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Old Believers - Orthodox Christians who did not accept the church reform of Patriarch Nikon and Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich - by the beginning of the 20th century, despite all the persecution, they made up almost a third of the population of the Russian Empire. The Old Believer merchants laid the foundations of entrepreneurship in the country, and the Old Believers Cossacks served as the emperor’s personal guard. The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus' Cornelius. Interviewed by Alexey Mikheev.
Vladyka, by the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, the position of the Old Believers in Russia had noticeably improved - it became possible to build and consecrate churches, the Old Believers and the Orthodox were “equal in rights.” But there is a widespread opinion that many Old Believers welcomed the revolutions of 1917, especially the February one - after all, many of the church trustees, the so-called ktitors, were from the bourgeois environment. Is it so?
— It cannot be said that the situation of the Old Believers at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th (until 1905) underwent any significant improvements. On the contrary, a system of laws that infringed on the rights of Old Believers was maintained. The Old Believer Church was not recognized as a centralized religious organization, and Old Believer communities were not recognized.
All this meant that all Old Believer prayer houses, monasteries, almshouses that belonged to parish communities, created with their funds, were registered to private individuals, which created huge problems in the life of the communities and the Church. And what is paradoxical is that to this day Russian courts refer to these laws in their decisions. Thus, quite recently, the Old Believer Church was denied the return of the building of the diocesan administration of the St. Petersburg and Tver diocese (Chubykin almshouse) with reference to the legislation of the 19th century, when such buildings were registered in the name of private individuals.
Old Believers were not allowed to be teachers in existing state city and public schools, no matter what type they were. Old Believers were not allowed to occupy any government or public positions, especially military ones.
On the contrary, the authorities adopted decrees and laws that further constrained their position. Thus, in 1900, a Special Meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers decided: “To collect subscriptions from all Old Believer bishops that they undertake not to be called bishops and not to perform services and actions not permitted by law.” Old Believer clergy who refused to give such a signature were sent into exile, which is what happened, for example, with Saint Irinarch of Yaroslavl (Lapshin). Despite any threats, he openly refused to sign to renounce the episcopal rank. Soon the bishop was arrested and on July 7, 1901, by decision of the authorities, he was administratively expelled from the village of Elohino, Yaroslavl province, to Nizhny Novgorod under police supervision. Soon - after nine months - the bishop died.
Only the decree of Emperor Nicholas II “On strengthening the principles of religious tolerance” became the starting point in improving the situation of the Old Believers. This decree allowed, in particular, to unseal the altars of the churches of the Old Believer spiritual center on Rogozhsky, which had been closed by decision of the authorities for 50 years.
As for the participation of Old Believers in organizing any revolutionary uprisings, this is nothing more than an unscrupulous myth. Despite the fact that many Old Believer entrepreneurs were supporters of the development of religious and economic freedoms, none of them participated in the preparation of revolutions, much less armed uprisings.
Moreover, when representatives of the State Duma Guchkov and Shulgin arrived at Nicholas’s headquarters and demanded that he abdicate the throne, the entire tsar’s guard, consisting of Old Believers Cossacks, begged him not to abdicate. Russian heroes, who had gone through more than one war, fell to their knees with tears in their eyes and begged the Tsar to stay. Eyewitnesses of the event report that the tsar’s last words before his abdication were: “The Old Believers will not forgive me for betraying my oath.”
It is known how the Russian Orthodox Church met the revolution - at the Local Council it revived the patriarchate. What about the Old Believers? We know that even before the February coup, under the influence of propaganda and the population’s fatigue from the war, Jewish pogroms, burning of churches, and reprisals against the clergy began. To what extent did the Old Believers feel the approach of future trials?
