August 15, 7533
The heresy of Nikonianism lies in its departure from the historical Orthodox faith that had been continuously upheld in Russia. Everything else stemmed from this event. Following the infamous “Great Moscow Council of 1666,” which anathematized historical Russian Orthodoxy, a separate existence began for the schismatic hierarchy of the Russian Church and part of its…
“And a heavy darkness… then covered Russia.”— Andrey Denisov, Funeral Oration for Peter Prokopyev Ты была ХристоваДо шездесят шестова… (You were Christ’sUntil sixty-six…)— Old Believer spiritual verse, “On the Nikonians” Long before the onset of Nikon’s “ventures” in Russia, when nothing seemed to foreshadow the impending catastrophe that would befall the Russian Church, the first…
As is known, Old Believers refer to the “nominal” finger arrangement used by Nikonite priests during blessings as “Malaksa.” This practice is named after Nikola Malaksa, a native of the city of Nafplion on the Peloponnese peninsula. Nikola was born after 1573 and received his education in Constantinople. Following the Turkish conquest of the region…
At the start of the 21st century, no one disputes that the church schism of the mid-17th century was one of the most tragic and bloody chapters in Russian history. The church reformation, initiated 350 years ago by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and Patriarch Nikon, not only split the Russian Church but also divided Russian history…
“May the Lord bring together those who are divided, so that in love for one another we may confess and glorify with one mouth and one heart the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Consubstantial and Indivisible Trinity.”(From the Acts of the New Ritualist Council of 1971) A few years ago, I asked…
The question of faith—whom to believe in, how to pray correctly, and how to glorify God—was one of the central issues following the schism in the Russian Church in the 17th century. While the ritual differences between Old Believers and New Ritualists have been thoroughly studied in both polemical and scholarly literature, questions of dogmatic…
By Bishop Mikhail (Semyonov) The Old Believers are most frequently accused of “ritualism,” that is, of stubbornly venerating rituals even more than dogma. Their reverence for ritual is often regarded as little less than idolatry. But is ritual really something insignificant, of little importance in the order of spiritual life? We have already written briefly…
By I.A. Kirillov The journal Church has already noted the sorrowful phenomenon of the younger generation of Old Believers growing indifferent to their native rites and customs. This phenomenon is undoubtedly lamentable, yet entirely understandable in our times, especially among students. From all sides, at every crossroads, this youth is loudly bombarded with talk of all manner…
“Such is the grace of the Spirit — it makes those of one mind to be of equal honor.”— St. Gregory the Theologian\ “For all Christian kingdoms shall come to an end and be gathered into one Russian kingdom for the sake of Orthodoxy.”— Dimitry the Interpreter, Tale of the White Klobuk In recent times, certain…
(On the Contemporary Disputes over the Names of God)[Moscow, 1913] Introduction A wondrous fate befell the creation of the former Patriarch of Russia, Nikon. The reforms he instituted resemble, in many respects, that house of which Christ speaks in the Gospel—“and great was the fall of it.” “Everyone who heareth these sayings of Mine,” the…