What if Prince Vladimir converted to Catholicism?

We have been living in a Christian country for more than a thousand years, and all thanks to the wise Prince Vladimir, who made a strong-willed decision to baptize Rus'. The choice of religion was not easy then - everyone dreamed of getting such a promising large country into their confession - Catholics, Jews and Muslims.

Vladimir the Red Sun baptized Rus' in 988, and in commemoration of this, the Russian Orthodox Church named him Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince. How did the ruler of all Rus' choose a religion for his country, what was he guided by, whose advice did he listen to?

Could this happen?

Yes and no. First you need to remember and correlate the dates. The year of the baptism of Rus' is considered to be 988. Officially at this moment the Christian church was not yet divided. That same great schism, which officially completed the split of the church into Catholic and Orthodox (although it would be much more accurate to say into Roman and Byzantine), dates back to the year 1054. Accordingly, these two events were separated by 66 years. A very impressive gap.

Formally, this means one thing: Vladimir did not have a choice between Catholicism or Orthodoxy. No matter who he received baptism from - from the papal legates or from the envoys of the Patriarch of Constantinople - he would, in any case, fall into the bosom of the same church. But there is no doubt that if the prince of Kiev was tormented by a choice, it was precisely between Rome and Constantinople. And the point here is not so much about religion as about politics. The schism, of course, occurred in 1054, but not out of nowhere. This was the last straw, but before that, for several centuries, Christianity was stubbornly moving towards schism.

Pope Leo IX. (pinterest.com)

In addition to dozens of dogmatic differences, there were also very sharp contradictions of a different nature. The Patriarch of Constantinople did not obey the pope, and the pope, in turn, did not obey the primate of the Byzantine Church. However, the question of which “school” would be supported in a particular region of Europe was even more pressing. In the mid-9th century, a serious conflict broke out over the Balkans, Bulgaria and Southern Italy. This conflict went so far that Pope Nicholas I announced that Patriarch Photius had been elected illegally and demanded his re-election. Having received a refusal, the pope excommunicated Photius from the church. Photius anathematized Nicholas, and with him the Roman Church.

The first excommunication occurred in 863, the second in 867. The “Photian schism” did not become a final schism, but contacts between the two churches ceased from that moment. For the next 200 years there were almost none. Constantinople and Rome began to exist autonomously from each other.

One of his important factors was the struggle to attract new sons into his fold. Kiev, Novgorod and other cities of Ancient Rus' naturally fell into the sphere of influence of Byzantium. Greek clergy often visited here. It is considered proven that Christianity of the Eastern type was adopted by Askold and Dir, who ruled in Kyiv.

Before the baptism of Rus', Princess Olga also converted to Christianity. By the way, this is far from the only example. Archaeological finds convincingly prove that people of non-princely origin also accepted Christianity. Pectoral crosses are often found in burial grounds of the pagan period. In this situation, one could say that the choice, in general, was made long before Vladimir. All he could do was accept the obvious. However, there was one political aspect that could persuade the prince to make a different choice.

Why baptism meant freedom and independence

Baptism is a choice of path. By abandoning other world religions and choosing Orthodoxy, Prince Vladimir actually chose for his people real freedom, independence, independence from the East and the West.

“The choice of Catholicism, Islam or Judaism would doom the country to external dependence, immersion in the ideological and spiritual orbit of one of the strong states, be it the Arab Caliphate, the Khazar Kaganate or Papal Rome,” says Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin.

According to the priest, the Eastern Roman Empire, which is now called Byzantium, was also a strong state, but still it did not lay claim to spiritual and political power over Russia. Therefore, the choice of Orthodoxy was actually political. This was the decision of an independent ruler and a free people.

Painting: Baptism of Prince Vladimir (1885-1893)/Viktor Vasnetsov

“This decisively separated Russia from the West,” says Professor Igor Danilevsky. “And along with Christianity came book culture, and this is the greatest achievement that included Rus' in the cultural field of all Christian countries and incredibly moved the country along the path of its development.”

Orthodoxy also changed the external borders of Rus'. After the adoption of Christianity, Rus' began to be perceived as the center of a God-saved land. And its borders began to gradually expand.

Elections in favor of Rome?

“The Tale of Bygone Years” describes to us a complex selection process. Ambassadors come to Vladimir not only from Rome and Constantinople, but also the Volga Bulgars, who invite the prince to convert to Islam, and the Khazar Jews. In the end, Vladimir makes a choice in favor of Constantinople, succumbing to the persuasion of a wise Byzantine philosopher who arrived in Kyiv.

Prince Vladimir chooses faith. (wikipedia.org)

Let's not forget that The Tale of Bygone Years was written at the beginning of the 12th century by a clergyman. The chronicler Nestor was a monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery. Let us say right away that the influence of Islam and Judaism in Rus' was so small that Prince Vladimir simply could not make a choice in their favor. But with Rome everything was more complicated.

