krasnoslobodskaya
- Krasnoyarsk
- Kuznetskaya
- Kudymkarskaya
- Kurganskaya
- Kursk
- Kyzylskaya
- Livenskaya
- Lipetskaya
- Lyskovskaya
- Magadan
- Magnitogorsk
- Maykop
- Mariinskaya
- Makhachkala
- Melekesskaya
- Minusinskaya
- Michurinskaya
- Murmansk
- Muromskaya
- Naryan-Marskaya
- Nakhodkinskaya
- Nerchinskaya
- Neftekamskaya
- Nizhny Novgorod
- Nizhny Tagil
- Novgorodskaya
- Novokuznetskaya
- Novorossiysk
- Novosibirsk
- Norilskaya
- Odintsovskaya
- Omsk
- Orenburgskaya
- Orlovskaya
- Orskaya
- Otradnenskaya
- Penza
- Pereslavskaya
- Perm
- Pesochenskaya
- Petrozavodskaya
- Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskaya
- Plesetskaya
- Podolskaya
- Pokrovskaya
- Pskovskaya
- Pyatigorskaya
- Rzhevskaya
- Roslavlskaya
- Rossoshanskaya
- Rostov-on-Don
- Rubtsovskaya
- Rybinskaya
- Ryazan
- Salavatskaya
- Salekhard
- Samara
- St. Petersburg
- Saranskaya
- Sarapulskaya
- Saratovskaya
- Sayanskaya
- Severobaikalskaya
- Severomorskaya
- Sergiev Posad
- Serdobskaya
- Serovskaya
- Simbirskaya
- Skopinskaya
- Slavgorodskaya
- Smolenskaya
- Solikamskaya
- Sochi
- Stavropolskaya
- Syzranskaya
- Syktyvkar
- Tambovskaya
- Tarskaya
- Tverskaya
- Tikhvinskaya
- Tikhoretskaya
- Tobolskaya
- Togliatti
- Tomsk
- Trinity
- Tula
- Uvarovskaya
- Ulan-Ude
- Urzhumskaya
- Uryupinskaya
- Ufa
- Khabarovskaya
- Khanty-Mansiysk
- Cheboksary
- Chelyabinsk
- Cherepovetskaya
- Chernyakhovskaya
- Chistopolskaya
- Chitinskaya
- Shadrinskaya
- Shakhtinskaya
- Shuiskaya
- Shchigrovskaya
- Elistinskaya
- Yugorskaya
- Yuzhno-Sakhalinskaya
- Yakutskaya
- Yaranskaya
- Yaroslavskaya
Map of dioceses in Ukraine as of July 20 and August 25, 2012. From the website of the Synodal Department for Monasteries and Monasticism monasterium.ru Ukraine
- Ukrainian Orthodox Church:
- Kyiv
- Alexandria
- Baltskaya
- Belotserkovskaya
- Berdyansk
- Borispolskaya
- Vinnytsia
- Vladimir-Volynskaya
- Voznesenskaya
- Volynskaya
- Gorlovskaya
- Dzhankoyskaya
- Dnepropetrovsk
- Donetsk
- Zhytomyr
- Zaporozhye
- Ivano-Frankivsk
- Izyumskaya
- Kamenets-Podilskaya
- Kamenskaya
- Kirovogradskaya
- Konotopskaya
- Kremenchugskaya
- Krivorozhskaya
- Lugansk
- Lvovskaya
- Mogilev-Podolsk
- Mukachevo
- Nezhinskaya
- Nikolaevskaya
- Novokakhovskaya
- Ovruchskaya
- Odessa
- Polesskaya
- Poltavskaya
- Rivne
- Rovenkovskaya
- Romenskaya
- Severodonetsk
- Simferopol
- Sumskaya
- Ternopil
- Tulchinskaya
- Umanskaya
- Feodosiyskaya
- Kharkovskaya
- Kherson
- Khmelnitskaya
- Khustskaya
- Cherkasy
- Chernigovskaya
- Chernivtsi
- Shepetovskaya
Map of dioceses in Belarus according to decisions of December 24, 2004. From the website of the Synodal Monastic Department Belarus
- Belarusian Exarchate – Belarusian Orthodox Church:
- Metropolises:
- Minsk
- Dioceses:
Map of dioceses in Kazakhstan according to decisions of October 5, 2011. From the website of the Synodal Monastic Department Kazakhstan
- Metropolitan district of Kazakhstan:
Map of dioceses in Moldova according to decisions of September 23, 2010. From the website of the Synodal Monastic Department Moldova
- Orthodox Church of Moldova:
Baltics
- Latvian Orthodox Church:
- Estonian Orthodox Church:
middle Asia
- Central Asian Metropolitan District:
- Patriarchal Deanery in Turkmenistan
Azerbaijan
THE FIRST dioceses in Rus'
Metropolitan Michael did not have time to create a clearly organized metropolis. His successor divided the metropolis into six regions, dioceses with centers in Kiev, Novgorod, Chernigov, Rostov, Vladimir Volynsky and Belgorod (now the village of Belgorodka, 20 versts from Kiev). Apparently, then three more dioceses were opened with centers in Tmutarakan, Turov and Polotsk, where the children of St. Vladimir reigned. Then the Tmutarakan diocese was closed because it was captured by the Polovtsians. In the middle of the 13th century there were already fifteen dioceses without a metropolitan see: Novgorod, Chernigov, Pereyaslav, Vladimiro-Volyn, Turov, Polotsk, Smolensk, Galich, Ryazan, Vladimir-Klyazmen, Eremyshl, Rostov, Belgorod, Yuryevsk (now the White Church), Ugric or Kholmsk (now the city of Chelm).
