HOW THE BAPTISM OF RUSSIA HAPPENED.

Monument “ Baptism of Russia ” in 988

From the very beginning, I would like to stipulate what we will understand by the phrase “Baptism of Russia”. This expression, as it were, suggests the existence of a one-time developments: rapid and widespread introduction to Christianity of the whole people, the whole country - Ancient Russia. Meanwhile, domestic history does not know such an event. It was long, stretching for several centuries process the introduction of Christianity as the state religion of the centralized Kievan state. The official beginning of this process, which was gradually prepared by all the previous development of ancient Russian society, was laid by Prince Vladimir, who in 988 baptized only the inhabitants of his capital, and in subsequent years - the population of a number of other cities of Kievan Rus.

It is impossible to call the initiation to Christianity of only the people of Kiev "the baptism of Russia", by this we allow a gross violation of elementary logic, known as the substitution of concepts. It is impermissible to identify one of the initial moments of the long process of Christianization of Ancient Russia with the whole process, many people get the impression that this is a one-time and completely completed event, and the year 988 is considered the time of the establishment of Christianity in ancient Russian society. The baptism of the people of Kiev by Prince Vladimir (this is already the “second baptism of Russia”) is only the beginning of the action of princes Vladimir and Yaroslav to plant Christianity within the centralized Kievan Rus: the baptism of Novgorodians, as well as residents of other ancient Russian cities, located mainly on the waterway from Kiev to Novgorod . Our Orthodox Church considers the event of 988 to be the official adoption of Christianity in Russia and recently celebrated the thousandth anniversary on this occasion. However, it is necessary to separate two concepts: “Baptism of the people of Kiev” and “Baptism of Russia” - the first event took place on one day, and the second - a whole era that stretched for centuries. Further, we will talk about a whole historical milestone in the life of our ancestors and about the role of the Christianization of Russia.

Russia on the threshold of "Baptism"

The beliefs of the Eastern Slavs of the 9th-10th centuries was a complex interweaving of religious ideas of religious ideas, a person worshiped the forces of nature: water, fire and earth. Worshiping water, he believed in its life-giving power, connected the fertility of the earth with the rain sent by heaven. Ideas about earthly fire have long been associated with heavenly fire - the sun, which gives warmth and light. They believed in the cleansing power of fire - hence the custom of jumping over the fire on the night of Ivan Kupala. With the transformation of agriculture into the main type of economy and with the change in social relations in connection with this, a person more often began to personify those natural phenomena with which the life of a farmer was associated. The agricultural cult was clearly reflected in the holidays in honor of the solar god.

There are two widely held opinions about the state of the spiritual culture of the Slavic peoples of our country. In the first, the baptism of the people of Kiev is considered by modern church authors as the beginning of the cultural progress of ancient Russian society, progress that boils down to the simple assimilation of Byzantine standards of culture by our ancestors, who allegedly had nothing in their souls except natural genius, understood as the ability to quickly and deeply assimilate ready-made cultural forms. . On the other hand, a deeper analysis of the cultural heritage of our country shows that by the time of the adoption of Christianity, Russian art was at a fairly high level of development. More than a thousand years of Russian folk art, Russian writing, literature, painting, architecture, sculpture, music. Meanwhile, the assimilation and creative rethinking of the elements of Byzantine culture that came to Russia during the Christianization of ancient Russian society (Christianity in this case acted as a simple transmitter of these elements) became possible only because there was no cultural vacuum in pre-Christian Russia, and there was a fairly high level of development of spiritual culture.

The theologians of modern Russian Orthodoxy seek to link together two processes: the Christianization of Ancient Russia and the emergence of ancient Russian statehood, and to link them in such a way that the first process is perceived as the fundamental principle of the second. Historians, however, believe that the Old Russian state arose more than a century before the baptism of the people of Kiev and became a historical reality long before the religious action of Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavovich of Kiev. The formation of the state is not the beginning, but a certain result of social development, the transition to a new quality, which was preceded by a long preparatory period, a long process of gradual accumulation of quantitative changes in the social life of Ancient Russia. Consequently, the formation of Russian statehood took place in even more ancient times. In addition, it is logical to assume that the native planting of Christianity is possible only under the condition of a single, strong state. It is a well-known fact that mass Christianization met with a fierce rebuff from the pagans.

Baptism of Prince Vladimir.

Under Prince Vladimir of Kiev (978-1015), an event of the greatest significance takes place, which determined the further path of development of Russia - the adoption of Christianity.

In the first years of his reign, Prince Vladimir, who received a pagan education in Novgorod, where Svyatoslav sent him to reign at the age of eight (in 970), showed himself to be a zealous pagan. “And Vladimir began to reign in Kiev alone,” says the chronicle, “and set up idols on a hill outside the Terem courtyard: a wooden Perun with a silver head and a golden mustache, then Khors, Dazhdbog, Stirbog, Simargl and Mokosh. And they made sacrifices to them, naming them gods... And the Russian land and that hill were defiled with blood" (under the year 980).

In the Sermon on Law and Grace, Saint Hilarion, Metropolitan of Kiev, writes about Prince Vladimir: “A visit from the Most High came upon him, the merciful eye of the Good God looked upon him, and reason shone in his heart. He created everything visible and invisible. And especially he always heard about the Orthodox, Christ-loving and strong in faith Greek land ... Hearing all this, he was inflamed in spirit and desired in his heart to be a Christian and convert the whole Earth to Christianity. "

It was all the easier for Prince Vladimir to understand the superiority of Christianity over paganism and become a Christian because, in the words of Metropolitan Hilarion, he possessed "good sense and a sharp mind" and had the opportunity to get acquainted with Christianity in Kiev, where Christian churches had long existed and divine services were performed. in Slavonic.