The Pope's envoys to Rus' did not appear as often as clergy from Byzantium, however, they were also very active here. At some point, the Russian princes began to skillfully play on the contradictions between Constantinople and Rome. It is known that Princess Olga sent ambassadors to Emperor Otto I with a request to send bishops and establish a church in Rus'. Adalbert of Magdeburg went to Kyiv.

Olga, however, did not intend to make a long-term friendship with Rome. This move was made by her in order to force Constantinople to offer Kyiv more favorable terms of the union treaty. This case is not isolated.

There is an opinion that Svyatoslav did not accept Christianity precisely because he wanted to continue maneuvering between Rome and Constantinople. And in the future, Russian princes happened to turn to the popes. True, in peak cases. Christianity began to spread in Rus' even before Epiphany.

The two most famous examples: the alliance of Daniil of Galicia with Rome and his adoption of the title of King Rus, as well as Izyaslav Yaroslavich’s appeal to the Vatican to confirm the legitimacy of his claims to the Kiev throne. Both of these events occurred after the Baptism of Rus' and after the schism of the church. In general, Constantinople reached Rus' much earlier than Rome. He also had another advantage - geographical.

Such a scenario is simply excluded. The fact is that all the highest clergy in Rus' in the mid-11th century consisted of Greeks. Metropolitans of Kyiv, as a rule, were sent from Constantinople. The first metropolitan of Slavic origin, Hilarion Rusin, occupied the see from 1051 to 1054. This, however, was an exception. Until the beginning of the 14th century, the metropolitans of Kyiv were mainly Greek. They brought with them to Rus' a large number of other Byzantine clergy.

Ideologically, they, of course, supported the position of the Patriarch of Constantinople. The news of the final divergence of Rome and Constantinople reached Rus' with a certain delay. At that moment, Ephraim, who was a Greek by birth, had already become Metropolitan of Kyiv.

The Greek clergy began quite active work to condemn the pope and support the Patriarch of Constantinople. The fact is that in 1054 the churches again exchanged anathemas, officially proclaiming that each now has its own path. It would be extremely unwise for the Kyiv princes to break long-term ties with Byzantium for the sake of unknown reasons, as well as to enter into conflict with their own clergy. So the retreat of Rus' to Rome after the split is a utopia.

Christianity in Rus' arose on the foundation of paganism

In order to understand the premises of Christianity in Russia, you need to make an excursion into the history of the prince himself. Vladimir was the grandson of Grand Duchess Olga - this is the first thing. He was born to Prince Svyatoslav and the “virgin of things” Malusha, who became a Christian together with Princess Olga in Constantinople.

The Russian throne went to the young man quite early; he began to rule independently at the age of 17 and spent the first six years in military campaigns, where intelligence and diplomatic acumen are quickly learned. Legends depict this era of the prince as pagan: the young leader was the favorite of the squad, no stranger to bodily pleasures and noisy feasts. But then one episode made the pagan Vladimir swing to the side - another sacrifice.

In order to thank the gods for the successful outcome of the next military campaign in 983, it was decided to send a man as a sacrifice to the gods. The lot fell on the young man John, whose father was already a Christian. Of course, he defended his son and began to explain that there is another - humane - religion, where such atrocities against humans or animals are not acceptable. The pagans became angry at such speeches and beat them both to death: this is how the first holy martyrs appeared in Rus'. Fyodor and John are remembered on July 25.

The bloody incident forced Vladimir to reconsider the religious doctrine of Rus', and circumstances forced him to turn towards Orthodoxy.

If Vladimir had converted to Catholicism

Let us still consider the option in which Vladimir chooses rapprochement with Rome. Without saying that this would be a completely wrong political step, and without going into theological details, let’s try to imagine what would happen next.

In 988, Rus' adopted Western-style Christianity (not yet officially Catholicism); in 1054, it was finally formalized as a Catholic state. Cathedrals and monasteries of the Western type are being built throughout the country, bishops are appointed from Rome, and not from Constantinople. To begin with, such a Rus' would find itself in a hostile environment. Rome is far away, but Constantinople is close. From the Dnieper to the Black Sea - and here it is. The choice of the prince in favor of the Pope would mean one thing: Rus' and Byzantium are no longer allies. This is not a declaration of war, it is a statement that this war is very possible.

Byzantium, in the struggle for a sphere of influence, could well have created some kind of military coalition directed against Rus'. However, that would not be so bad. A possible economic blockade would be much worse. For Rus', Constantinople was the most important trading partner. And if Kyiv was highly dependent on this partnership, then Constantinople could do without it.

However, there could have been the opposite effect, negative for Byzantium. It is quite possible that sea trips to Constantinople would become the norm for Russian princes. It is even possible that they would willingly enter into alliances against Byzantium. The Crusades would be quite attractive in this regard. Moreover, the liberation of Jerusalem for many of its participants was far from the main goal. Uniting with Western knights against Constantinople in order to weaken its influence, under the guise of a crusade, is a good political move.