The borders of the dioceses coincided with the borders of the principalities, and the departments were located in capital cities. The exceptions were Belgorodskaya, Yuryevskaya, and Ugorskaya. Compared to the Greek dioceses, they were quite large. This is a distinctive feature of Russia. This has a negative impact on church life. Because of the size of the diocese, archpastors cannot be shepherds. He remained an administrator and judge of the clergy.
The smallest dioceses are Yuryevskaya, Belgorodskaya and Pereyaslavskaya.
In 1165, Veliky Novgorod obtained the title of archbishop for its bishop. This is the first and only such title in Rus'.
During the appanage period, the bishop was practically independent of the metropolitan. The main role in the election of a bishop in such a diocese was played by the local prince. In Veliky Novgorod, where the veche was stronger than the prince, the people elected the archbishop until the 15th century. The first chosen one of the people was Vladyka Arkady. Formally and actually, the prince, clergy, Sofians (those who belonged to the St. Sophia Cathedral) and the people took part in the election of the bishop. In case of disagreement, they resorted to drawing lots. The lot was placed on the throne of St. Sophia Cathedral and a blind man or a baby was sent to draw it. The chosen one was sent to Kyiv for initiation, sometimes two years or more later. The chosen one ruled even before the dedication - as the named ruler. The chosen one had to be a local resident. Here the rulers were chosen not only from the monastics, but also from the white clergy. Such bishops wore a white hood, as in Byzantium until the 12th century.
The married priest Theodore was sent by Andrei Bogolyubsky to Constantinople to be appointed metropolitan of Vladimir. The prince intended to establish a metropolitanate independent of Kyiv. Pop Feodor is a very interesting person. This is an example of how married priests were aimed at becoming bishops. Kartashov says about him: “He was a strong and daring man, well-read and eloquent.” The chronicle says about him: “This beggar was very bold and shameless, not afraid of either the prince or the boyar, and he was very strong in body and had a pure tongue and eloquent speech and cunning wisdom, and everyone feared him and trembled. No one could stand against him. Netzi said about him: For this is of a demon and lower than his sorcerer. » » Andrei Bogolyubsky made him bishop of Rostov and Suzdal. Granted the right to govern the diocese until consecration. Then the prince sent him to Constantinople to be appointed metropolitan. Of course, the Kiev Grand Duke became worried, because a rival appeared. In 1155, he also sent ambassadors there who were opposed to Theodore, who accused him of unorthodoxy. The reason for this is that Theodore denied monasticism as a necessary condition for being a bishop. As an opponent of monasticism, he wore a white skufia, and as an appointed archbishop, he wore a white hood. This is where his ironic nickname came from: “Theodorean - white hood.” In Byzantium, the non-monastic minority of the episcopate wore a white hood. The Patriarch did not ordain Theodore, but only gave him the rank of bishop. Despite this, Theodore, as a protege of the patriarch himself, wanted to be independent from Kyiv. He came to Kyiv for a blessing from the Metropolitan. He sent a letter to Vladimir not to recognize Theodore. Then Theodore, angry, locked all the churches of Vladimir. This outraged the people. The prince stopped supporting Theodore and extradited him to Kyiv. Metropolitan Constantine commanded him to cut his tongue, as if he were a villainous heretic, and to lay aside his right hand and listen to his eyes, blaspheme against the Holy Mother of God. (?). “And then he was exiled to Dog Island.