Regarding the question of the time and place of the Baptism of Prince Vladimir, there are several versions. According to the generally accepted opinion, Prince Vladimir was baptized in 998 in Korsun (Greek Chersonese in the Crimea); According to the second version, Prince Vladimir was baptized in 987 in Kiev, and according to the third version, in 987 in Vasilyev (not far from Kiev, now the city of Vasilkov). Apparently, the second one should be recognized as the most reliable, since the monk Jacob and the Monk Nestor agree to point to the year 987; monk Jacob says that Prince Vladimir lived 28 years after baptism (1015-28=987), and also that in the third year after Baptism (i.e. in 989) he made a trip to Korsun and took it; the chronicler St. Nestor says that Prince Vladimir was baptized in the summer of 6495 from the creation of the world, which corresponds to the year 987 from the Nativity of Christ (6695-5508=987).

Having adopted the Christian Orthodox faith, Prince Vladimir (in baptism Vasily) decided to "convert the whole Earth to Christianity." Grand Duke Vladimir was prompted to this not only by religious enthusiasm. He was guided, of course, by state considerations, for for the Russian people, Christianization meant familiarization with the high culture of Christian peoples and a more successful development of their cultural and state life.

Kievan Rus had long-standing ties with Christian Byzantium, from where Eastern Orthodoxy had already penetrated into Russia. Apparently, in order to more successfully implement his plans and hoping to get the necessary help from Byzantium, especially in organizing church administration and developing spiritual culture, Prince Vladimir becomes related to the Byzantine emperors (co-rulers) Basil II (976-1025) and Constantine (976-1025). 1028) in Chersonese (Korsun) on their sister Anna. Returning to Kiev with his Greek wife, the Greek clergy, bringing to his capital city various church utensils and shrines - crosses, icons, relics, Prince Vladimir began the official introduction of Christianity in Russia.

Baptism of the people of Kiev by Prince Vladimir.

First of all, Prince Vladimir baptized 12 of his sons and many boyars. He ordered the destruction of all idols, the main idol - Perun, to be thrown into the Dnieper, and the clergy to preach a new faith in the city. On the appointed day, a mass Baptism of the people of Kiev took place at the place where the Pochaina River flows into the Dnieper.

“The very next day,” says the chronicler, “Vladimir went out with the priests of the tsaritsyns and the Korsuins to the Dnieper, and people gathered there without number. Enter the water and stand there, some up to the neck, others up to the chest, young ones near the shore up to the chest, some they kept babies, and already adults wandered, the priests prayed, standing still. And joy was visible in heaven and on earth over so many souls being saved... and his people, looked up into heaven and said, "Christ God, who made heaven and earth! Look at these new people and let them, Lord, know You, the true God, as the Christian countries have known You. Establish in them a right and unswerving faith and help me, Lord, against the devil, so that I can overcome his wiles, hoping for You and Your strength.

Baptism of Vladimir. Fresco by V.M. Vasnetsov, Vladimir Cathedral in Kiev

Baptism of Russia

Baptism of Russia

Baptism of Russia - the process of adoption and spread of Christianity in the Grand Duchy of Russia,.

The key event was the mass baptism in 988 of the inhabitants of Kiev, and later of other cities of the state, by Prince Vladimir I Svyatoslavich, as a result of which Christianity became the leading religion in Russia.

The establishment of Christianity in Russia is a long and complex process that stretched over many centuries, passing through several important stages: the spontaneous penetration of Christian ideas and values ​​into the pagan environment, the struggle of Christianity and other world religions for spheres of influence, the proclamation of Christianity as the state religion of Kievan Rus, the confrontation pagan society of the new ideology.

The first ruler of Russia, who officially adopted Christianity, was the widow of Prince Igor, Princess Olga. During her stay in Constantinople in 957, a lot of effort was made to obtain the highest state title of "daughter" of the emperor, for which Olga was baptized privately (most likely in Kiev, in 955). In her retinue, Olga had the presbyter Gregory, as Konstantin Porphyrogenitus narrates in detail. Upon her return from Constantinople, the princess begins to pursue a line of limiting the influence of paganism in the state, destroying the "tremors of demons" and building a wooden church of St. Sophia. However, Olga's measures did not give the desired results.

First, having received no political advantage from Byzantium, she turned her gaze to the West, inviting clerics from the German kingdom. According to German chroniclers, the ambassadors of Princess Olga in 959 "asked to consecrate a bishop and priests for this people." In response, an embassy was sent to Russia, headed by Bishop Adalbert. However, already in 962 he returned with nothing.

Secondly, attempts to preserve their own identity between the West and the East led to the fact that paganism was periodically restored in Kievan-Russian society. Olga's activities did not find support and understanding in her immediate environment. Even the son Svyatoslav, despite the persuasion of his mother, refuses to accept Christianity, but his sons Yaropolk and Oleg were probably already Christians.

Only Prince Vladimir the Great was able to continue the work of his grandmother - to baptize Kievan Rus and proclaim Christianity as the state religion. Having come to power with the help of the Varangian squad and the pagan elite, Vladimir introduced a pagan pantheon of gods for their interests. On the site of the old temple, where the idol of Perun stood, six gods of different tribes appear - Perun, Dazhdbog, Khors, Stribog, Simargla, Mokosh. But a little later, Vladimir, convinced that a new faith was needed to strengthen the state and its prestige, decided to convert to Christianity and baptize all his people.

Baptism took place at a time of weakening of the internal political situation in the Byzantine Empire. In the second half of the 80s of the X century. An extremely dangerous anti-government uprising begins in the East of the empire, led by Varda Foka and supported by the population of Tavria. The difficult situation in which the emperor of Byzantium found himself forced him to turn to Kiev with a request for military assistance. The conditions under which Kiev agreed to help Byzantium were dictated by Vladimir. Behind them, the Kiev prince pledged to help the emperor suppress the uprising, and for this he must give his sister Anna to Vladimir and contribute to the baptism of the population of the Kiev state. At the same time, Vladimir was initially refused, and only the capture of the Byzantine colony of Khersones (Korsun) forced Byzantium to conclude this deal.

The army of Vladimir defeated the rebels in Byzantium, and in the summer of 988, Grand Duke Vladimir Svyatoslavovich was baptized in the church of St.. Jacob in Chersonese and married Anna. At the end of the summer, he returned to Kiev with his new wife and ordered everyone to accept the new faith. The baptism of the people of Kiev, according to the chronicle, took place on the river. Pochaina, a tributary of the Dnieper.