You can continue to guess. For example, an interesting question is how the fate of the Teutonic Order would have turned out. He moved to northern Europe to fight local pagans and Orthodox Christians. But what is the point if there is already Catholic Rus' here that can cope with this task? Well, from afar: what path would Moscow have taken in the 16th century, when the time of the Reformation came? Next with Rome? Or along the path of Luther, Calvin and other fathers of Protestantism? It is likely that Rus' would have had its own religious reformer.

How the pagan Prince Vladimir became a saint: the choice of faith

The question of the meaning of existence permeates the entire history of human society. People have always sought to find the meaning of life, understand the mystery of their existence, and find their own place in the Universe. In the race for the meaning of life, some turned to art, others to creativity, others to philosophy, almost all to religion. The history of culture shows that the deeper aspects of human life and society were the source material for the religious interpretation of life.

The adoption of Orthodoxy by Russia is one of the most important historical events that determined its cultural-civilizational matrix and spiritual life for many centuries. Therefore, the question of whether it could have been different, whether Rus' could have adopted any other religion, has always aroused the most lively interest.

The adoption of Christianity as the official state religion of Rus' was at the turn of the 980–990s. was not historically predetermined, inevitable, believes, for example, M. Vasiliev. There is no doubt that the choice of a specific moment for the introduction of Christianity from Byzantium was dictated by the extremely favorable foreign policy situation in Rus'’s relations with the “Roman Empire,” which Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich took full advantage of. Therefore, Vasiliev believes, the formulation of alternatives is quite legitimate[24].

In historical literature, it is customary to consider four possible religious alternatives (Islam, Judaism, Christianity of the Western Roman and Greek Orthodox rites), among which the ruling elite of Ancient Rus' could choose a state monotheistic religion, which was supposed to replace paganism.
The legend about the choice of Prince Vladimir
We turn to the PVL, where in 986 it is said that representatives of various religions came to Prince Vladimir.

“The Bulgarians of the Mohammedan faith have come: believe in our law and bow to Mohammed. Vladimir asked: what is your faith? They answered: we believe in God, and Mohammed teaches us this: to perform circumcision, not to eat pork, not to drink wine, but after death, he says, you can commit fornication with your wives. Mohammed will give each of them 70 beautiful wives and will choose one of them, the most beautiful, and put on her the beauty of all. Here you can freely indulge in fornication. Whoever was poor here will be poor there too. And they told many other lies... Vladimir listened to them, since he himself loved fornication and wives. But here’s what he didn’t like: circumcision, abstaining from pork and drinking. And he said: Rus' has joy to drink and we cannot live without it. Foreigners came from Rome and turned to Vladimir: your land is the same as ours, but our faith is not like yours. Our faith is light, we bow to God, who created everything, and your gods are just trees. Our commandment: fast according to strength; if anyone drinks or eats, then all this is for the glory of God. Vladimir said to the Germans: go where you came from, for even our fathers did not accept this. Hearing about this, the Khazar Jews came and said: We heard that the Bulgarians and Christians came, each teaching you their faith. Christians believe in the one whom we crucified, and we believe in the one God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Our law: to be circumcised, not to eat pork or hare, to keep the law. Where is your land? They answered: in Jerusalem... but God was angry and gave our land to Christians. Vladimir said: if God loved you and your law, you would not have been scattered across foreign lands, or do you want the same for us?

Then the Greeks sent a philosopher to Vladimir with the following words: we heard that the Bulgarians were coming; they are cursed, they have become like the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the day of destruction awaits them, ... for, having washed themselves, they pour this water into their mouths, smear it on their beards and remember Mohammed, and the wives do even more. Vladimir spat and said: this is an unclean thing. The philosopher said about the Latins: their faith is different from ours: they serve on wafers, which was not commanded by God. Vladimir said: the Jews came to me and said that the Germans and Greeks believe in the one whom they crucified. The philosopher said: yes, as was preached by the prophets, that He would become incarnate, be crucified and rise again. They did not repent, and God sent the Romans against them, who defeated them. Vladimir: Why did God come down to earth and accept such suffering? Philosopher: I’ll tell you in order from the very beginning. Vladimir: glad to listen. Philosopher: On the first day God created heaven and earth, on the second day the firmament - the visible sky in the middle of the water...

Vladimir asked: did all this come true or will it only come true now? Philosopher: all this came true when God became incarnate... Vladimir: why was he born of a wife, baptized with water and crucified. Philosopher: that’s why... he spoke about the Fall, redemption, and raised the issue of eternal torment. And having said this, the philosopher showed Vladimir a picture on which the judgment seat of the Lord was written: to the right he pointed to the righteous going to heaven, to the left he pointed to sinners going to torment. He said: if you want to stand on the right with the righteous, then be baptized. Vladimir wanted to find out about all the faiths and said: I’ll wait a little longer. And he gave the gift to the philosopher and released him.”[25]

So, the chronicler says that preachers came to Vladimir, each of whom spoke about his religion. First, adherents of Islam appeared before him. They told about Allah as the only god and about Mohammed (Muhammad) as the “crown of the prophets”, they convinced the prince to accept their faith and worship Mohammed. But of all that was said, Vladimir was impressed by one thing: legalized polygamy. The prince disapproved of circumcision and abstinence from pork and wine. “Rus' has joy to drink, we cannot live without it,” Vladimir said to the Muslims.