— In Moscow, St. Petersburg and other cities in the spring and summer of 1917, dozens of large and small meetings of Old Believer consents were held. Through joint efforts, the Organizing Committee of Moscow Old Believers of All Accords was created, which came out in May 1917 with a unified program of political and spiritual reforms. It was proposed to convene a Constituent Assembly, which would establish the form of government and federal structure of the future Russian state, equalize the rights of all confessions and adopt a law on the separation of Church and state. As the basis of the state, the Old Believers proposed the so-called popular law (republican) form of government based on the models of the ancient Russian republics of Pskov and Veliky Novgorod. Old Believer societies also spoke out in favor of returning the capital from Petrograd to Moscow.
Support was also expressed for the Provisional Government in anticipation of the convening of the main constitutional body of Russia - the Constituent Assembly, "which will establish the unshakable principles of the foundations of firm power, consolidate the promised freedoms and calm the country."
It should be noted that among the delegates to the Constituent Assembly there were also representatives of the Old Believers. Unfortunately, the Bolsheviks forcibly interrupted the activities of this important government body, which was supposed to pave the way for peace and social harmony in our country.
What changes in the life of the Old Believers came after the October Revolution? It is known that, for example, almost until the mid-1920s the authorities did not oppress Baptists. What about the Old Believers?
The persecution of the Old Believer Church began not in the 20s, but even earlier, in the very first months after the revolution. Signed by Lenin on January 23, 1918, the Decree of the Council of People's Commissars "On the separation of church from state and school from church" deprived religious associations of the right to property and formation of a legal entity. Article 13 of the decree posed a particular danger to the Old Believer Church: “Buildings and objects intended specifically for liturgical purposes are given, according to special decrees of local or central government authorities, for the free use of the respective religious societies.”
Unlike the Synodal Church, whose church buildings (monasteries, temples, chapels, etc.) were initially created as specialized places of worship, many Old Believer churches and prayer houses (especially those built before 1905) were built as an integral part of private estates and even residential premises.
Of the 46 officially registered Old Believer churches and prayer houses in Moscow in 1917, only 16 were separate buildings. The rest, including a significant number of unregistered prayer houses and churches, were designated by the authorities as “house”, private, and therefore subject to immediate liquidation.
This fate befell many Old Believer churches and monasteries in the very first years of Soviet power.
How did the Old Believers survive the Civil War and the first outbreaks of atheistic violence? How many of them left the country? How was their life in exile and what was the fate of those who remained? How did the Great Patriotic War, Khrushchev’s persecutions, and the oppression of the early 80s affect them?
— During the Civil War, many Old Believers opposed the godless Bolshevik dictatorship. Among them was the hero of the First World War, Kozma Kryuchkov. His presence in the ranks of the Cossacks was the best propaganda for volunteers. At the end of August 1919, Kozma died in battle near the village of Lopukhovki, Saratov province. He was buried in the cemetery of his native farm.
The name of another Cossack is covered in legends - the Old Believer priest of the 1st Ural consolidated regiment Mokiya Kabaev, who blessed the Cossack regiments in the fight against the godless regime. After the end of the Civil War, he refused to leave his native land and was arrested and executed by the Bolsheviks in 1921. Now Mokiy Kabaev is revered by the South Ural Cossacks as a locally revered saint.
The fate of Priest Ioann Kudrin, who officially held the position of chief Old Believer priest of the army and navy of the Supreme Ruler of Russia, Admiral Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak, turned out differently. After the Civil War, he emigrated abroad, where he founded a number of Old Believer parishes in China and Australia, some of which still exist today. Among them is the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Sydney.
Many Old Believers were forced to leave Russia for Europe, Australia and North America. Among the famous Old Believers emigrants one can name such names as banker, manufacturer, founder of the Russian cultural society "Icon" in Paris Vladimir Pavlovich Ryabushinsky, founder of the Volga Steamship Society, famous philanthropist Dmitry Vasilyevich Sirotkin, founder of the Russian Folk Art Museum Sergei Timofeevich Morozov.
Despite the fact that during the Great Patriotic War the Old Believers stood up as one to defend their Motherland, the authorities were in no hurry to free the Old Believers Church from atheistic oppression. The only concession during this period was permission to publish a church calendar, which was published in 1946. In subsequent years, a policy of silence was pursued regarding the Old Believers, its slow strangulation, which was expressed not so much in repression as in constant administrative control, pressure, limitation of opportunities, and creation of obstacles to hierarchical development. This situation continued until 1988.