According to legend, on the first day after baptism, Vladimir ordered the idols to be thrown down, cut down and burned. The statue of Perun was tied to the tail of a horse and dragged to the Dnieper - twelve people beat him with iron. They threw the figure into the river and the prince ordered: "Wherever it gets stuck, beat it off the shore, only when it crosses the rapids - then leave it." And Perun swam along the Dnieper and lingered far beyond the rapids, in a place that was later called Perun's Pebble. On the places where the idols of the gods stood, they built Christian churches or pilgrims, as they were sometimes called.

After the official baptism of the people of Kiev in 988, Christianity became the state religion of Kievan Rus. The Christianization of Russia went gradually along the waterways, at first it was accepted by large settlements, later by the province. Not everywhere this process took place without resistance, as in Kiev. The main resistance was provided by the ministers of the pagan cult - the "wizards", whose influence on the southern lands of Russia was insignificant. But in the north, in Novgorod, Suzdal, Beloozerye, they incited the population to open protests against Christian priests. For a long time, some elements of the pagan faith, mainly rituals, coexisted with Christianity (the so-called dual faith).

To regulate church life in his state, Vladimir issued a Charter, appointing a tithe for the maintenance of the church, and defined the rights of the clergy. Thus, Vladimir tried to give a structural design to a new religion, like the Byzantine one. The Metropolitan of Kiev was at the head of the church. In large cities there were bishops who decided all the church affairs of their dioceses. Metropolitans and bishops owned lands, villages and cities. The church had its own army, court and legislation. The first metropolitan, which is mentioned in written sources, was the Greek Theotempt.

With the adoption of Christianity in Russia, writing spread. Vladimir founded schools, built churches, first in Kiev, and later in other cities.

According to the Tale of Bygone Years, Russia was baptized under Prince Vladimir in 986-988 AD. In 986, ambassadors from different lands came to Vladimir, offering him to accept their faith. Thus began preparations for the baptism of Russia. The year of the baptism of Russia, according to the Tale of Bygone Years, is 988.

It is said that only since that time did a Christian church hierarchy appear in Russia, and initially it consisted of foreign Greeks. And only a few decades later, under Yaroslav the Wise, the first Russian metropolitan appeared, and church books were translated from Greek into Slavonic. All this tells us the Romanov version of Russian history, created in the 17th-18th centuries. This is the version we are used to.

However, let's see how the baptism of Russia is described in the canonical church books of the first half of the 17th century. Let us take the Great Catechism printed in Moscow under Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov and Patriarch Filaret in 1627. This book has a special section "On the baptism of the Russian people", sheets 27-29.

In what year was the baptism of Russia?

It turns out that the baptism of Russia is described here COMPLETELY DIFFERENT than we used to think. The Great Catechism does not unequivocally indicate the year of the baptism of Russia. He claims that there was FOUR baptism of Russia.

FIRST- from the Apostle Andrew.

SECOND baptism - from the Patriarch Photius of Constantinople, “during the reign of the Greek king, Basil the Macedonian, and under the Grand Duke Rurik of All Russia. And under the Kiev princes under Askold and Dir ", sheet 28, turnover.

Neither for the first nor for the second baptism, the Great Catechism DOES INDICATE the year of the baptism of Russia. And this is written at the beginning of the seventeenth century!

THIRD the baptism of Russia in the Great Catechism is dated. It happened, according to the Catechism, under Grand Duchess Olga, in 6463, that is, around 955 AD. We will not discuss here why the Catechism itself translates this date into the era from the birth of Christ in a slightly different way. Namely, he indicates the year 963 AD. This is probably due to the dating of the Nativity of Christ regarding the era “from the creation of the world”, which was not yet settled at that time.

FOURTH the baptism of Russia is the famous baptism under Prince Vladimir. The year of the baptism of Russia by Vladimir is dated in the Great Catechism to the year 6497, that is, about 989 AD. (and we have accepted 988!). Here is what the Catechism says: “So commanded that all the land of Ruste be baptized. in the summer, six thousand UCHZ (that is, 496 in Slavic notation for numbers - Auth.). from the saints, the patriarch, from NIKOLA HRUSOVERTA, or from SISINIUS. or from Sergius, Archbishop of Novgorod, under Mikhail Metropolitan of Kiev, sheet 29.

Today this description sounds extremely strange. How so? After all, we seem to “know” that before the baptism, Russia was Pagan. We are assured that no Russian church hierarchy existed. Prince Vladimir allegedly had to bring the first Christian priests from abroad. And the Great Catechism of the seventeenth century declares that the baptism of Russia takes place under Archbishop Sergius of Novgorod and Metropolitan Michael of Kiev.

New information from an old book

This means that at least the Novgorod and Kiev church hierarchies already exist in Russia. However, as one would expect, in the Scaligerian-Romanov history there are no archbishops of Novgorod and metropolitans of Kiev under Vladimir. As we are told today, all this is “medieval fiction”. In this case, the alleged fantasies of the Greater Catechism.

But then the next question arises.

It turns out that in the seventeenth century no one really knew how Russia was baptized?

But back to the story of the Greater Catechism. It reveals new interesting facts. Let's start with the DATE OF THE BAPTISM of Russia. According to our research, the year of the baptism of Russia overlaps with the 15th century.

This is a well-known epoch of great schism in the church. According to the new chronology, it was in the 15th century that the more or less united Christian church split into several branches.

Therefore, in the epoch of the 15th century, the secular authorities REALLY HAVE THE QUESTION OF THE CHOICE OF FAITH. Note that the baptism of Russia under Prince Vladimir in the Tale of Bygone Years is described in this way. Not just like baptism, but exactly how CHOICE OF FAITH. But then it becomes clear, at first glance, a strange circumstance that Russia had to be baptized SEVERAL TIMES.

If we consider that each baptism was a transition from paganism to Christianity, then a rather strange picture emerges. At least in the history of other countries, we do not see anything like this. Who else had to be baptized four times? But if we consider the successive baptisms of Russia as a choice of faith in this or that religious schism, then the picture becomes completely natural.

Who baptized Russia?