The independent bishop had a lot to do, so he needed assistants. His assistants were: kliroshan (diocesan administration - cathedral priests, judges under bishops), bishop's vicars (held local court), tithes (secular officials - tithe collectors, monitored the good behavior of the clergy in their district). The will of the prince or the people could be the reason for the expulsion of the bishop even without trial. In 1157, Andrei Bogolyubsky expelled Bishop Nestor from Rostov because he did not allow fasting on the Lord's holidays. In 1159, the Rostovites kicked out the bishop because he was robbing the priests. In 1168, Yaroslav of Chernigov expelled Bishop Anthony, a Greek. In 1228, during the reign of Vladyka Arseny, when there was a long rainy autumn in the Novgorod land, the veche decided that it was because of Arseny that the weather was like this and expelled the Vladyka from the city.
CHURCH LEGISLATION IN THE Kyiv PERIOD.
It is not a discovery that we borrowed church legislation from Byzantium. We adopted the code of church laws from there. There were two such collections that were in force in Byzantium: the Code of Laws of Patriarch John Scholasticus (565 - 577). He was a lawyer. His code consisted of fifty titles - departments. The full name is: “A set of church rules, divided into 50 titles.” The Slavic translation was made by St. Methodius. The second collection is Nomocanon. It is in 14 sections - titles, attributed to Photius, Patriarch of Constantinople (+ 891). Some researchers call Photius the last editor. Translator unknown. It was translated into Slavic in Bulgaria under the name Kormchaya. If the Church is called a ship, then it needs a helmsman, a rule. This collection contained the church rules of the Apostles and the rules of the Ecumenical Councils, as well as the civil laws of the Orthodox Byzantine emperors. It was called Nomocanon because its content consisted of two parts: 1. From the code of church laws proper, called canons (rules); 2. From the code of civil laws, secular laws on church matters, called decrees (in Greek ????? - decree). In Bulgaria, a free translation was made: Helmsman - as a rule, the helm. And we have already renamed it to Kormchaya. In Rus', the question arose of how to apply Greek laws to Russian life, how to adapt them. The Russian Church made an edition of the Helmsman, adapting it to new realities. This is how the “Church Rule of Metropolitan John the Second” appeared as an answer to the questions of Jacob Chernoritsa. They contain regulations regarding regulations on such subjects as: faith, against paganism. Against communication with non-Christians during dinner, against marriage with non-Christians. Against the sale of Christians to infidels, about punishments for apostasy; regarding family life: against illegal marriages. Against marriages without the blessing of the Church; regarding church deanery: about the veneration of shrines, observance of fasts, about the prohibition of eating strangled and carrion, about obscene songs, about monastic feasts; regarding the hierarchy: about the attitude of bishops to the metropolitan. About diocesan administration, against drunkenness and indecency of priests and monks. “Old images and boards cannot be burned, but they must be buried in the garden or in some other honest place, so as not to subject them to reproach and dishonor.” . “The spouse of someone who has entered the monastery can be consecrated if the wife marries someone else.”, “The daughter of a sovereign should not be married off to someone who partakes of unleavened bread and eats unclean things. (The exception is Yaroslav’s daughter Anna, who was married to a French prince; John 3’s daughter, Helen, was married to a Lithuanian Catholic prince); priests and monks are not allowed to attend weddings during dancing; a priest who knowingly married someone entering a third marriage should be defrocked; It is not appropriate to sell anyone to Gentiles; in the monastery it is forbidden to organize feasts with the presence of women; Marriage should only be celebrated publicly, in churches.” Along with the rule of John 2, the Russian Kormchias of the 17th century invariably included the “questions of Kirik” - the Novgorod hierodeacon of the 112th century and the answers to them from various clergy. These questions and answers inform about church customs, the remnants of paganism and, in general, about the state of morals of the clergy and people. They are not without interest. » What kind of food should you eat during Lent? Fish on Sunday and Saturday, caviar on other days. On Great Week, monks should eat honey and drink kvass. The merit of that is very great. Who buries the bones of the dead and old images (this is how the first brotherhoods arose)." Kirik asks: “Is it possible to hit your teeth with an egg before lunch?” Can a priest serve if a woman’s scarf is sewn into his clothes? Maybe a woman is disgusting? "Commenting on this answer, Klyuchevsky says: "All of Rus' is in these questions and answers! “These are the questions that plagued people at that time. In addition, princes Vladimir and Yaroslav left church charters. True, Karamzin and Golubinsky denied the authenticity of these collections of laws. At Golubinsky’s doctoral disputation, Klyuchevsky boldly criticized Golubinsky’s hypercriticism and expressed a number of subtle considerations in defense of the authenticity of the very fact of publication of the statutes by the first Christian princes, while recognizing further changes in the original text of the statute. Kartashov writes: “The chronicle reports that the baptist of Rus' Vladimir made his sworn testament about the tithe of income in favor of the temple of St. Mother of God "write, put it in this church." This is a direct reference to the church charter of Prince Vladimir.” According to these statutes, the general joint court of the metropolitan and the prince had jurisdiction over: firstly, insults, violence and beatings of girls and other people's wives, arson, cutting off the heads and beards of strangers; secondly, family theft and murder. For the first crime, the penalty (fine) went to the bishop, and the prince executed him. For the second crime, the fine was divided in half between the metropolitan and the prince. Private regulatory documents based on princely charters have been preserved. Certificate of St. Sophia of Novgorod, given by Prince Vsevolod Mstislavich. We're talking about outcasts here. Outcasts are counted among the church people: the son of a priest, if he is illiterate, he is expelled from the clergy; a slave who is redeemed from servitude; fourthly, the orphaned prince (right of the ladder).