The Russian Orthodox Church canonized a huge number of new martyrs - victims of Soviet repression who suffered for their faith. Did the Old Believers have such martyrs?
- Undoubtedly, a large number of Old Believers were repressed, and many of them were those who suffered for their religious beliefs, for their faith.
Typical of the era were the persecution and martyrdom of Bishop Raphael (Voropaev) of Kharkov and Kyiv. Despite the warning of impending arrest, surveillance and threats, the bishop continued his church service and refused to hide from the authorities, not wanting to leave his church flock. He was arrested on October 8, 1937 and accused of anti-Soviet activities. Just a few days after the start of the trial, a verdict was passed, which stated that the bishop allegedly praised the fascist system in Germany and “expressed regret about the execution of fascist spies Tukhachevsky and Yakir.” On October 24, 1937, Bishop Raphael was shot.
One of the closest associates of Bishop Raphael, the rector of the Kyiv Assumption Church, Priest Theodore Torlin, was shot in December 1937.
In 2001, the Consecrated Council of the Russian Orthodox Church blessed the veneration of Bishop Raphael of Kharkov and Kyiv as a locally revered saint.
Bishops of Irkutsk-Amur Afanasy (Fedotov) and Tomsk and Altai Tikhon (Sukhov) also accepted the martyr's crown. From the certificate of the KGB of the Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic dated May 31, 1990, it is clear that Bishop Afanasy, by decision of the NKVD of 1938, was sentenced to capital punishment under Article 58 for counter-revolutionary agitation and propaganda. The sentence was carried out on April 18, 1938.
In the same year, having accepted a martyr’s death, Bishop Tikhon of Tomsk and Altai reposed in the Lord.
In the dungeons of the NKVD, the head of the Old Believer Church, locum tenens of the Moscow archbishopric throne, Bishop Vikenty (Nikitin), was also brutally tortured. On the evening of March 5, 1938, Bishop Vincent was arrested in his apartment. He was taken to the internal NKVD prison on Lubyanka Square. A few days later he was transferred to Butyrskaya prison, and from there to Lefortovo. Here, in the medical unit, after another interrogation, the saint died on the night of April 13. His body was taken to the crematorium of the Donskoye Cemetery, and his ashes were buried in a common grave.
The information and publishing department of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church published the book “The Ways of the Russian Calvary”. This book was the first publication dedicated to the period of persecution of the Old Believers in the 20th century. The book contains biographies of ascetics glorified by our Church, biographical sketches, articles devoted to the fate of churches and monasteries, memoirs of eyewitnesses and many other materials concerning the topic of persecution of the Old Believer Church in the 30s and 40s.
- Did your family suffer from religious persecution during Soviet times?
“It seems to me that during the times of atheistic devastation and terror, all families whose members were believers suffered.
Since my ancestors were Old Believers from time immemorial, it was undoubtedly excruciatingly painful for them to see how churches were destroyed, shrines were desecrated, believers were mocked and priests were deprived of their lives, and then cruelly persecuted members of the families of clergy. My relatives talked about this. My grandfather, Konstantin Gavrilovich Titov, before the revolution, was a singer of the Old Believer community at the Morozov manufactory in the city of Orekhovo-Zuevo, Moscow region. He died early in the late 30s and it is obvious that the cause of his death was the persecution of the Church at that time.
In our house and our Old Believers neighbors there were many icons and church books, but all this wealth had to be constantly hidden from prying eyes, so as not to bring trouble from the godless authorities. In general, little was said about atheistic persecution in my family, for fear of denunciations and harassment.
Several Old Believer churches in our city were closed, turning them over to institutions that desecrated the shrine. As a child, my grandmother and I cautiously walked through the alleys to the prayer house, which the authorities called the “Black Dead End”, then it was destroyed and burned during urban development. Thank God, these sad times are over and I would like to hope that this will never happen again.