It also becomes clear the strange, at first glance, enumeration of the hierarchs who baptized Russia. It is said that the faith was received from Nikola Khrusovert, OR from Sisinius, OR from Sergius. If here are listed the persons who DIRECTLY took part in the baptism of a pagan country, then why OR? Then it would be necessary to use the union I. And if they did not take a direct part in the actions, then why mention their names?

But if the baptism of Russia is a CHOICE OF FAITH, then everything falls into place. During the religious schism, some of the hierarchs joined one religious branch, and some joined another. Therefore, in order to indicate which particular faith, branch was chosen, it was necessary to name the main church leaders of this particular chosen branch. There could have been several. And since they all agreed with each other, then the use of the union OR was justified here.

Faith was accepted from that, OR from that, OR from that. Which is basically the same thing. Thus, the use of the union OR here by the Great Catechism indirectly alludes to the situation of the CHURCH SCIENCE.

Let's take a closer look at the year of the baptism of Russia, at the date itself, at how it is recorded. It contains the Slavic letter U, meaning FOUR Hundred. But it is known that in many old texts the letter U was written almost indistinguishably from the letter C. The difference in the spelling of U and C was reduced to subtle details. So, that is, almost coinciding, these letters were written in most of the old texts. Many examples of such a very similar spelling of U and C can be seen, for example, in the numerous illustrations given in the book.

True, when these letters were encountered in the text, the letter U in this form, as a rule, was written in tandem with the letter O. That is, they wrote OU, but read it as U. Therefore, the indistinguishability of the form U and C usually did not lead to confusion when READING TEXT. But when using the letters U and C as a NUMBERS, confusion immediately began. Since there was no additional letter O written here. And in their form, the letters U and C practically did not differ.
And they belonged to the same category, namely, to the category of hundreds.

1000 years of the baptism of Russia or 500 years

In connection with such confusion, the year of the baptism of Russia is obviously erroneously determined to be exactly FIVE HUNDRED years. The fact is that the letter C meant 900, and the letter U meant 400. It was worth taking the letter C for the letter U, as the date immediately became older by FIVE HUNDRED years. And there was nothing to confuse them. Thus, if in some Slavic date hundreds are indicated by the letter Y, then this date could well be in the original old document FIVE HUNDRED years later. Because in the old, original document there could be the letter C. Mistakenly taken by a later scribe for the letter U.

It is this situation that arises on the date of the baptism of Russia. This date 6497 contains the letter U = 400. If in the original old text there was C = 900, then the date was 6997. That is, 1489 AD. Consequently, instead of the year 989 AD that we are used to today, it is possible that in the original old document the baptism of Russia was dated 1489 AD. That is, - THE END OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. And the previous baptism of Russia under Olga then moves to the MIDDLE OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.

But after all, the largest reform of the Russian church dates back to the fifteenth century. Directly connected with the religious schism, the famous Council of Florence, the failed church union. This story is well known to everyone, described in numerous textbooks on the history of the church. Today, this reform is presented to us as an important, but still not a key moment in Russian church history. We are considering the version that the year of the baptism of Russia is actually directly related to the time of the split of the church.

But the CONTEMPORARIES OF THIS EVENT wrote, for example, the following interesting things. A.V. Kartashov reports:<<Симеон Суздалец в своей «Повести» уподобляет Василия Васильевича не только его прародителю СВЯТОМУ ВЛАДИМИРУ, но и самому равноапостольному великому царю КОНСТАНТИНУ, «СОТВОРИВШЕМУ ПРАВОСЛАВИЕ»>> .

Vasily Vasilyevich or Vladimir!?

Vasily Vasilyevich is the Grand Duke Vasily II the Dark, who lived just in the 15th century. It turns out that it was this era that was described by the Tale of Bygone Years as the last BAPTISM OF RUSSIA UNDER PRINCE VLADIMIR. Recall, by the way, that the godfather name of St. Vladimir was just VASILY. This is well known and noted, among other things, in the Large Catechism, folio 29.

But then a natural desire arises to figure out who are Nikola Khrusovert, Sisinius and Sergius - the archbishop of Novgorod, whose faith was chosen in Russia at her baptism. In the Millerian-Romanov textbook, in the alleged 10th century, where the baptism of Russia is placed today, there is, of course, no archbishop of Novgorod Sergius. And indeed. What kind of Orthodox archdiocese can there be in "pagan Novgorod"? Novgorod "is still going to be baptized."

However, let us turn to the 15th century. And let's look for named figures in this era. It turns out that they really are here and, moreover, WELL KNOWN.

Baptists of Russia

Nikola Hrusovert

This is most likely the famous Nicholas of Cusa - Nicolaus Chryppfs Cusanus, who lived in 1401-1464. It is considered "the greatest of the German humanists ... theologian, philosopher, mathematician and church and public figure", v.2, p.212. His nickname CUSAN is believed to be derived from the VILLAGE of CUSAN, where he was from.

Although it is not very clear why the nickname Kuzansky reflected the name of an unknown VILLAGE, and not, say, the province or country where he was from. In our opinion, the nickname KUZANSKY rather meant KAZANSKY. That is, they come from the city of Kazan, famous in the fifteenth century.

It becomes clear where his name HRUSOVERT came from, which got on the pages of the Great Catechism. It turns out that Nicholas of Cusa also bore the name CHRYPPFS, see above, which in old Russian could sound like CHRUS. Where did the word VERT come from in the name HRUSO-VERT? The following explanation is possible. It turns out that Nicholas of Cusa wrote an essay on the ROTATION of the earth, in which, as it is believed, he “anticipated Copernicus by 100 years”, v.2, p.212. But then the word VERT simply refers to his discovery of the ROTATION of the Earth, from the word TURN.

That is, CHRUSOVERT is "CHRUS, who proved that the Earth SPIN". Or, even more simply, "THE CHRISTIAN who proved that the Earth TURNS". Moreover, according to the Great Catechism, he was one of the founders of the Christian Orthodox dogma of the 15th century. Therefore, his nickname CHRUS could mean CHRISTIAN, from the name of CHRIST = HORUS. As we begin to understand, it was during his time, or shortly after him, that Grand Duke Vladimir = Vasily baptized Russia.