Then missionaries from Rome arrived, sent by the pope. “Your land,” the pope told Vladimir through his envoys, “is the same as ours, but our faith is not like yours, since our faith is light; We bow to God, who created heaven and earth, the stars, the month and everything that breathes, and your gods are just trees.” The prince asked: “What is your commandment?” The papal ambassadors replied: “Fast according to strength; if anyone drinks or eats, then all this is for the glory of God, as our teacher Paul said.” Then Vladimir said: “Go where you came from, for our fathers did not accept this.”

Then the Khazar Jews appeared before him: “We heard that the Bulgarians and Christians came, each teaching you their faith. Christians believe in the one whom we crucified, and we believe in the one God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Vladimir asked: “What is your law?” And they answered: “Be circumcised, do not eat pork or hare, and keep the Sabbath.” A new question followed: “Where is your land?” And when the Jews said that their land was in Jerusalem, the prince sarcastically interjected: “Is it really there?” They answered him: “God was angry with our fathers and scattered us across various countries for our sins, and gave our land to the Christians.” Vladimir edifyingly said: “How do you teach others, but you yourself are rejected by God and scattered: if God loved you and your law, then you would not have been scattered across foreign lands. Or do you want the same for us?”

Finally, the Greeks sent a “philosopher” to Vladimir, who began his speech like this: “We heard that the Bulgarians came and taught you to accept your faith. Their faith defiles heaven and earth, and they are cursed above all people, they became like the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah, on whom the Lord sent a burning stone and drowned them, and drowned. So the day of their destruction awaits these too, when God will come to judge the nations and destroy all those who commit lawlessness and filth. For, having washed themselves, they pour this water into their mouths, smear it on their beard and remember Mohammed. Likewise, their wives create the same filth and even greater ones.” Here Vladimir could not stand it, he spat on the ground, saying: “This matter is unclean.” The “philosopher” meanwhile continued: “We also heard that they came to you from Rome to preach their faith to you. Their faith is slightly different from ours: they serve on unleavened bread, that is, on wafers, which God did not command, commanding them to serve on bread, and taught the apostles, taking the bread: “Behold, this is my body, broken for you.” In the same way he took the cup and said: “This is the blood of my new testament.” Those who do not do this believe incorrectly.”

Vladimir remarked: “The Jews came to me and said that the Germans and Greeks believe in the one whom they crucified.” The “philosopher” exclaimed: “We truly believe in him!” Their own prophets predicted that a god would be born, and others that he would be crucified and buried, but on the third day he would rise and ascend to heaven. They beat some of those prophets and tortured others. When their prophecies came true, when he descended to earth, he was crucified, resurrected and ascended to heaven. God expected repentance from them, but they did not repent, and then he sent the Romans against them, and the Romans defeated their cities, and scattered them to other lands, where they remain in slavery.” Prince Vladimir asked: “Why did God come down to earth and accept such suffering?” To which the “philosopher” replied: “If you want to listen, then I’ll tell you in order from the very beginning why God came to earth.” “I’m glad to hear it,” said Vladimir. The “philosopher” spoke for a long time, but lively and enthusiastically, and his speech made a great impression on Vladimir.

This is how the chronicler talks about Prince Vladimir’s meetings with representatives of various faiths. But how reliable is this narrative?

Some historians do not find anything strange or incredible in the fact that missionaries could come to Vladimir and each offer their faith. Another thing is that, trusting the fact itself, considering it possible and having taken place, the chronicler could give this narrative the form of a dialogue that did not actually happen. Other historians, on the contrary, consider it incredible that representatives of different faiths would come to Vladimir. Some historians believe that there was a possibility of missionaries coming, but this possibility did not become a reality. Thus, Golubinsky doubts the authenticity of the speeches of the characters. The chronicler could not accurately record the negotiations of Prince Vladimir with representatives of one religion or another; he lived later, and the true story could not reach him. Some missionaries characterize their religions from an unfavorable, negative side. Did the Mohammedans really come to emphasize the negative in their religions? Could the Jews really say that they were being punished by their own God? From this Golubinsky concludes: the speeches are a later invention of the chronicler.

Most likely, the legend about the “choice of faith” has a historical basis - it is a description of Prince Vladimir’s search for a religion suitable for strengthening his personal power in the emerging state.
Muslim Russia
According to the chronicle, ambassadors from Muslims said: “You, prince, are wise and reasonable, but you do not know the law. Accept our law." Vladimir refused.