SOURCES OF HIERARCHY CONTENT.
BISHRIESTS.
The first and most important source is tithe. It was given only to bishops. It was given only to patrimonial owners, those who had real estate and received rent. Peasants, townspeople, artisans, and merchants did not pay tithes. Tithing is known from the first reports of the construction and provision of new churches, for example, the Assumption Church and some others. In the “Tale of Bygone Years” it is said: “St. Vladimir said: I give to this church (Holy Mother of God) from my property and from my cities a tenth.” The princes' tithes included: tithes from princely tributes (from every herd and every livestock - from the entire estate); tithe from the receipts of the princely court, that is, from the wealth and sales that are included in the princely court of everything; tithe from princely trade duties (tenth trade, from tenth trade week).
The second source of income for the episcopate is income from land property - from immovable estates. Andrei Bogolyubsky, wanting to create a metropolitan see in Vladimir, transferred to the Assumption Cathedral “a lot of property and freedom bought with tributes and villages and tithes in their flocks and tenth auction.” This is how the Vladimir bishop became a rich feudal lord. Bishops owned entire cities (the bishop of Vladimir owned the city of Gorokhovets). Of course, with workers on the ground.
Third income. This is income from cathedral parishes - voluntary offerings from parishioners, charging them for services.
The fourth source is contributions to the church. To the monastery in the form of vessels. Crosses, expensive vestments, books, etc. Andrei Bogolyubsky in Bogolyubovo “decorate the church with gold and precious stones and pearls, surprise with priceless icons and great patterns.” This is all from the contributions of the Orthodox.
Fifth source. The hierarchy was in charge of the Weights and Measures service. The Church supervised weights and measures and collected duties from merchants. It is her responsibility to keep the measures correct and not to reduce them. Do not increase, and answer for them on the day of the Last Judgment as for human souls.
The sixth source is for the church's production of judgment. Bishops received court fees. All our family matters were transferred to the church court. In addition to clergy, prosphora drinkers, pilgrims and all those associated with almshouses were subject to the court. Hospitals. Hotels.
Seventh source. Temporary fees to bishops for the appointment of clergy. It was hard work. Bishops overcharged.
Eighth source. A temporary fee to the bishop is a fee for blessing marriages. But in Byzantium, under Constantine Monomakh, every man entering into marriage paid the bishop one gold coin, and the woman had to give 12 cubits of cloth.
Ninth source. The annual gift of priests to bishops during their visits to the bishop on the so-called. Marten fees.
Tenth source. Gift to bishops from the laity: funeral fees - for permission to bury the dead without communion, suddenly; fee per piece - a fine for women who gave birth as a result of adultery; from churches there is a fee for the antimension and for the consecration; the duty on monks is “pososhny” for installation as abbot.