Sisiniy

Who is Sisinius in the 15th century - the second church leader of the era of the baptism of Russia? We did not find in the encyclopedia "Christianity" any known SISYNIA in the 15th century. On the other hand, we found ZOSIMA in it, one of the most famous Russian saints, the founder of the famous Solovetsky Monastery. Zosima died in 1478. Isn't Zosima mentioned in the Large Catechism under the name Sisinius?

In addition, it turns out that it was in the year of the baptism of Russia, 1489 (according to our research), that the Moscow Metropolitan Gerontius died, and soon his successor, Metropolitan ZOSIMA, was appointed, v.1, p.387. The history of Metropolitan Zosima is complex, confusing and took place in an atmosphere of turbulent church turmoil. Its details are poorly known, v.1, p.562. It is possible that SISINY of the era of the baptism of Russia, according to the Great Catechism, is the Moscow Metropolitan ZOSIMA of the late 15th century.

Archbishop of Novgorod Sergius

What can be said about Sergius, Archbishop of Novgorod, who is also named among the persons who determined the baptism of Russia, according to the Great Catechism? Only one famous Russian saint is suitable for this role - SERGIUS OF RADONEZH. Although his death today dates back to the end of the 14th century, he was canonized in 1452, volume 2, p.553.

That is, exactly in the era of the “fourth baptism of Russia” under Prince Vladimir = Vasily. And the time of the life of Sergius of Radonezh falls into the era of the beginning of the church schism, which began, according to our reconstruction, at the end of the 14th - beginning of the 15th century.

So, the year of the baptism of Russia is 1489 from the Nativity of Christ

G.V.NOSOVSKY, A.T.FOMENKO. (C) ATMA.ru source: http://my.atma.ru/?id=184

Baptism of Russia- the introduction of Christianity as a state religion in Kievan Rus, carried out at the end of the 10th century by Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich. Sources give conflicting indications of the exact time of the baptism. Traditionally, following the chronicle chronology, the event is usually attributed to the year 988 and considered the beginning of the official history of the Russian Church (some researchers believe that the baptism of Russia took place later: in 990 or 991).

The Christianization of the peoples of the Russian Empire was a long and difficult process that continued for 9 and subsequent centuries.

Term and concept

The expression "Baptism of Russia" is in the "Tale of Bygone Years":

In the Russian historiography of the New Age, the term was first used by V. N. Tatishchev (“baptism of the Slavs and Russia”) and N. M. Karamzin (“baptism of Russia”). Along with it, the terms “Enlightenment of Russia”, “introduction of Christianity”, “reform of Vladimir”, etc., are also used with equal justification in the literature.

background

A number of authors consider it a completely established fact that the princes Askold and Dir, with the "bolyars" and a certain number of people, were baptized, since during the campaign against Constantinople they were frightened by the power of the Patriarch of Constantinople, who, according to legend, lowered the holy relics into the water, and most of The fleet immediately sank during the storm that rose at the same second. Byzantine sources describe the moment of the baptism of the Russians in the period 842-867, according to other sources in the time of Basil I (867-886) and Patriarch Ignatius (867-877).

“When this bishop arrived in the capital of the Russians,” finally, thirds narrate, “the tsar of the Russians hastened to gather a veche. They began to talk about their own and Christian faith, invited the archpastor and asked him what he intended to teach them.The bishop opened the Gospel and began to preach before them about the Savior and His miracles, mentioning together the many different signs performed by God in the Old Testament. , listening to the evangelist, they said to him: "If we do not see anything similar, especially similar to what, according to you, happened to the three youths in the cave, we do not want to believe." The servant of God did not hesitate, but, remembering the words Christ's: If you ask anything in My name, I will do it (Jn. 14:14); believe in Me, works, even Ae I create, and he will create (Jn. 14, 12), of course, in the case when this is asked not for vanity, but for the salvation of souls, boldly answered the pagans: “Although you should not tempt the Lord, however, if you sincerely decide to turn to Him, ask what you want, and He will fulfill everything according to your faith, no matter how insignificant we are before His majesty." They asked that the very book of the Gospel be thrown into the fire, deliberately diluted, vowing to turn to the Christian God without fail, if it remained unharmed in the fire. Then the bishop, raising his eyes and hands to the mountain, called out in a loud voice: "Lord, Jesus Christ, our God! Glorify even now your holy name before the eyes of this people," and cast the sacred book of the Testament into a blazing fire. Several hours passed, the fire consumed all the material, and the Gospel turned out to be completely whole and undamaged on the ashes; even the ribbons with which it was fastened were preserved. Seeing this, the barbarians, struck by the greatness of the miracle, immediately began to be baptized.

At the end of the 9th century, the Russian diocese was already listed in the lists of the bishoprics of Constantinople, first in the 61st, then in the 60th place. These events are sometimes called the first (Fotiev, or Askold's) baptism of Russia.

The wife of Prince Igor was a Christian - the grandmother of Prince Vladimir, Princess Olga (+ July 11, 969). Although there are different opinions about the exact time and place of her baptism, it is generally accepted, according to later studies, that she was baptized in Constantinople in 957. Reliable information about the reception by Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus, who is considered to be her successor, is contained in his treatise "On Court Ceremonies". The absence of a mention of her baptism in the treatise gives reason to some researchers to assume that she could already be a Christian by that time; the treatise mentions a certain “presbyter Gregory” in her retinue, in whose person some are inclined to see her confessor.

According to V. N. Tatishchev (based on the controversial Joachim Chronicle), the Kiev prince (972-978 or 980) Yaropolk Svyatoslavich, who was killed by the Varangians on the orders of his brother St. Vladimir, showed sympathy for Christians and Christianity.

According to The Tale of Bygone Years, before the baptism of Prince Vladimir, a “test of faith” took place: Vladimir was offered, in particular, Islam from the Volga Bulgaria, Judaism from the Khazars and Christianity. All of them were rejected by the prince for various reasons.