Meanwhile, as some historians believe, Vladimir nevertheless made an attempt to introduce Islam in Rus'. Information about this is contained in the Arab writer al Marwazi, who lived in the second half of the 11th - early 12th centuries. In the book of al-Marwazi we read about the Rus: “And in this way they were brought up until they became Christians in the months of the three hundredth year. And when they converted to Christianity, religion dulled their swords and faith closed the doors of occupation for them, and they returned to a difficult life and poverty, and their means of subsistence were reduced. Then they wanted to become Muslims so that they would be allowed to raid and holy war and return to what was before. Then they sent ambassadors to the ruler of Khorezm, four people from their king’s entourage, because they have an independent king and their king is called Vladimir - just as the king of the Turks is called Khakan, and the king of the Bulgars. And their ambassadors came to Khorezm and reported their message. And Khorezmshah rejoiced at their decision to convert to Islam, and sent them to teach them the laws of Islam. And they converted to Islam”[26].

A number of historians see this as a reflection of real historical events. Here is the opinion of S. Tolstov: “In Islam, Vladimir could look for an ideological weapon to reconcile the virtually irreconcilable, culminating contradiction between two spheres of interests of the Kiev aristocracy: the dogma of the struggle for faith and the prospects of an alliance with the countries of Islam promised the successful development of military expansion against the old enemy - Byzantium; the system of Islam as a church and religion could, it seemed, also contribute to the solution of internal problems associated with the final consolidation of the feudal-serf system.”

The foreign Ukrainian historian O. Pritsak, referring to al Marvazi, claims that during his reign in Novgorod (970–978), Vladimir, interested in improving relations with Volga Bulgaria, converted to Islam in its Turkic version. That is, having ascended the Kiev throne, he was already a Muslim, and only geopolitics subjected him to Christianization.

The pro-Muslim plan turned out to be utopian and doomed to failure from the very beginning, as Braichevsky writes. Islam had no roots in Rus'; it was a faith completely alien to the Eastern Slavs - not only in its spirit, but also from the point of view of historical traditions. She could not compete with Christianity, which at the end of the 10th century. occupied a decisive position in the social life of the country, not even with paganism, which, although it had turned into an archaic relic, had at least a deep tradition on its side. There were no supporters of Mohammedanism either in Kyiv or in other ancient Russian cities, except for visiting merchants and diplomats who had no influence on the consciousness of the local public. Therefore, Vladimir’s second religious experiment turned out to be even less promising than the reform of paganism, and did not have serious consequences[27].

BC Polikarpov considers a possible variant of historical development in the event that Vladimir had chosen Islam, which was very likely, since a hundred years earlier Islam had established itself on the eastern border of the country and Kievan Rus was already influenced by the brilliant not so much Arab as Persian culture . Rus' of the 10th century was already prepared to accept Islam, which could predetermine the path of development of Russian civilization.

Islam has its own characteristics that distinguish it from other world religions - Christianity and Buddhism: it is not just a religion, but an integral way of life. The essential thing is that, according to the Koran, authority and laws come from Allah. Consequently, there is no basis for opposition between the religious and secular content of power. Islam is tolerant of other religions and did not forcibly convert anyone to its faith, which was useful for the Russians when developing vast territories of Siberia, the Far East, Alaska, the Caucasus and Central Asia. According to Polikarpov, the resulting Russian caliphate played a significant role in world history, especially in the history of the West. After all, the Catholic world had to moderate its militant ardor in the fight against Muslim civilization. First of all, the Spanish feudal lords were unable to carry out the Reconquista, because behind them they felt the power of the Russian caliphate, whose borders extended to the Elbe in the west (brave Russian Muslims immediately stopped the attempts of expansion of the German princes and emperors into the West Slavic lands) and reached the shores of the Baltic in the north -west. The popes failed to organize a series of crusades against the Muslim East. By that time, the Byzantine Empire was divided between the Arab and Russian caliphates, which strengthened their economic and military potential. Thanks to the Russian caliphate, which was a powerful centralized state, Genghis Khan’s troops were unable to break through the Volga and were thrown back. In alliance with the Ottoman Empire, the Russian Caliphate defeated the Habsburg Empire and put an end to the claims of France and England to dominance in Europe. Russian culture has absorbed all the achievements of the Arab-Muslim civilization in the field of science, medicine, architecture, poetry, etc. The cult of knowledge, supported by the authority of Muhammad, is also important, which made Russia a leader in the world of science and ensured its economic prosperity and an unprecedented rise in culture and authority in the world [ 28].

AM Burovsky draws virtual Muslim Rus' in his own way.

So, Rus' became part of the Muslim world. What will change? In our reality, the forest-steppe and steppe were impossible to populate due to the raids of the steppe inhabitants. The settlement of the south began only after the Russian-Turkish wars of the 18th century. In Muslim virtuality, the settlement of the south could have begun much earlier. Moreover, the population of Muslims always grows faster than that of Christians. Polygamy and orientation towards a large patriarchal family have an impact.