Of course, the bishops' income was more than enough. If we take into account the vastness of Russian dioceses. Their borders coincided with the borders of the principalities. Golubinsky calls bishops “lords of the greatest hand.” Not just gentlemen! (Gentlemen of the largest article). This distinguished them from the Greek bishops, who were appointed to all, even the smallest district cities of the country. Therefore, there were countless of them here. Gregory the Theologian called the Greek bishops micropolitans. Golubinsky writes on this occasion: “If this name went to the majority of Greek bishops (micropolitans), then on the contrary, the majority of Russian bishops, together with Bishop Simon of Vladimir, had the right to call their dioceses entire lands and exclaim about the great multitude of cities and towns located in them about who doesn’t know their bishops. And they considered themselves one of the very first ranks in the state and this made them proud. And they dressed luxuriously and elegantly, although the 16th canon of the Seventh Council says: “All luxury and decoration of the body are alien to the priestly rank and state, for this reason bishops or clergy who adorn themselves with light clothes should be corrected.” If they continue to do so, subject them to penance. » Did the bishops give charity? After all, the wealth of the Church is the wealth of the poor. An expert on the chronicles, Golubinsky, says: “The bishops of Kievan Rus were charitable people, not charitable people. Bishop Ephraim of Pereyaslavl was the only bishop in that he had a desire to use funds for public affairs and used his personal funds. Golubinsky first turns to the Laurentian Chronicle in this regard: “Behold, Ephraim is eunuch, tall in body, for then many buildings were erected. Having finished the church of St. Michael, lay a church on the gate in the name of the Great Martyr Theodore, and therefore Andrei and at the church from the gate there is a bathhouse building, this has never happened before in Russia. And lay stone for the city and decorate the city of Pereyaslavl with church buildings and other buildings.” We read about the same bishop in the Ipatiev Chronicle under the year 1090: “Skopchina, this man is unlettered, has a simple mind and is simply like rivers, build a city of stone and a slender bathhouse of stone, this is not the case in Rus'.” What kind of building is this? This is a Greek type thermal bath. Golubinsky comments: “He built Greek baths instead of an almshouse or a hospital. That is, instead of what would be useful, he built something that would familiarize Russian people with Greek comfort. He does not say that the bishop built it for himself, for the aristocracy.
SOURCES OF INCOME AND SUPPORT OF THE PARISH CLERGY.
First. At the beginning, the source of income for the clergy only in Kiev was the rug.
This is where the concept of local clergy came from, the surname Ruzhitsky (rector of the Academy). Yaroslav the Wise gave the priests a lesson from his estate: bread, butter, meat. Ruga was given only to the clergy of the cathedral built by the princes. There were few gunmen.
Second. Voluntary offering by parishioners on the eve. The word prosphora comes from the Greek. ?????????- I bring it. Kartashov writes: “The Greeks still bake prosphora at home by parishioners, or buy it in a store. In the middle of the 12th century, we also did not have special prosphora guardians at the church. Prosphoras were bought at the market. In the 13th century, a mallow appeared, a woman who served in the church. This is how the church clergy expanded! Among the Greeks, such offerings were brought in baskets at vespers before the holidays, and the baskets were called kanuns. The name of the basket was transferred to the gift itself brought in it. “That’s why the day before the holiday began to be called eve. Kirik of Novgorod calls the pre-holiday offerings eves, reporting that in his time eves were offered at Vespers among us, and at Matins among the Greeks.
Third. Voluntary donations from parishioners are an unreliable source. Therefore, the shepherd himself had to collect from the careless flock. The collection was carried out three times a year: at Easter, Christmas and Peter's Lent.
Fourth. The main source is payment for demands. Only one document has survived about its size. In Kirik’s question, Bishop Nifont assigns six kunas for the funeral liturgy, not including wine, incense and candles, which is 2 rubles 40 kopecks for money of the late 19th century. Golubinsky writes: “In Little Russia, eves are called havturs (khalturs). In Zakrepsky’s dictionary of Little Russian idioms we read 6khavtorovati, havturuyu, that is, to receive gifts and offerings from parishioners on major holidays, mostly consisting of food. Hackwork - from Greek ???????? - modern Greek ?????????literally or figuratively means the same as eve. Thus, following the example of the entire Orthodox East, the parish clergy from the very beginning received incorrect, unreliable and meager provision, in contrast to the West, where the clergy, along with the hierarchy, received tithes from the entire population. This is from Charlemagne. This was determined by political power. That is why our rural clergy lived the same way as the peasantry. Golubinsky calls the clergy, in comparison with the hierarchy, proletarians or pariahs. Golubinsky writes: “But this poverty should not be looked at with false eyes. Namely, to go into overly tearful jeremiads, saying it is doomed to beggary. Our requirements for priests were that they be slightly literate, be able to perform church services and perform religious services. But only. Our priests were mainly not priests, but peasants. That's why one Jesuit called Russian priests peasants. The priesthood was for them only an addition to the peasantry. "A man for a plow and a priest for a plow, a man for a braid and a priest for a braid. Wherever he serves, he will go with the men to dry barns.” This addition is not without benefit, because there were a great many people who wanted to become priests.
RIGHTS OF THE Clergy.