Material from the site
On March 7, 2004, in Moscow, in the Intercession Cathedral, His Eminence Metropolitan Andrian (Chetvergov) ordained Deacon Constantine to the rank of priest. His place of service was the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the city of Orekhova-Zuev, where he served as the second priest.
On October 21, 2004, the Consecrated Council elected Priest Konstantin Titov as a candidate bishop for the Kazan-Vyatka See. March 14, 2005 Fr. Constantine took monastic vows and was given the name Cornelius.
On May 8, 2005, in the Intercession Cathedral, His Eminence Metropolitan Andrian, concelebrated by Bishops Siluyan of Novosibirsk, Evmeniy of Chisinau and All Moldova and Herman of the Far East, ordained Hieromonk Cornelius to the rank of Bishop of Kazan and Vyatka. On July 21, on the day of the celebration of the appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, the rite of elevating Bishop Cornelius to the Kazan See was performed.
On October 18, 2005, the Consecrated Council, which met in Moscow to elect a new Primate of the Church in place of the late Metropolitan Andrian, elected Bishop Cornelius as Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus'. The enthronement took place in the Intercession Cathedral on October 23, 2005.
Over the years, Metropolitan Cornelius has ordained three bishops, many priests, deacons and readers. Every year of his archpastoral activity, the bishop visits almost all dioceses of the Church, where he holds diocesan and parish meetings, performs ordinations, and consecrates churches. Metropolitan Korniliy pays considerable attention to issues of church and public life, meeting with representatives of the federal, regional and municipal authorities, public and political figures, scientists, specialists in the field of national culture, the history of the Russian Church and the Old Believers. Every year on June 3, on the day of his angel, Metropolitan Cornelius holds a solemn service in the Intercession Cathedral in Moscow.
Literature
RPSC calendar. 2011. P.119-12.
RPSC calendar. 2013. P.190.
Sergei Kalashnikov.
Birthday August 01, 1947
Primate of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church
Biography
Born on August 1, 1947 in Orekhovo-Zuevo, Moscow Region, into a hereditary Old Believer family. After graduating from the 8th grade of school, he became a turner's apprentice at a foundry and mechanical plant, where he worked for 35 years. While working, he studied at evening school, technical school and the Moscow Automechanical Institute, from which he graduated in 1976.
In his youth he was a member of the CPSU, which served as one of the accusations at the Council of the Moscow Metropolis of the Russian Orthodox Church in 2007.
Until 1997, he worked at the plant as head of the technical control department.
Since 1991 - Chairman of the Church Council of the Old Believer community of Orekhova-Zueva. His mentor and teacher was the rector of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Orekhovo-Zuyevo, Priest Leonty Pimenov.
In 1997, having taken a vow of celibacy, he was ordained to the rank of deacon by Metropolitan Alimpiy (Gusev). In 2004, Metropolitan Andrian (Chetvergov) ordained him to the priesthood. He served as the second priest of the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in the city of Orekhovo-Zuevo.
On October 21, 2004, at the Consecrated Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, he was elected a candidate for bishop. He took monastic vows on March 14, 2005.
On May 8, 2005, Metropolitan Andrian, in concelebration with Bishops of Novosibirsk and all Siberia Siluyan (Kilin), Far Eastern German (Savelyev) and Evmeniy (Mikheev) of Chisinau and all Moldavia, ordained Cornelius to the rank of bishop for the Kazan and Vyatka diocese.
Elected Metropolitan at the Consecrated Council on October 18, 2005. Voting had to be done three times. Only the third time, 58-year-old Bishop Cornelius received more than two-thirds of the votes required for election. The ceremony of communion took place in the Intercession Cathedral at the Rogozhskoye Cemetery in Moscow on October 23, 2005.
Positions himself as a supporter of continuing the course of his predecessor, Metropolitan Andrian. Shortly after his election as metropolitan, he stated: “Metropolitan Andrian’s efforts aimed at overcoming the isolation of the Old Believers from the modern spiritual and cultural life of Russia, I will try to continue to the best of my ability. After all, this is the only way we can convey to our people the truth about the true Orthodox faith, which has not undergone reforms.”