There will be no Cossacks, as well as a Europeanized Russian nobility. And in general there are no classes in Muslim Rus'. After all, the Muslim world does not know a strict class division.

If Rus' had become Islamic, the Russian people would have changed. Centuries of educating people in the spirit of submission to fate, the removal of personal responsibility for oneself and for the world, would have formed a completely different human type.

If Rus' becomes Muslim, it will become a very educated country, where knowledge is valued incomparably higher. So, Burovsky sums up, “we would live in a completely different country. Not better and not worse - but simply in a completely different, and, moreover, completely unfamiliar one. And besides, they would be a different people. More southern, and also with a noticeably different system of values and priorities”[29].

A. Bushkov also believes that the likelihood of Russia adopting Islam was very high.
At the same time, he asks the question - which branch of Islam would Rus' prefer: Shiism or Sunnism? Sunnism is closer to the Russian mentality. Therefore, Rus' would most likely become Sunni. In such virtuality, Christian Europe could well have suffered defeat under the joint onslaught of the Spanish Moors, Turkey and the Moscow Caliphate. As a result, Christianity would become the religion of an insignificant part of the European population. Most importantly, in this version of the future we would perhaps live in a less technologically advanced world, but our life would be much calmer[30]. Catholic Russia
This is another virtual scenario of accepting the faith. In particular, according to S. Alekseev, baptism from the West was considered as a real alternative[31]. Moreover, by this time there were already some prerequisites for this.

According to Western European chronicles, in 959 Olga’s ambassadors went to the German Emperor Otto, intending to ask to send a bishop and priests to Rus'. The request was accepted, and the following year, 960, a certain monk of the St. Alban Monastery was ordained bishop of Rus', but could not arrive in Kyiv because he fell ill and died.

In the same year, Adalbert, a monk of the monastery of St. Maximin in Trier, was ordained bishop of Rus' - and reached Kiev. True, a year later he had to leave Russian borders. But in the Church of St. Sophia, built in Kyiv in the 12th century, the mosaic image of Pope Clement calmly coexisted with the images of Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom[32].

Burovsky believes that in our reality, Rus' was not able to fully defend itself against the Mongols because it was not European enough. There were forces within Rus' itself that found the Asian path of development closer. In Catholic virtuality, Rus', which took part in the Crusades, by the 13th century. would most likely consist of many principalities with different traditions and political systems. But she would have had three powerful weapons against the Mongols.

1. Its inhabitants would be even more European. A more powerful army, imbued with the spirit of chivalry. Dense squares of citizens of all cities.

2. Crusade Mechanism

3. Help for the rest of Europe.

In the Catholic virtuality in Rus' there are no religious strife and divisions. There is no division into Western Rus' and Muscovy. There is no confrontation between Russia and Poland. In the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Poland plays not a leading, but a secondary role. The Catholic Russian Empire has the strength for southern politics, but it needs Siberia much less. It is quite possible that Russian expansion would have stopped in the Urals.

Until the 19th century Catholic Russia could well live without a constitution - like Poland, Austria and Prussia in reality. But with the same respect for a person’s personality, with the same confidence that power always has a certain limited range. We would still live in such a state today.

Catholic Rus' is a Rus' in which Archpriest Avvakum will be put in a madhouse, where he belongs. This is Rus', in which a university was opened in Novgorod in 1300, and in Pskov in 1350[33].

A. Bushkov directly contrasts Orthodox Rus' with Catholic Rus', believing that “in the Byzantine canon lies a certain semi-mystical poison that caused a lot of disasters and upheavals in countries that had the misfortune of coming into contact with it.”
Drawing the prospects for the development of Rus' and Russia as part of the Catholic world, Bushkov believes that Rus' would very early find itself an active participant in wars with the Muslim world. Long before Ivan the Terrible, Rus' would have begun to develop as an integral part of Europe. In reality, the deadened Byzantine canon drove Russian art into a narrow, purely ecclesiastical framework. In virtual Catholic Rus', it is quite possible that our Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Botticelli and Leonardo would appear[34]. The Russian Chronicle of Judaism
claims that Prince Vladimir rejected Judaism, since the Jews were “squandered” by God throughout the world. True, even under Princess Olga, the Khazar Kaganate was one of the most powerful states in these places. Therefore, the possibility of Prince Vladimir choosing Judaism was quite likely.

Judaism is the religion of the chosen, the religion of one people - the Jews.

The eventful history and culture of Jews has always aroused special interest. As the English historian Paul Johnson writes, “the view of the Jews became the prototype of many of the great dreams of mankind, full of hope both in Providence and in Man.”

The Jews were scattered throughout the world. Many of them observed Jewish customs only out of habit, and in terms of such concepts as God, people, Israel, they did not at all strive to realize their historical value and significance. For them, Judaism was more of an individual mysticism, surrounded by a romantic flair and nostalgic appeal, based only on the observance of family traditions. During the era of dispersion, the idea of “ahavat moledet” (love of homeland) was always vague and uncertain, although all Jews remembered the Holy Land.