What privileges did the clergy have? The clergy were freed from secular judgment. Only the bishop could judge him. The clergy were exempt from taxes and taxes in favor of the prince. Exemption from military service. At times these rights were violated. For example, princes and people judged and even overthrew bishops. In 1148, the Novgorodians, getting ready for war, said to Prince Izyaslav: “Every soul will go to war: even if he is tonsured as a clerk, he will not be appointed abbot; and whoever is appointed prays to God.” In Novgorod, the Bishop and the Soborians of Sofia carried out city duties: they oiled the fortress and all the way along the Volkhov Bridge to the trade side. Note: Golubinsky notes that already in Kievan Rus a spiritual class was being formed, that is, the heredity of the clergy. It was difficult to get into the spiritual ranks. The boyars appointed their slaves as priests without changing their status. The boyars had house churches and put their servants in the priesthood. How could he impose penance on his master? !
WORSHIP.
Along with Christianity, worship came to us. It was performed in the native language, unlike, for example, Poland. Worship is an effective tool in the spread of Christianity. The sermon was all the more successful because paganism did not have a public cult. The worship in Byzantium had such an effect on the pagans that they did not know where they were. This is probably why the authorities cared more about building temples than about multiplying schools and books. The construction of temples and the provision of their utensils was considered a feat of piety. Andrei Bogolyubsky succeeded in this. St. Vladimir began to “cut down churches by hail” and “he erected churches of Christ throughout the Russian land” on the site of Perun (a small wooden church in honor of Vasily); stone (Tithe) at the site of the murder of the first Christian martyrs.. An interesting phenomenon were ordinary churches built on the same day (Transfiguration of the Lord in Vasiliev). Vladimir's son Mstislav erected the Spassky Cathedral in Chernigov. Yaroslav the Wise in 1037 founded the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv in memory of the victory over the Pechenegs near Kiev in 1036 or as a sign of the subordination of the Russian metropolis to the Greeks. Yaroslav also built the Church of the Annunciation on the Golden Gate of Kyiv. In Novgorod, he also built the St. Sophia Cathedral in 1045-1052. In the 12th century, the Assumption Cathedral was built in Vladimir.
In Kievan Rus there were an extremely large number of churches: when in 1185 not the entire city of Vladimir burned down, 32 churches died there, and in Veliky Novgorod in 1217 there were 20 churches in only one half. There were hundreds of them in Kyiv. After the death of St. Vladimir there were about 700, including brownies. But of these, only 20 to 10 were made of stone.
The builders of temples in Rus' were the Greeks. They built the Tithe Church. In addition, Western masters built the Assumption and Bogolyubsk churches in Vladimir. The architecture was Greek or Italian. The temple was built in the form of a square, cross-shaped. In the West, temples were built rectangular. Bell towers were rare. Instead there were beaters. Women in temples stood separately from men, like the Greeks. To do this, the back half was raised - these are the choirs or polati. Special galleries were built - single-tiered or double-tiered along the western wall, or on three sides. There were different entrances. Among the Greeks, the women's departments were called gynecones. They were led by deaconesses.
HOLY ICONS.
In Rus' there were icons from Greece, Bulgaria, and Serbia. These are the first icons. Vladimir brought them from Korsun. He placed them in the Church of the Tithes. Therefore, the most ancient icons were called Korsun or Constantinople. Temples were decorated with frescoes and mosaics. They were created by Greek masters who remained in Rus'. The bones of Greek masters rest in the Kyiv caves. The teachers of the first Russian bogomas were, of course, Greeks. In Kyiv, the Russian iconographer, monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra Alypiy, considered painting icons for free as a feat.
Special respect and reverence. Miracle-working icons were revered. The miraculous icons included the Kiev-Pechersk Icon of the Mother of God, taken from Byzantium in 1073, the icon of St. Nikolai Mokroy. Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God. According to legend, it was written by Ev. Luke, in 450 it was transferred from Jerusalem to Constantinople, in 1131 it was delivered to Kyiv for St. Prince Mstislav (+1132) and was placed in the Maiden Monastery of Vyshgorod. In 1155, Andrei Bogolyubsky moved it to Vladimir in 1155, the year Andrei’s father Yuri Dolgoruky received Kyiv. The miracles of the icon in 1395 during the attack of Tamerlane are known. In 1480, Khan Akhmat did not dare to march on Moscow because of the intercession of the Mother of God. Another icon is the Novgorod Icon of the Sign of the Mother of God. In 1169, Andrei Bogolyubsky decided to punish the Novgorodians for perjury. His army besieged Novgorod. A miracle happened from the icon. The Novgorodians captured many Vladimir residents. The Vladimir Chronicle tells about this. According to it, the army, with the help of the Vladimir Mother of God, punished the Novgorodians. But he explains the trouble by the difficulty of the road and hunger. What to believe? At that time, the psychology of strife reigned; there was no single national consciousness of the Russian people. The Novgorodians were the same enemies for the Suzdalians as the Poles and Tatars. This is a legend that reflects that time.