In March 2007, he called “possible and timely” the joint initiative of the Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church and the Russian Ministry of Culture to create a public censorship and oversight committee “to control the moral content of works and events of an educational, educational and entertainment nature in the areas of the press intended for children and adolescents.” , theater, stage and mass media." He stated that the committee should include representatives of all traditional religions of Russia, famous writers, authoritative figures of culture and science, teachers, and military personnel.
Konstantin Titov was born on August 1, 1947 in the city of Orekhovo-Zuevo, Moscow region. He was baptized in infancy with a name in honor of Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine the Great. He was brought up in an Old Believer family. After graduating from the 8th grade of high school, due to family difficulties he was forced to go to work, becoming a turner's apprentice.
At the Foundry and Mechanical Plant of the Orekhovo-Zuevsky Cotton Mill, an enterprise once founded by the famous Old Believer industrialists Morozovs, the future Old Believer metropolitan worked for 35 years, combining work with studies at evening school, a technical school, and the Moscow Automechanical Institute, which he graduated in 1976.
Until 1997, Konstantin Titov worked as the head of the technical control department of the plant. In 1991, he was elected chairman of the church council of the Orekhovo-Zuyevo Old Believer community of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In May 1997, having taken a vow of celibacy, he was ordained a deacon. The ordination was performed by His Eminence Metropolitan Alimpiy (Gusev).
At the Intercession Cathedral on March 7, 2004 in Moscow, His Eminence Metropolitan Andrian (Chetvergov) ordained Deacon Constantine to the rank of priest. The place of his ministry was the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Orekhovo-Zuyevo, where he served as the second priest. At the Consecrated Council on October 21, 2004, Priest Konstantin was elected as a candidate for bishop for the Kazan-Vyatka See. In 2005, March 14, Fr. Constantine took monastic vows and was given the name Cornelius.
In 2005, on May 7, in the Pokrovsky Cathedral, His Eminence Metropolitan Andrian, concelebrated by Bishops Siluyan of Novosibirsk, Evmeniy of Kishinev and German of the Far East, ordained Hieromonk Cornelius to the rank of Bishop of Kazan and Vyatka, and on July 21, on the day of the celebration of the appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, his rite was performed ascent to the Kazan department.
The consecrated Council on October 18, 2005, which met in Moscow to elect a new Primate of the Church in place of the late Metropolitan Andrian, elected Bishop Cornelius as Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus'.
Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus' Korniliy positions himself as a supporter of continuing the course of his predecessor, Metropolitan Andrian. Shortly after his election as metropolitan, he stated: “Metropolitan Andrian’s efforts aimed at overcoming the isolation of the Old Believers from the modern spiritual and cultural life of Russia, I will try to continue to the best of my ability. After all, this is the only way we can convey to our people the truth about the true Orthodox faith, which has not undergone reforms.”
The Old Believer Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus' Korniliy (secular name - Konstantin Titov) is the spiritual shepherd of approximately two million Old Believers living in Russia and the world. According to the deep conviction of adherents of this religious movement, it is they who preach true, pure Orthodoxy, which was not distorted by the unfounded church reforms of the seventeenth century.
The history of the Old Believers seems to be one of the saddest pages in the Russian Church. After all, Nikon’s hasty transformations separated the Russian people along one of the most important grounds for the Slavs - Faith in God. The split led to irreconcilable rivalry and mutual hostility of former co-religionists, who overnight became enemies.
Old Believer Church - historical excursion
The Old Believers arose in the second half of the 17th century, after the great church reform carried out by Patriarch Nikon. The changes affected worship, rituals, and texts of sacred books. For example, the three-fingered sign of the cross replaced the two-fingered sign of the cross, the spelling of the name Jesus replaced the previous spelling of Isus, and the triple hallelujah praise became the norm instead of the double one.