But the cultural connection with the past, built on inherited values and way of life, was intuitive and mystical. For many centuries, the homeland was a cultural and historical source for Jews outside of specific geographical coordinates. Her image was based on the promises of redemption given by the Jewish prophets, on Jewish philosophy and Jewish mysticism, on the literature of the Haskalah - the Jewish Enlightenment. It is not for nothing that the writer Elias Canetti, whose Jewish ancestors were expelled from Spain in the 14th century, defined the Jews through their “mass” symbol - the image of a crowd wandering through the desert after the exodus from Egypt; this is the only ancient people that wanders for so long.

The small shepherd people, having turned into eternal wanderers, forever entered world culture through the Bible. The Jews were the first to create a logically structured history. It is the image of God in Jewish culture that is the key to understanding Judaism and the Jewish worldview. The 613 commandments of Judaism, vows, traditions, a strictly maintained way of life - all this protected Jewry from disintegration, for it existed among alien peoples[35].

It was precisely to Judaism that the rabbis who arrived from the Khazar Kaganate to Vladimir Svyatoslavich sought to convert Rus'.

Rus' was in fairly close contact with the Khazars. In the VIII–IX centuries. the main territory of the Khazar Khaganate was located in the lower reaches of the Volga and Don. The Khazars' possessions also covered the coast of the Azov Sea, part of the Crimea and the North Caucasus. Even the most powerful state in the world at that time, Byzantium, tried to be friends with the Khazars. For a long time, the Slavic tribes (Polyans, Northerners, Radimichi, Vyatichi) paid tribute to the Khazars, as did the Kama Bulgarians, Burtases, Cheremis and Mordovians. In Khazaria there were Muslims, Christians, and pagans. The top of the Kaganate professed Judaism.

By the middle of the 10th century. the power of Khazaria weakened. In 954, the Khazar Kagan Joseph, concerned about the growing forces of Kievan Rus, personally led a campaign against Kyiv. But he failed to take the capital of the ancient Russian state. While the Khazars stood under the wooden walls of Kyiv, news began to arrive about the alarming movements of the Pechenegs. At the same time, the troops of Sveneld, the governor of Princess Olga, undertook several successful forays, during one of which the court rabbi of the Kagan Yehuda was captured. He knew the Russian language. From Yehuda, Olga learned how the world was created, how God chose the people to implement his plans, how he was angry with the Jews for their apostasy, how he elevated the Khazars. But the Jews understood a lot during the wrath of God. They taught their knowledge to the rich Greeks, the harsh Latins, and the indomitable Arabs. Soon Olga underwent a rite of passage into the “faith of the fathers” and took the name Sarah.

Then came the era of Vladimir. By this time, Jewish Rus' already existed. Thousands and thousands of Jews lived on the territory of the Old Russian state. A fairly large colony existed in Kyiv; it was not without reason that later, in the 12th century, one of the city gates was known as the Jewish Gate.

And so Vladimir introduces Judaism to Rus'. The virtual alternative has triumphed. What would this lead to?

A. Burovsky devotes many pages of his book to this scenario.
He believes that the most likely and acceptable scenario for the development of events is the formation of a Judeo-pagan state in Rus'. Without the demand to immediately circumcise everyone, without a civil war between Judaism and paganism. After all, Judaism does not necessarily have to be Orthodox. But Rus' has the prospect, however rather vague, of becoming a completely literate society[36]. Pagan Russia
This “Perunov alternative” seems the least likely.

For example, the historian M. Vasiliev writes that it is purely speculative, of course, to assume that in Rus' religious development could have followed the path of further monotheization of the national cult of Perun and the creation of a relatively developed and socio-politically effective religion of monotheism. However, this hypothesis is outside the “field of historical possibilities”, representing only a so-called formal alternative, formal probability. It is unacceptable already due to the fact that in many countries neighboring Russia by that time monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam) with a centuries-old history, with developed dogmatics and organizational structure, with rich experience in serving highly developed public institutions and complexly stratified social relations, with accumulated diverse experience of interaction with secular authorities. This made turning to them the most rational when choosing monotheistic religions that best met the domestic political and international needs of the ruling elite of the young Old Russian state. There were neither conditions nor time for the development of our own “Russian pagan monotheism”[37].

Probably, Rus' could follow the example of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia, where until the 14th century. paganism existed. But, according to A. Burovsky’s definition, pagan Rus' could hardly preserve itself as a state or even as a national integrity. Pagan Rus' has no unifying idea. Already by the 15th century, Rus' could well have ceased to exist, becoming a distant province of Poland.

The pagan has no idea of improving the world. The Jew came into the world, which God gave him for food. A Christian has come into a world that is imperfect by definition. This world cannot be considered bad, but it is far from ideal. A Christian sees many things in him that could have been arranged better for him. But the pagan lives in a world that was not created for him at all. This world is unchanged. All efforts are unnecessary, all doubts about the perfection of the world and the desire to change something are a whim[38].