Zaraisk Icon of St. Nicholas, brought in 1224 by a Korsun priest to the Ryazan land by order of St. Nicholas. It was placed in the new church of St. Nicholas.
Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God "Hodegetria - Guide", sent from Byzantium to Chernigov, then transferred to Smolensk in 1111 by Vladimir Monomakh.
The celebration of icons was affected by the specific spirit of strife and enmity. It was believed that the icon patronized exclusively its region. The Vladimir icon allegedly left its place in Vyshgorod three times and therefore Andrei Bogolyubsky concluded that the icon wanted to move, leave southern Rus' and took it to the Rostov land. Someone else's icon was treated disrespectfully. During the capture of Kyiv, Bogolyubsky’s army plundered and took with them all the treasures of monasteries, temples, and cathedrals. They took it for their churches.
HOLY RELICS.
Holy relics were usually brought from Constantinople. There they accumulated from places occupied by Arabs. St. Vladimir brought with him from Korsun and placed in the Tithe Church the relics of St. Clement of Rome, his disciple Thebes and others. In the 12th century, the daughter of Emperor Alexius Komnenos, Varvara, brought the relics of the Holy Martyr to Russia. Barbara and laid it in the Kiev St. Michael's Monastery. Other relics were also brought: pieces of the Holy Sepulcher, the Cross of the Lord, St. Demetrius of Thessalonica. As Russian saints were glorified, their relics were revealed. The first saints were Boris and Gleba, killed in 1015. The third saint was Rev. Theodosius of Pechersk (+1074) Fourth - Nikita of Novgorod (+ 1108) Golubinsky calls Equal Apostles the fifth Saint. Olga (+ 969) The relics of St. Leonty of Rostov (1077), Isaiah of Rostov were discovered. Their relics were discovered in 1164.
BROTHERHOODS AND BROTHERHOODS.
The first brotherhoods arose in Kievan Rus. In the 19th century, these brotherhoods were revived by decree of Alexander II in 1864. After the revolution they were abolished, but now they have been revived again. They played a decisive role in the fight against the union in Ukraine (Lviv Brotherhood, Vilna Brotherhood) In ancient times, the temple was the center of public life. Near it there were almshouses, schools, hospice houses, and libraries. This center was called a graveyard. Public meetings and gatherings were held here, and trade deals were concluded. At some churches, permanent societies, unions, and brotherhoods were created from parishioners. They existed to take care of the church, the clergy, charitable institutions, the sick and infirm. They gathered in a prefabricated hut at the church. The Ivanovo merchant brotherhood is famous. Usually the brotherhoods were called by the name of the temple.. Sometimes the brotherhoods gathered for a brotherhood - a feast. They made their living using prefabricated supplies. From the collected hops and malt and cereals, beer and porridge were brewed and the parish holiday was celebrated in this way. Tradition has brought to us the word classmate or the expression “you can’t cook porridge with him.” For serious sins, the brothers punished the offender by depriving him of the right to visit the brothers. Beer was brewed to appease the dead or in honor of the patron saints of the village. The prince stopped at the graveyard to collect tribute and polyudia. Heralds of princely decrees and private individuals looking for the thief also came here. The parish church was the center around which religious and civil life was concentrated. They also traded at the churchyard. City cathedrals played the same role in relation to the city and even to the entire principality. At the sound of the cathedral bell, a people's meeting met near the cathedral. The city and its suburbs were considered as if they belonged to the cathedral. This is in the church's popular consciousness. Veliky Novgorod and its volosts were the city of St. Sophia. Vladimir is the city of the Holy Mother of God. Pskov is the city of the Holy Trinity. Nizhny Novgorod is the city of Spas. The entire city came under the protection of the local cathedral shrine. Characteristic in this regard is the legend about the construction of the cathedral in Novgorod. On its dome, painters depicted the Savior with a blessing hand. The next day the hand was clenched. The artists corrected it. Then everything turned out to be the same. Fixed it three times. On the fourth morning we heard a voice: “Don’t write to me with a blessing hand.” Write with a clenched hand as a sign that I am holding Veliky Novgorod, and when my hand opens, then there will be an end to the city.”
FEATURES OF THE RUSSIAN CHURCH SERVICE.