Baptism of Prince Vladimir and the people of Kiev

According to The Tale of Bygone Years, in 6496 “from the creation of the world” (that is, approximately in 988 AD), the Kievan prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich decided to be baptized by the Church of Constantinople. After that, in the reign of the Emperors Basil II and Constantine VIII of the Porphyrogenic, the clergy sent by the Patriarch of Constantinople Nicholas II Chrysoverg baptized the people of Kiev in the waters of the Dnieper and (or) Pochaina. According to the Russian chronicle Tale of Bygone Years, the prince, during the baptism of his people, offered the following prayer:

Many historians attribute the baptism of Vladimir himself to 987. According to Byzantine and Arabic sources, in 987 Constantinople concludes an alliance with Russia to suppress the rebellion of Varda Foka. The condition of the prince was the hand of Princess Anna, the sister of the Emperors Basil and Constantine, a requirement extremely humiliating for the Romean basileus. Then, at the height of the war with Varda Foka, Vladimir attacked Korsun and captured it, threatening Constantinople. The emperors agree to give Anna to the prince, subject to the preliminary baptism of Vladimir, who is called the name of Vasily - in honor of his successor, Emperor Vasily II; Vladimir, “far away for the vein of Korsun by the Greek queen dividing” (in the vein for his wife).

From the Byzantine chronicles about the "baptism of Russia" in 988, only "Anonymous Banduri" is reported, in which the plot about the choice of faiths by Prince Vladimir is conveyed, and the "Vatican Chronicle":

The last message is probably a reverse translation from The Tale of Bygone Years. On the whole, in Byzantine literature, the event of 988 remained practically unnoticed, since, according to the Greeks, the conversion of Russia took place a century earlier.

The first Russian by origin, Metropolitan Hilarion of Kiev (XI), explains the motives of Prince Vladimir in this way:<…>and mind in his heart, as if to understand the vanity of idol flattery and seek the one God, who created all creation, visible and invisible. More often, he would always hear about the goodness of the land of Grechsk, Christ-loving and strong in faith, how the one God in the Trinity is honored and bowed down, how strength and miracles and signs are in them, how people are full of churches, how good all the weights and cities stand in prayers , all the Gods stand. And hearing this, she longed in her heart, burned in spirit, as if he were a Christian and his land.

Establishment of a church organization in Kiev

In the 20th century, some church historians (M. D. Priselkov and A. Kartashev) put forward and supported the hypothesis that under Vladimir the Kiev Church was in canonical dependence on the Ohrid hierarchy of the Bulgarian Church, which at that time allegedly had autocephaly (which was not corresponds to generally accepted facts), most researchers are not inclined to share it.

Several different names of the first Metropolitan of Kiev appear in Russian chronicle sources. In the Russian Church in the 16th century, a tradition was established to consider him the Greek (or Syrian) Metropolitan Michael (Syrian), who in the Menologion is called the “first Metropolitan of Kiev”. Metropolitan Michael is credited with the merit of founding the Zlatoverkho-Mikhailovsky monastery in Kiev, and the monks who arrived with him - the foundation of the monastery, which later received the name of Kiev-Mezhigorsky.

Baptism of other Russian lands

It is known that the first episcopal sees, besides Kiev, were Novgorod, and also, possibly, Chernigov and Vladimir-Volyn and Belgorod (now the village of Belogorodka near Kiev), Pereyaslav diocese.

In parts of the territories, Christianity was planted by force; at the same time, religious buildings of the pagans were destroyed, those who resisted were subjected to repression.

According to some chronicle evidence, Novgorod actively resisted the introduction of Christianity: it was baptized in 990 by Bishop Joachim with the military assistance of the Kiev voivode Dobrynya (brother of Prince Vladimir's mother - Malusha) and the thousand Putyata.

In Rostov and Murom, resistance to the introduction of Christianity, according to traditional church history, continued until the 12th century: the first two bishops sent to Rostov were expelled, and the third - St. Leontius - died at the hands of the pagans in 1073 (according to the prologue, in 993). Rostovites were baptized only by Bishop Isaiah († May 15, 1090), who ascended the cathedra in 1078. By the 1070s, apparently, the events described in the "Life" of Abraham of Rostov, in particular, the crushing of the idol of Veles, on the site of which the Epiphany Monastery was erected, also belong.

According to the Icelandic sagas, Polotsk was baptized around 1000 by the Icelandic Christian Viking Thorvald Kodransson, who received from the Emperor of Constantinople Basil II a letter of "plenipotentiary representative of Byzantium in the Russian cities of the Eastern Baltic."

Consequences of adopting Christianity

Civilizational value

The civilizational significance of the baptism of Russia is difficult to overestimate. The well-known philologist V. N. Toporov, assessing the significance of the adoption of Christianity for Russian civilization, writes:

These two events [the adoption of Christianity by Russia and Lithuania], which played an exceptional role in the history of these countries and predetermined their place in history for many centuries, should also be regarded as events of a universal nature ... The adoption of Christianity in Russia not only introduced to the Christian world the most extensive and the most remote part of a single space - Eastern Europe, but thus in the historically near future opened up a new huge world, which was to be Christianized with the help of Russian Christians, "workers of the eleventh hour" ... And whatever the subsequent fate of Christianity in Eastern Europe, its heritage has become an indispensable part of spiritual culture here, too, perhaps especially here.

Political implications

The baptism of Russia took place before the final split of the Western and Eastern churches, but at a time when it had already fully matured and received its expression both in dogma and in the relationship between church and secular authorities.

In the Byzantine church-state legal consciousness, the Emperor ( Basileus) was conceived as the Guardian and Supreme Defender of Orthodoxy (epistimonarch), and, consequently, the single autocrat (autocrator) of all Orthodox peoples. The rulers of other Christian peoples (states) received from him the titles of archons, princes, stewards. Thus, having been baptized by the Romans (Byzantines), Vladimir included Russia in the orbit of Byzantine statehood.

So, the Kiev Grand Duke in the XII century in Constantinople assimilated the modest court title of stolnik. The Kiev Metropolis in the Constantinople diptychs occupied a place among the latter: in the oldest of them - 61st, and in the later one, compiled under Andronicus II Palaiologos (1306-1328) - 77th.

