Orthodox Christianity has had an immense effect on the culture of Russia. The adoption
of the Orthodox faith from Constantinople by Prince Vladimir in 988 introduced cultural
influences that profoundly affected the Russian consciousness. As the people embraced
Orthodoxy it developed a uniquely Russian flavor and rooted deep in the fertile Russian
soul. Orthodoxy had a major impact on politics, art, and nearly every other aspect of
Russia's culture. Orthodoxy helped forge Russia's world view and defined her place in
the world. The church affected the thought patterns and motivations of a whole culture
and changed the way Russians thought about themselves and the ways that they lived their
lives.
The church acted as a unifying factor for the Russian nation. Church holidays and fasts
enriched and brought meaning to the cycle of seasons and sowing in the subsistence
society. Russians possessed a deep religious faith and from it they derived a sense of
purpose in the universe and the promise of salvation. The church nourished and preserved
the culture of Russia during centuries of internal strife and foreign intervention.
Orthodox people feel a strong sense of community and brotherhood towards one another
through a shared bond of faith. As a result of this emphasis on community, the rights of
the group tend to take precedence over the rights of the individual in Russian culture.
The Orthodox and Catholic faiths had an adversarial relationship for years. As this rift
deepened and grew increasingly antagonistic, the rift between the East and the West also
grew. The difference in religion between Russia and Europe can largely explain the vast
differences that developed in their cultures.
The Tsar of All Russia derived his power and right to rule from his status as God's
chosen representative on earth. As it is God alone who bestowed power on the tsar, it
was in the best interest of the monarchy to protect and promote the church. This
conception of the tsar possessing a divine right to rule contributed to the political
passivity of the Russian people. In the Byzantium tradition the concept of symphonia
defined the relationship between the church and the state and acted as a balance on the
unlimited power of the tsar. As the head of the church and the head of the state, the
metropolitan and the tsar were equals and the metropolitan had the right to censure the
tsar. The dispute between the Possessors and the Non-Possessors challenged the idea of
symphonia, or harmony and cooperation between the pillars of society. The Possessors and
the Non-Possessors held vastly different ideas about the role the church should play in
society and politics. When the philosophy of the Possessors triumphed, the church gained
the right to wealth and serfs at the expense of political influence. The tsar became
superior to the metropolitan, and the regime could now interfere in secular matters of
the church. The release of the tsar from any source of accountability left the tsar with
absolute, unlimited power. The abuses of Ivan the Terrible typify the danger of absolute
rule left unchecked. The Russian people actually believed that God had sent Ivan to rule
Russia as a punishment for her sins. The split between the two factions caused the
losers, the Non-Possessors, to be reviled as heretics. This had a negative effect
because the church came to be represented by a faction instead of through a consensus.
This led to only one set of ideas being developed in the church and the culture and as a
result it lost some of its vitality. The Possessors made ritual sacrosanct. Every
gesture, word, and movement was significant and to deviate from the service in any way
would be heresy. This emphasis in the exterior form of religion over inner exultation
paved the way for another conflict that was to seriously undermine the power of the
church.
The third Rome theory was formulated by the monk Philotheus in the fifteenth century.
He asserted that Russia was the heir and protector of the only true faith. Rome and
Constantinople had both fallen and Moscow was the third and final seat of Orthodoxy.
This theory legitimized the Russian Orthodoxy's power and affirmed that she was no longer
dependent on Constantinople. A church schism occurred in the seventeenth century due to
changes in ritual implemented by the Patriarch Nikon. His attempts to rectify
inconsistencies in the rituals of the Greeks and the Russians were merely to establish
greater solidarity and continuity between the two faiths. Russia was trying to help the
Greeks who were living under Turkish rule since 1439. Russia had a sense of manifest
destiny and she felt that she had been chosen to defend the Eastern Orthodox peoples.
The belief that ritual must be sacrosanct caused the alteration of ritual to be
considered heretical. Those who refused to change their rhythms of worship were called
Old Believers and they were executed and silenced by the authorities. The Old Believers
insisted on following the old forms because they feared committing heresy. The way they
saw the situation was that Rome had fallen because of heresy. Moscow was the last seat
of Orthodoxy and if Russia fell from the grace of God, it would mean the end of the
world. The basic issue in the schism was the relationship between the Russian and
Orthodox churches. Some felt that since Russia had adopted Orthodoxy from Byzantium
she should remain a 'junior partner'. Others felt that it was Russia's destiny to be a
leader and to free her Eastern brethren.
The Orthodox relegion has been essential to the people to bring them a sense of hope and
destiny and a glimpse of heaven on earth. The choice of Orthodoxy was as influential as
the Mongul Yoke on the formation of the Russian character. Orthodoxy brought the people
a lot of joy, created a sense of community, intensified the countries isolation, created
beautiful art, started wars, complicated politics, and best of all, reminded the people
to love each other.
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