Martyrdom and enslavement of the Russian Orthodox Church (1917-1970)

The Russian Orthodox Church was deprived of a patriarch by the tsar Peter I the Great in 1721 and since then had been ruled by every next monarch. The position of a patriarch was restored in 1917, when the Synod chose Tikhon Biellavin (died in 1925), by secret voting. When the Russian Provisional Government was overthrown by bolsheviks, the new government started to subordinate the Orthodox Church. There were many attempts of destroying the Orthodox Church by pro-government religious groups, deceptional taking over the Orthodox administration, accusing the Patriarch Tikhon, and executing people defending churches during sacral pretiosas depriving action. The Orthodox Church’s independence was cut short in 1927 after the so-called Declaration of Metropolitan Sergei Stragorodski was published. Since then, his opponents had been persecuted, and his supporters had got promoted. The process of the Russian Orthodox Church enslavement ended when the Council of the Russian Orthodox Church Affairs with the security service officer Karpow as a director was established. The Council had its impact on the election of patriarchs Stragorodski and Simansky and bishops nominations. Orthodox churches, theological schools, monasteries, were liquidated massively, the 169 Męczeństwo i zniewolenie Rosyjskiej Cerkwi Prawosławnej w latach 1917-1970 number of dioceses was reduced, as well. On the Karpov’s and the government order, there was an unsuccessful attempt of establishing the Orthodox Vatican in Moscow. Patriarchs Stragorodsky and Simansky ruled according to governmental demands, not faithful people’s needs.

Keywords: The Russian Orthodox Sobor (1917-1918), The Council of the Russian Orthodox Church Affairs, Tichon Biełławin, Sergiej Stragorodzki, Aleksiej Szymański, Piotr Polańskij, Cyryl Smirnow, Józef Petrowych, Georgij Karpow, Włodzimierz Kurojedow, Ewgenij Tuczkow

Abstrakt

Od 1721 roku z woli cara Piotra Wielkiego Rosyjska Cerkiew Prawosławna została pozbawiona patriarchy i na jej czele stawał każdorazowy monarcha. Urząd ten został przywrócony dopiero w 1917 roku, kiedy Synod w tajnym głosowaniu doprowadził do wyboru metropolity T. Biełławina (†1925). Po obaleniu Rządu Tymczasowego przez bolszewików nowe władze podjęły starania o podporządkowanie sobie Cerkwi. W ramach tej inicjatywy podejmowano próby rozbicia Cerkwi przez prorządowe ugrupowania religijne (np. Żywa Cerkiew W. Wwiedienskiego, Ruch georgiewski G. Jackowskiego), podstępne przejęcie administracji cerkiewnej, przygotowania do postawienia przed sądem patriarchy Tichona, wykonanie wyroków śmierci na osobach broniących cerkwi podczas akcji odbierania cerkwiom sakralnych precjozów. Niezależność Cerkwi została złamana w 1927 roku po publikacji tzw. Deklaracji metropolity S. Stragorodz168 kiego. Jego oponenci odtąd byli prześladowani (P. Polańskij, C. Smirnow, J. Petrowych), a lojalni duchowni awansowani. Powołanie tzw. Rady ds. Rosyjskiej Cerkwi Prawosławnej na czele z oficerem władz bezpieczeństwa G. Karpowem zakończyło proces zniewalania Cerkwi. Rada ta manipulowała wyborem patriarchy Stragorodzkiego i A. Szymańskiego oraz nominacjami biskupów. Masowo likwidowano cerkwie, szkolnictwo teologiczne, klasztory, redukowano liczbę diecezji. Na polecenie władz z udziałem Karpowa podjęto nieudaną próbę utworzenia w Moskwie Prawosławnego Watykanu. Zarówno Stragorodzki, jak i Szymański kierowali się głównie żądaniami władz politycznych a nie oczekiwaniami wiernych.

 The Russian Orthodox Church was deprived of a patriarch by the tsar Peter I the Great in 1721 and since then had been ruled by every next monarch. The position of a patriarch was restored in 1917, when the Synod chose Tikhon Biellavin (died in 1925), by secret voting. When the Russian Provisional Government was overthrown by bolsheviks, the new government started to subordinate the Orthodox Church. There were many attempts of destroying the Orthodox Church by pro-government religious groups, deceptional taking over the Orthodox administration, accusing the Patriarch Tikhon, and executing people defending churches during sacral pretiosas depriving action. The Orthodox Church’s independence was cut short in 1927 after the so-called Declaration of Metropolitan Sergei Stragorodski was published. Since then, his opponents had been persecuted, and his supporters had got promoted. The process of the Russian Orthodox Church enslavement ended when the Council of the Russian Orthodox Church Affairs with the security service officer Karpow as a director was established. The Council had its impact on the election of patriarchs Stragorodski and Simansky and bishops nominations. Orthodox churches, theological schools, monasteries, were liquidated massively, the 169 Męczeństwo i zniewolenie Rosyjskiej Cerkwi Prawosławnej w latach 1917-1970 number of dioceses was reduced, as well. On the Karpov’s and the government order, there was an unsuccessful attempt of establishing the Orthodox Vatican in Moscow. Patriarchs Stragorodsky and Simansky ruled according to governmental demands, not faithful people’s needs.