Metropolitan Platon (Levshin) at the beginning of the 19th century saw special significance in the adoption of Christianity from Constantinople (and not Rome): “Russia is obliged to send great thanksgiving to the Shepherd Christ, that it did not embrace it with the darkness of the West, that is, that it did not undergo the yoke of the Western Roman Church , where already at this time, according to many superstitions and the appropriation of the Popes to themselves unlimited power, and according to the spirit in everything worldly, and not in the Gospel, everything was almost transformed. The Lord has freed us from these snares; although the West, by the efforts of the Antichrist, tried in every possible way to subdue us, as later this will be more visible.

Cultural implications

The adoption of Christianity contributed to the development of architecture and painting in its medieval forms, the penetration of Byzantine culture as the heir to the ancient tradition. The spread of Cyrillic writing and the book tradition was especially important: it was after the baptism of Russia that the first monuments of ancient Russian written culture arose.

The adoption of Christianity as the state religion inevitably entailed the liquidation of pagan cults, which had previously enjoyed grand ducal patronage.

The clergy condemned pagan rites and festivities (some of them persisted for a long time due to the fact that some researchers qualify as religious syncretism or dual faith). Religious buildings were destroyed - idols, temples.

At the same time, it is interesting that, judging by the sources, the pagan spiritual elite was subjected to repressions only if they initiated unrest, uprisings or separatism. According to some researchers, relying on the Tale of Bygone Years, the "revolt of the Magi" in Vladimir-Suzdal Rus in 1024 (and also in 1071) was accompanied by actions and murders that had a ritual character. Yaroslav the Wise "cruelly dealt with the Magi, putting things in order in the tributary areas"; in the 1070s in Novgorod, the sorcerer was killed by the retinue of Prince Gleb (“it was a religious and everyday conflict, intertwined with the struggle against the power of Kiev”).

It is believed that the beginning of the year after the adoption of Christianity in Kiev began to count from March 1, and not from the new moon after the day of the vernal equinox, as before.

In church historiography (Church history)

In the calendar of the Russian Church there has never been and there is no holiday (remembrance) in honor of the events of 988-989. Until the beginning of the 19th century, there was no history of the Russian Church in Russia as a scientific branch or academic discipline: the first systematic work was the Brief Russian Church History by Metropolitan Platon (Levshin) of Moscow (Moscow, 1805, 2 hours). The church historian of the beginning of the 21st century, V. I. Petrushko, wrote: “It is amazing, but the Greek authors do not even mention such an epoch-making event as the baptism of Russia under St. Vladimir. However, the Greeks had their own reasons: the diocese of Rosia was formally opened a century earlier."

Russian church-historical literature of the 19th - early 20th century usually considered the history of Christianity in Russia and the Russian Church starting from the 1st century, linking it with the activities of the Apostle Andrew the First-Called. Thus, one of the most authoritative church historians of the late 19th century, E.E. Vladimir". The most authoritative Russian church historian, Metropolitan Macarius (Bulgakov), devotes the first 2 parts of his main work to the history of Christianity in Russia until 988. To refer to what happened in Kiev at the end of the 10th century, various terms were used (that is, there was no established, clichéd terminology): “the common Russian baptism under St. Vladimir”, “the conversion of Prince Vladimir”, “the final arrangement of the Orthodox Church in Russia under Saint Vladimir and Yaroslav. Prince Vladimir himself was usually called the "enlightener", as he is also called in the akathist to him compiled at the end of the 19th century.

The official publication of the Moscow Patriarchate in 1971 wrote: “According to legend, the rays of the Christian faith illuminated the borders of Russia already in the first decades of Christianity. This tradition connects the beginning of the Christianization of Russia with the name of the holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called, who was on the Kiev mountains.<…>In 954 Princess Olga of Kiev was baptized. All this prepared the greatest events in the history of the Russian people - the baptism of Prince Vladimir and the subsequent baptism of Russia in 989. The indication of 989 (rather than 988) corresponded to the prevailing point of view in Soviet historical science at that time that the event took place after 988.

However, in the "Orthodox Church Calendar" for 1983, when preparations began for the celebration of the "1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Russia", the year 988 was indicated, and the event was given the significance of the beginning of the process: "The baptism of Kiev in 988 marked the beginning of the establishment of Christianity throughout the Russian land ".

legally official Civil Charter of the Russian Orthodox Church, registered with the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on May 30, 1991 (later ones were not published), read: “The Russian Orthodox Church leads its historical existence from the Baptism of Russia, which took place in 988 in Kiev under Grand Duke Vladimir.”

There were several points of view on the introduction of Christianity as an official religion in Soviet (until 1985) historical science, from negative to generally (with reservations) positive.

Thus, in a book published in 1930 Church and the idea of ​​autocracy in Russia the following is said about the baptism of Russia: “Orthodoxy, brought to us from Byzantium, broke and ruined the violent pagan spirit of the wild freedom-loving Russian, kept the people in ignorance for centuries, was an extinguisher in Russian public life of true enlightenment, killed the poetic creativity of the people, drowned out the sounds of a living song in it , freedom-loving impulses for class liberation. By drinking and toadying themselves, the ancient Russian clergy taught the people to drunkenness and sycophancy before the ruling classes, and with their spiritual sivuha - sermons and abundant church and book literature, finally created the ground for the complete enslavement of the working people in the power of the prince, boyar and cruel princely official - tiun who performed judgment and reprisals against the oppressed masses.

“A manual on the history of the USSR for preparatory departments of universities” of 1979 edition calls the introduction of Christianity “the second religious reform” of Vladimir I and gives a different assessment: “<…>The adoption of Christianity strengthened the state power and territorial unity of the Old Russian state. It was of great international importance, which consisted in the fact that Russia, having rejected "primitive" paganism, was now becoming equal to other Christian peoples.<…>The adoption of Christianity played a big role in the development of Russian culture.”

Anniversary celebrations

For the first time the anniversary of the event was officially celebrated in the Russian Empire in 1888. The Chronicle of Church Events by Bishop Arseny (Ivashchenko) mentions the opening on July 15 of that year of charitable institutions for the shelter of the old and crippled. Kiev was the center of celebrations; Chief Procurator of the Holy Synod K. P. Pobedonostsev was also present.

