History of the Russian Orthodox Church — General

Course Plan :

Course title: History of the Russian Orthodox Church

Course audience: The course is intended for people engaged or about to engage in church service in the dioceses of the Orthodox Church, as well as for those interested in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church and, more broadly, the history of Orthodox Christianity in the Eastern Slavic civilization.

Model of teaching: Distance learning course.

Course Purpose and Objectives: The academic discipline “History of Russian Church” has an aim to form students’ understanding of the spread of Christianity in Russia¹, the structure of the Russian Church, its liturgical and canonical system, the relationship between the Church and state power, the role of the Church in public life and its influence on the development of education and culture. The object of the course is the Russian Orthodox Church itself. By the Church we mean a society of people who believe in Christ, united by worship, sacraments, canonical hierarchy. The subjects of the study of the history of the Russian Church in the framework of our review are: the activities of the sacred hierarchy, the actions of the state leadership in relation to the Church, significant events in church life.

Course structure: 16 lessons.

Topic 1

Introduction to the discipline

• The academic discipline “History of the Russian Church”
• Periodization of the history of the Russian Church
• Sources and literature
• Sources and literature. Continue

Topic 2

The Baptism of Rus’²

• The emergence of Christianity on the lands of the future Russian Church
• The pre-history of Bapism of Rus’
• The Baptism of Rus’
• The structure of the Russian Church in the Kiev period.

Topic 3

The Russian Orthodox Church during the Mongol yoke³

• The Mongols’ Ruin of Southern Rus’
• Development of the Orthodox Church in Northern Rus’
• The Russian Church under Metropolitans Kirill II and Maxim

Topic 4

The Russian Church under Metropolitans Peter, Theognost, Alexy and Cyprian

• The Russian Church under Metropolitan Peter
• The Russian Church under Metropolitan Theognost
• The Russian Church under Metropolitan Alexy
• The Russian Church under Metropolitan Cyprian

Topic 5

The Russian Church under Metropolitans Photius and Isidore. The beginning of autocephaly of the Russian Church. The division of the Russian Church into two metropolias.

• The Russian Church under Metropolitan Photius
• The Russian Church under Metropolitan Isidore
• The beginning of autocephaly of the Russian Church⁴
• The division of the Russian Church into two metropolias

Topic 6

The Russian Church during the reign of Great Prince John III. The Russian Church during the reign of Great Prince Basil III and the infancy of John IV

• The Russian Church during the reign of Great Prince John III
• The Russian Church during the reign of Great Prince Vasily III
• The Russian Church during the infancy of John IV

Topic 7

The Russian Church under Metropolitan Makarius. The Russian Church in the last years of John IV’s life.

• The Russian Church under Metropolitan Makarius.
• The Stoglav Synod
• The Russian Church in the last years of Ivan (John) IV’s life.

Topic 8

Establishment of the patriarchate. Patriarchs Job and Hermogenes and their ministry during the Time of Troubles.

• Establishment of the patriarchate⁵
• The Russian Church under the Patriarch Job
• The Russian Church under the Patriarch Hermogenes

Topic 9

The Russian Church under Patriarchs Filaret, Joasaph I and Joseph

• The Russian Church under Patriarch Filaret
• The Russian Church under Patriarch Joasaph I
• The Russian Church under Patriarch Joseph

Topic 10

Patriarch Nikon. The Old Believer’s schism

• The future Patriarch Nikon and his election
• The Russian Church under the Patriarch Nikon
• The Old Believer’s schism

Topic 11

The Russian Church under Patriarchs Joasaph II, Pitirim, Joachim, Adrian

• The Russian Church under Patriarch Joasaph II
• The Russian Church under Patriarch Pitirim
• The Russian Church under Patriarch Joachim
• The Russian Church under Patriarch Adrian

Topic 12

The Russian Orthodox Church in the era of Peter I. Synodal reform. The Russian Orthodox Church during the Palace coups

• The Russian Church in the era of Peter I
• Synodal reform
• The Russian Orthodox Church during the Palace coups

Topic 13

The Russian Orthodox Church during the reigns of Catherine II, Paul I and Alexander I

• The Russian Church during the reign of Catherine II
• The Russian Church during the reign of Paul I
• The Russian Church during the reign of Alexander I

Topic 14

The Russian Orthodox Church under Nicholas I, Alexander II, Alexander III

• The Russian Church during the reign of Nicholas I
• The Russian Church during the reign of Alexander II
• The Russian Church during the reign of Alexander III

Topic 15

The Russian Orthodox Church under Nicholas II. Local Cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church 1917- 1918 . The Russian Orthodox Church in 1917-1940.

• The Russian Church during the reign of Nicholas II
• Local Cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church 1917-1918
• The Russian Orthodox Church in 1917-1940

Topic 16

The Russian Orthodox Church in 1941-1988. The newest period.