A fairly impressive part of the population and clergy did not accept these innovations. This is how the Schism occurred and the Old Believers arose, which also divided into two parts: the non-priestly one, which does not recognize the clergy at all, and the priestly one, which believes that priests are still needed for rituals and worship. The Popovites were also called the Beglopopovtsy because they became a shelter for fugitive priests who denied Nikon’s reforms.
The authorities began brutal persecution against the Old Believers and especially against their leader, Archpriest Avvakum, whom the current Metropolitan Cornelius honors. Avvakum was once Nikon's close comrade-in-arms and assistant, but did not accept his reformist reforms and devoted himself to the struggle for true Orthodoxy. The archpriest denounced ungodly innovations, wrote passionate petitions to the king, even in the face of death he was persistent and did not give up his views. Habakkuk was burned in the spring of 1682, becoming for the Old Believers a holy martyr for the real Faith.
The authorities softened their attitude towards the Old Believer Church only two centuries later, when Alexander II signed a decree according to which Old Believers were allowed to worship freely, travel abroad, open schools, and hold government positions. And in 1971, the Council recognized the illegality of the “schism”, which was adopted at the Councils of 1656 and 1667.
Metropolitan Cornelius - biography
The future Metropolitan Korniliy Ivanovich) was born on August 1, 1947 in the town of Orekhovo-Zuevo near Moscow. Both parents were Old Believers. His family did not live well, so young Kostya had to go to work at a local cotton mill in 1962, after the eighth grade, where he worked for 35 years.
Konstantin Ivanovich constantly studied without interrupting his work. First, he completed his studies at evening school, then at a technical school, and in 1972 he graduated from the Automechanical Institute in Moscow. Hard work and a thirst for education helped him go from a student to the head of the Quality Control Department (technical control department).
The beginning of the spiritual path
Since 1991, the future Metropolitan Korniliy became the council of the city community of Old Believers. His mentor and spiritual teacher was the priest and rector of the Orekhovo-Zuevsky Church of the Virgin Mary - Leonty Pimenov, who had a huge influence on his student. In many ways, it was Father Leonty who convinced him to become a priest.
Church service
In the spring of 1997, Konstantin Titov gave a celibacy dinner and was ordained to the rank of deacon by the Old Believer Metropolitan Alimpiy. In March 2004, Deacon Konstantin was elevated to the rank of priest by Metropolitan Adrian. The newly minted priest became the second priest in the Church of the Holy Mother of God, in the same one where he took his first steps in church service under the leadership of Leonty Pimenov.
Already in October 2004, Priest Konstantin was named among the candidates for the rank of bishop of the Kazan-Vyatka diocese. In March 2005, Constantine took monastic vows and was named Cornelius. And two months later, on May 7, Metropolitan Adrian ordained Constantine to the high rank of bishop. But he did not stay in this rank for long. On October 18 of the same year, the 58-year-old bishop, after the third vote, received the archpastoral title - Metropolitan Cornelius of the Old Believer. In just eight years, this purposeful and energetic man climbed the church ladder from the rank of deacon to the highest church rank.
Views and activities
Metropolitan Cornelius of the Old Believer in religious views and actions adheres to the course of Metropolitan Adrian, his predecessor. His ideas are simple and clear. First of all, it is necessary to overcome the spiritual and cultural isolation of the Old Believer Church in the life of Russia. People should learn more about the purest Orthodox faith of the forefathers, a faith that was not touched by Nikon’s reforms. In addition, the Old Believers are a treasury of Russian general culture, preserving for centuries elements of the Old Russian tradition: spiritual poems, songs, words.
During his archpastoral activity, Metropolitan Cornelius ordained three bishops and dozens of priests, readers, and deacons. During the year he visits all the dioceses subordinate to him. Actively communicates with local and federal authorities. In the spring of 2017, I met with Vladimir Putin, to whom I told about the problems and aspirations of the Old Believer Church. According to the metropolitan, the president will try to help resolve such important issues as allocating money for the return of foreign Old Believers to their homeland and transferring churches for the use of the Old Believer Church.