In the Russian diaspora, the 950th anniversary of the Baptism of Russia was celebrated.

The 1000th anniversary of baptism was also celebrated in the USSR as an internal church anniversary; the main celebrations were held in Moscow on June 12, 1988 in the Danilov Monastery.

The 1020th anniversary was celebrated in Kiev from July 10 to July 19, 2008 at the church and state levels; Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I and Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia took part in the celebrations (since 2008, the "Day of the Baptism of Kievan Rus - Ukraine" has been declared a public holiday in Ukraine). The anniversary was also celebrated on October 23-25, 2008 in Belarus; The celebrations were led by Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow.

The baptism of Russia by Prince Vladimir in 988 is perhaps the most mysterious episode in the history of the Russian people, which is filled with cruelty and ignorance towards all representatives of the Slavic-Aryan Family. The Baptism of Russia in 988 can rightfully be considered a grandiose falsification of a global scale, which was organized by the Christian Church, European historians and the ruling elites of the Russian Empire of the 17th-18th centuries.

Of course, you can disagree with this and recognize this statement as complete nonsense and nonsense, but nevertheless, we will try to convince you of the opposite.

To begin with, everything that will be written below is a purely personal opinion of the author and is for informational purposes only.

To begin with, let's refresh our memories (according to the official version of history) of such an important event as the BAPTISM OF RUSSIA. According to The Tale of Bygone Years, Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavovich (Vladimir Krasno Solnyshko) did not immediately accept Christianity, but there was a so-called "test of faith."

They were the first to come to Prince Vladimir in 986 AD. envoys from the Volga Bulgars with a proposal to accept Islam, but after all their long persuasion, the prince rejected their proposal, citing too strict rules of this religion.

The Germans came second to Prince Vladimir, who were sent by the Pope with sermons to the Slavic lands. But, despite all the efforts of the preachers, their work was doomed to failure, since they claimed that "If anyone drinks or eats, then all this is for the glory of God." Vladimir answered this statement with a decisive refusal, telling them "Go back from whence you came, for even our fathers did not accept this".

The Khazar Jews were the third to come to him, but here everything was already very clear. Since Vladimir's father, Prince Svetoslav, defeated their native state, the Khazar Khaganate, it was unworthy for Prince Vladimir to shame the memory of his father and accept the faith of his sworn enemies.

The fourth and last to Prince Vladimir was a Byzantine preacher. This preacher told Vladimir about biblical history and the Christian faith, after which Prince Vladimir chose this particular faith, or rather the religion - Christianity according to the Greek type.

And in the summer of 6496 from S.M.Z.Kh. (The Creation of the World in the Star Temple) is 988 A.D. Prince of Kievan Rus decided to be baptized from the Church of Constantinople. After that, clergy were sent from Constantinople, who baptized the inhabitants of Kiev in the waters of the Dnieper and Pochaina, and Vladimir himself was baptized a year earlier - in 987.

Yes, this is a very beautiful story that sounds so sweet and fragrant from the lips of modern priests and historians, but was it really so?

And so, let's get it right!

Under the concept of RUSSIA, which began to be baptized in 988, one must understand KIEVAN RUSSIA, or the PRINCIPALITY OF KIEV, which broke away from the GREAT TARTARIA - the Great Slavic-Aryan state, would be more correct.

And the very same baptism of the people of Kiev, took place far from the way our religious leaders tell us. As it turned out, before the baptism, the population of Kievan Rus was educated, there were schools, almost everyone was literate, i.e. almost the entire population could read, write and count freely, just like you and me. And these are not empty words, there are many confirmations of this even in official history, for example, the very same "birch bark letters".

So, the then inhabitants of Kievan Rus were adherents of the Vedic culture, like the rest of the population of Great Tartaria. That is, they had a Vedic world outlook, which gave people a real understanding of the laws of nature and the structure of the world, which in turn completely denied any religion with its blind belief in any rules and dogmas. Therefore, the people of Kiev refused to voluntarily accept the Greek faith, which Prince Vladimir wanted to impose. But behind Vladimir were great forces who wanted to conquer the proud Slavs and Ruses of Kievan Rus as soon as possible. After that, 12 years of forced Christianization followed, which secured the nickname BLOODY for Prince Vladimir.

In the process of this Christianization, almost the entire adult population of Kievan Rus was destroyed. After all, this religion could be imposed only on unreasonable children who, due to their age, did not understand that they were being turned into simply weak-willed slaves, devoid of spiritual development.

From sources that have come down to our time, it turned out that before the start of Christianization in 988, there were about 300 cities and about 12 million inhabitants on the territory of Kievan Rus, but after it only 30 cities and 3 million tortured inhabitants remained. In fact, in the process of this GENOCIDE of the Slavs and Russ of Kievan Rus, 270 cities were destroyed and 9 million innocent people were killed!!! But despite all the hardships that fell on the heads of the people of Kiev, the Vedic tradition was still not completely destroyed and the so-called unspoken dual faith appeared on the territory of Kievan Rus, which lasted until Nikon's church reform of 1650-1660.

You are probably thinking why the Great Tartaria did not intervene in this, and did not stop this bloody extermination of the fraternal people. Believe me, this event did not go unnoticed, just Tartaria could not fight on two fronts, since its main forces were concentrated on the Far Eastern borders in order to suppress the conflict with Arimia (China). But as soon as the military conflict with the Chinese was over, the troops of Great Tartaria were transferred to the western borders of the empire, and in 1223 they began a military campaign to liberate the fraternal peoples. This event is better known as the Tatar-Mongolian invasion of Kievan Rus by Batu Khan. Now you understand why the united army of Russian princes was completely defeated on the Kalka River and why some Russian princes fought on the side of the "Tatar-Mongol" ?!

So, not knowing the true history of our people, we do not understand the obvious actions of our ancestors. There was no invasion of the Mongol nomads and could not be! The Russian Khan Batu had the task of returning the lost territory back to the Great Tartaria and stopping the invasion of Christian fanatics into Vedic Russia.