Notes:

The first blow: collection / Ulanov A. et al. - M.: Yauza, Eksmo, 2008.

Xym L.P. “The history of what did not happen”, or the Problem of alternative historical development: historiographical aspect // Humanitarian Thought of the South of Russia. - 2006. - No. 1. - P. 62–78.

Vasiliev M. Rus' in the 980s: the choice of religious alternatives // www.archipelag.ru/

Izbornik. Collection of works of literature of Ancient Rus' / ed. D.S. Likhacheva. - M. 1969.

Braichevsky M.Yu. Establishment of Christianity in Rus' / Trans. from Ukrainian Kyiv: Naukova Dumka, 1989 // www.bibliotekar.ru/

Polikarpov BC If only... Historical versions. - Rostov n/d: Phoenix, 1995.

Burovsky A. Unfulfilled Russia. - M.: Yauza, Ek-smo, 2007.

Bushkov A. Russia that never was: riddles, versions, hypotheses. - M.: OLMA-PRESS, 1997.

Alekseev S.V. Vladimir the Holy. Creator of Russian civilization. - M.: Veche, 2006.

Bushkov A. Russia that never was: riddles, versions, hypotheses. - M.: OLMA-PRESS, 1997.

Burovsky A. Unfulfilled Russia. - M.: Yauza, Ek-smo, 2007.

Bushkov A. Russia that never was: riddles, versions, hypotheses. - M.: OLMA-PRESS, 1997.

Shevelev V.N. Twelve Jews Who Changed the World. - Rostov n/d: Phoenix, 2001.

Burovsky A. Unfulfilled Russia. - M.: Yauza, Ek-smo, 2007.

Vasiliev M. Rus' in the 980s: the choice of religious alternatives // www.archipelag.ru/

Burovsky A. Unfulfilled Russia. - M.: Yauza, Ek-smo, 2007.

Table of contents

Reason 2: Adoption of Christianity in European countries

When paganism dominated on the territory of Rus', in other countries pagan beliefs faded into the background. By that time, world religions had become widespread: Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. They were significantly different from paganism. All these religions preach monotheism - belief in one God.

By the time Vladimir came to rule, Rus' was already well acquainted with Christianity. The peoples who lived in the neighborhood were already Christians. Therefore, religion was not alien to the inhabitants of Rus'.

Armenian religion

The change in the international position of Rus', namely close cooperation with many foreign countries, forced the prince to reconsider his religious views. This later became one of the reasons why Vladimir adopted Christianity. He began to choose among the world religions the one that should become the state.

The way Vladimir chose religion is described in the chronicle “Test of Faith.” According to him, the ruler called preachers of all religions and communicated with them to make his choice. This took the prince about 2 years. He took his choice of religion very seriously.

In 986 he accepted the Volga Bulgars, representatives of Islam. When he learned about the rituals, traditions and prohibitions of religion, he refused. He was especially embarrassed by the ban on drinking wine. However, this was not the only factor that influenced the decision to refuse Muslim guests.

Why was a new religion needed?

During the reign of Vladimir, the state of Kievan Rus reached its dawn, covering vast territories and having practically no powerful enemy neighbors. Rus' had become an authoritative force in eastern Europe, and the prince intended to unite the population entrusted to him. A single faith could help him in this. Historian B. Grekov talks about the initial attempts of Vladimir Svyatoslavich to create a new religion based on the pagan pantheon of gods. After all, the moribund paganism with its unifying principle could not cope and did not help prevent the disintegration of the massive tribal union with Kiev at its head. Then Vladimir relied on monotheistic religions. In addition to sacred motives, such a decision, of course, was determined by purely political objectives. The prince counted on friendly allied relations with Byzantium, which was dominant in the world at that time, which was possible with the adoption of Christianity by the Old Russian state. An important role in the baptism of Rus', according to the historian M. Pokrovsky, was played by the upper layer of ancient Russian society - the princes and boyars. Representatives of the elite disdained Old Slavonic rituals, in the spirit of fashionable overseas trends, they prescribed Greek rituals and even Greek priests with Greek silk fabrics.

Reason 4: Vladimir’s spiritual quest

Next there was a meeting between the prince and the Byzantine. A philosopher (as he was called by the chronicler for his demonstrated wisdom) from Greece told him about the faith of Christians and about the Bible. The most successful was the meeting with the Greek guest.

Among other reasons why Vladimir chose Orthodoxy, he was driven by the desire to know the truth. He was often guided by conscience and honor in his actions, in making decisions and in governing. Therefore, when choosing a religion, he was based on his own principles, similar to those described in the Bible.

Nevertheless, Prince Vladimir did not immediately choose Orthodoxy. After meetings with those close to him, he decided to attend the services of Muslims, Jews, Germans and Greeks. The prince's envoys, having visited Constantinople, expressed their delight: “They did not know where we were - in heaven or on earth.” As a result, Vladimir chose Christianity.