The cult and rituals were constantly evolving, like everything else in the Church. In the surviving missals, the proskomedia was a simple and brief preparation for the liturgy and consisted of one or two prayers and was performed only by the deacon. In the ancient Russian church the Lord's Prayer and I Believe were read. The liturgy was celebrated on one prosphora, because the number of prosphoras was not determined. According to the studio charter, they sometimes served in monasteries on seven prosphoras. The rule of Metropolitan George (since 1062) prescribed that Christians should receive communion every Sunday of Great Lent, twice during Holy Week, as well as on every major annual holiday and especially on Peter's Lent. However, not everyone did this, not even many. Therefore, Metropolitan John II demanded that an Orthodox Christian receive communion at least once a year. They usually took communion on the bright day of Easter.
When a person was born, he was given a name, named. This is on the eighth day. They were baptized on the fortieth day until they were three years old, but not later. If a child was born weak, he was baptized immediately so that he would not die unfinished. A catechumen was necessary before baptism. If this is a foreigner, he was announced for forty days with a mandatory forty-day fast. The announcement of the Slav - for eight days with fasting. Usually baptism was done by immersion, and infants were baptized by pouring. They were baptized before the liturgy. At the great entrance, the newly baptized baby was brought in his arms, and the adult himself walked ahead of the servants with candles. Miro was brought from Constantinople. To make it last longer, it is sometimes mixed with butter. On the eighth day after baptism, the so-called. Rite of permission. It consisted in the fact that white robes and signs of anointing were removed from the person being baptized. If a Latin was baptized, he was not rebaptized. His transition was accomplished through confirmation.
During repentance, abuses were frequent. Sometimes penance was replaced by custom-made masses. (annual penance - thirty masses). Vladyka Niphon rejected such repentance because a rich man could always sin. Sometimes mother carried out her husband’s penance.
Church marriages were rare. There was an opinion among the people that weddings were for rich, noble people. Eight-year-old girls and ten-year-old boys got married. These cases are recorded in the chronicles. Under 1196 this is mentioned.
The burial took place at an unregulated time. It was only under Peter that the practice of burying on the third day became established. Bishop Nifont suggested burial before sunset: “That is, the last thing the sun sees is until the next resurrection.” Many people ordered magpies for themselves during their lifetime. Bishop Niphon forbade this.
In ancient Rus', when enlightenment was weak, there was no correct confession of faith. Ritualism prevailed. Ritualism is magic! In Yaroslav's charter, cutting the head and beard was considered a crime. Much attention was paid to cooking: what you can eat and what you can drink. Another means of externally pleasing God fell in love with the Russians - a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The road to Jerusalem in Kievan Rus has become well-trodden. On every occasion, Russians made a vow to go to the Holy City. For three to five years they went there, leaving their home and children. Niphon said that many make a pilgrimage to eat and drink idly. In the 12th century, a law was passed prohibiting unnecessary travel. Pilgrimages were limited. The dispute about fasting was very relevant at that time. This is a time of heightened ritual belief. The dispute about fasting is indicative at this time. This is the direct opposite of the West, where enlightenment flourished and concerned with higher subjects. In 1157, a real war began between the Rostovites and the local bishop Nestor over the question of whether it was necessary to fast on Wednesday and Friday if they fell on great holidays. The bishop, relying on Greek tradition, demanded fasting. The famous archpriest Theodore spoke out against him, who considered it possible to abolish fasting not only on the Lord's holidays, but also on the days of great saints. The Grand Duke supported him and the Rostovites expelled Nestor. The bishop was supported by Metropolitan Constantine and Patriarch Luke. A new bishop Leon (Leonty) was sent to Rostov, who insisted on fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays on the Lord's holidays. The Rostovites kicked him out too. He was offended by the Russians and left for Greece. Theodore's line temporarily won. Gradually, the dispute subsided in the north, but it flared up in the south, in the Kyiv land. Metropolitan Constantine was a supporter of Nestor, but the Pechersk Monastery, led by Abbot Polycarp, was against it. A council was held in Kyiv, at which opinions were divided. The Metropolitan was supported by Prince Mstislav. Another party wanted the issue to be decided by the diocesan bishops, the third party wanted to bring the issue to the patriarch's court. The cathedral was dissolved, the abbot was arrested. All these events caused turmoil in Kyiv. At this time, the troops of Andrei Bogolyubsky entered. Residents of Kyiv explained this by the wrath of God for Polycarp.
Far abroad
Western Europe
- Italian parishes
Central Europe
America
- Patriarchal parishes in Canada
- Patriarchal parishes in the USA
Near East
- Russian spiritual mission in Jerusalem