• The Russian Orthodox Church in 1941-1957
• The Russian Orthodox Church in 1958-1964
• The Russian Orthodox Church in 1965-1988
• The newest period

Bibliography:

• A. P. Vlasto, The Entry of the Slavs into Christendom: An Introduction to the Medieval History of the Slavs. (Cambridge University Press, 1970)
• John Meyendorff. Byzantium and the Rise of Russia: A Study of Byzantine-Russian relations in the fourteenth century. (Cambridge University Press, 1981)
• Lindsey Hughes. Russia in the Age of Peter the Great. (Yale University Press, 1998)
• Paul Buskovitch⁶. Religion and Society in Russia. (Oxford University Press, 1992)
• Paul Meyendorff, Russia, Ritual & Reform: The Liturgical Reforms of Nikon in the 17th Century. (St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1991)
• Vera Shevzov. Russian Orthodoxy on the Eve of Revolution. (Oxford University Press, 2004)

General news and announcements

The course is intended for people engaged or about to engage in church service in the dioceses of the Orthodox Church, as well as for those interested in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church and, more broadly, the history of Orthodox Christianity in the Eastern Slavic civilization.

Editorial Footnotes

Lesson media

Video lesson available in the offline course archive (not hosted online).

Related Concepts

• 1917-revolution
• 19171940
• anglican-liturgy
• ante-nicene-period
• autocephaly
• avvakum
• canonical-authority
• canonical-independence
• canonical-system
• canonical-territory
• canonical-unity
• canons
• church
• church-autocephaly
• church-governance
• church-history
• church-of-japan
• church-reforms
• church-separatism
• church-turmoil
• church-unity
• conciliar-forms
• constantinople-patriarchate
• course-structure
• dissenters
• enthronement
• finnish-orthodox-church
• florentine-union
• galician-metropolia
• georgian-orthodox-church
• golden-age-of-patristic-literature
• great-catechism
• greek-metropolitans
• hesychast-controversies
• holy-synod
• imperial-period
• imperial-rulers
• kiev-period
• lithuanian-metropolia
• liturgical-reforms
• liturgical-system
• local-church
• local-council
• lords-supper
• metropolia
• metropolis
• metropolitan-isidore
• metropolitan-jonah
• metropolitans-kirill-ii-and-maxim
• metropolitans-photius-and-isidore
• mongol-period
• moscow-church
• moscow-metropolis
• mother-church
• nationalism
• newest-period
• nicholas-ii
• nikons-liturgical-reforms
• northern-rus
• old-rite
• orthodox-church-in-america
• papist-tendencies
• patriarch-nikon
• patriarch-of-constantinople
• patriarchal-enthronement
• patriarchate
• patriarchate-of-constantinople
• patriarchs-job-and-hermogenes
• periodization
• peter-i
• primacy
• primate
• primates
• relations-with-constantinople
• restoration-of-patriarchate
• russian-church
• russian-orthodox-church
• sacraments
• sacred-hierarchy
• saint-job
• solovki-uprising
• sources-and-literature
• southern-rus
• soviet-period
• st-job
• st-metropolitan-jonah
• state-leadership
• synodal-period
• thomos
• time-of-troubles
• ukrainian-church-council
• unia
• worship

Footnotes

1. The terms “Russia” and “Russian Church” are anachronistic for the earliest period the course covers. After the baptism of 988 the church in the lands of Rus’ was organized as the Metropolitanate of Kiev and all Rus’, an ecclesiastical province of the Patriarchate of Constantinople usually headed by Greek metropolitans; a distinct, self-governing “Russian Orthodox Church” centred on Moscow emerged only gradually (de facto from 1448, patriarchate from 1589). Modern scholarship also notes that this Kievan inheritance is claimed in common by the Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian Orthodox traditions, so framing it simply as “Russian” is contested. ↩

2. The “Baptism of Rus’” is traditionally dated to 988 (the baptism of Prince Vladimir/Volodymyr and the Kievans), but historians treat Christianization as a gradual, multi-generational process rather than a single event. Christians were present in Rus’ well before 988: Princess Olga was baptized around 957, a Christian community and church are attested in Kiev under Igor in the 940s, and Byzantine sources describe an earlier “Photian” baptism of Rus’ in the 860s. The 988 date itself is approximate and reconstructed from later chronicles. ↩

3. The “Mongol yoke” (Russian tataro-mongol’skoe igo) is a traditional, nationally charged label largely popularized by nineteenth-century historiography. Many modern historians regard it as an oversimplification: Mongol/Golden Horde rule was exercised indirectly and unevenly, and the Church in particular was granted tax exemptions and protective charters (yarlyki), prospering in ways the term “yoke” obscures. ↩

4. The autocephaly of the Russian (Moscow) Church is conventionally dated to 1448, when a council of Russian bishops elected Jonah metropolitan of Kiev and all Rus’ without the sanction of Constantinople — a break precipitated by Metropolitan Isidore’s acceptance of the Union of Florence (1439). This was a de facto autocephaly; Constantinople did not formally recognize it, and full canonical standing came only with the elevation of Moscow to a patriarchate in 1589 (confirmed by Eastern councils in 1590 and 1593). ↩

5. The Moscow patriarchate was established in 1589, when Patriarch Jeremiah II of Constantinople — then travelling in Russia seeking alms — consecrated Metropolitan Job as the first patriarch of Moscow, in a move engineered largely by Boris Godunov. The act was subsequently confirmed by councils of the Eastern patriarchs in 1590 and 1593, which ranked Moscow fifth in honour, after Jerusalem. ↩

6. The author’s surname is misspelled: the historian is Paul Bushkovitch, and the 1992 Oxford University Press book is Religion and Society in Russia: The Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. ↩